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Thu, 16 June 2016
Rs 2 lakh to anyone who bought tea from Modi: Digvijaya Singh

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23:23   Rs 2 lakh to anyone who bought tea from Modi: Digvijaya Singh
Congress leader Digvijaya Singh today promised a Rs 2 lakh reward to anyone who bought tea from Prime Minister Narendra Modi or studied with him. 

Addressing a party-organised protest rally of farmers, titled 'chai ki charcha' here, he said if anyone who claims that he had studied with Modi at the graduation level, he would give him the reward.
The Congress leader claimed that Modi himself had "once admitted" he was a matriculate but was now claiming to be a graduate. 
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22:39   Used social media to make Kamal Nath quit: Vijaywargiya
A senior BJP leader today claimed social media was used to create a "public outcry" over the "role" of Kamal Nath in 1984 anti-Sikh riots which forced him to quit as the Congress general secretary in-charge of
poll-bound Punjab.

"When I was at the BJP executive meeting in Allahabad recently, I got information that Nath has been made AICC general secretary in-charge for Punjab and Haryana. I quickly used social media to touch upon his involvement in anti-Sikh riots of 1984.
"This led to a public outcry against the senior Congress leader forcing him to quit his new job," Kailash Vijaywargiya said while addressing the two-day BJP State executive meeting which began today at Rewa district.
On Sunday, Nath was appointed as General Secretary and given charge of both Punjab and Haryana. He resigned last night as in charge of Punjab, which goes to polls next year, in the wake of rivals targeting him on the issue of riots.
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21:59   Pro-EU British MP Jo Cox succumbs
Pro-European Union Labour Party member of Parliament Jo Cox, who shot and stabbed multiple times earlier today, has died.

Police added that Cox, the MP for Batley and Spen, had suffered 'serious injuries and is in a critical condition'. She has been taken by helicopter to Leeds General Infirmary, The Guardian reported.

Police also confirmed a man in his late 40s to early 50s nearby suffered slight injuries in the incident. They are also investigating reports that the suspect shouted 'Britain first', a possible reference to the far-right political party of that name, as he launched the attack.

The MP was to celebrate her 42nd birthday on June 22.
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21:11   Not surprised by MHA's decision: Setalvad on cancellation of NGO's licence
Following is the statement by Teesta Setalvad's Sabrang Trust in response to the decision of the Ministry of Home Affairs to cancel its Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act registration.

'Todays order of the Union home ministry cancelling the FCRA registration of Sabrang Trust brings no surprise to its trustees.

In their earlier communications with the home ministry, the trustees had responded to the alleged FCRA violations point-by-point, para-by-para, pointing out how the allegations showed a complete non-application of mind.

That the cancellation order was imminent was apparent from the mere show of a personal hearing granted to Sabrang Trust on April 11, 2016. The hearing was over in less than 10 minutes.

The trustees regret to note that todays order of the home ministry is simply a mechanical reiteration of the very same allegations made earlier, in total disregard to the detailed and reasoned explanations and arguments put forward by the Trust.

Sabrang Trust will actively explore all legal options to challenge the home ministrys order cancelling its FCRA registration.'
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20:45   ISRO to launch record 20 satellites on June 22
Indian Space Research Organisation will launch a record 20 satellites in a single mission on June 22 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C34 will be used to carry the satellites, including India's earth observation spacecraft Cartosat-2, from the Second Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre at 09.25 AM, ISRO said today.

"Mission Readiness Review (MRR) committee and Launch Authorisation Board will meet in the days to come, after reviewing, clearance will be given for the countdown," a senior ISRO official said.

The space agency had earlier sent 10 satellites into orbit in a single mission in 2008.

PSLV-C34 will launch 19 co-passenger satellites together weighing about 560 kg at lift-off into a 505 km polar Sun Synchronous Orbit.

ISRO said the total weight of all the 20 satellites carried on board PSLV-C34 is about 1,288 kg.

The co-passengers include satellites from the US, Canada, Germany and Indonesia as well as two satellites from Indian Universities.

The mission would carry LAPAN A3 of Indonesia, BIROS of Germany, SKYSAT GEN 2-1 of US, MVV of Germany among the micro satellites, ISRO sources had earlier said.
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20:19   Sheila to be Congress CM candidate in UP?
Congress veteran Sheila Dikshit today met party president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi amid speculation that she may be made the party's chief ministerial face for next year's assembly polls in politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh.

Dikshit, who served as Delhi chief minister for three terms, is said to have been sounded by the Congress high command for a leading role in Uttar Pradesh, possibly as the chief ministerial candidate.

She is believed to have sought time to make up her mind.

Congress party's election strategist Prashant Kishor is said to be in favour of a Brahmin face in UP elections and is believed to have suggested Dikshit's name.
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19:58   Udta Punjab online leak: Cops get some leads, no suspect yet
Investigators have obtained some leads in the online leakage case of Bollywood movie Udta Punjab, a senior police officer said today, a day after the film producer lodged a complaint with the cyber crime cell.

A team of our cyber cell experts is working on the case. Very soon we will find out the people responsible for illegally releasing the video online. Legal action will be initiated against whosoever is found guilty, Mumbai Police spokesperson Ashoke Dudhe said.

As per the complaint, the movie, which was scheduled to release tomorrow, was uploaded by unidentified persons recently.

Dudhe said a case under relevant sections of the Companies Act and IT Act has been registered in this regard.

We are investigating the case as per the legal provisions. We have got some leads, but there is no suspect (identified) yet, he said.

Meanwhile, Dudhe refuted the report that a person has been detained in connection with the case.

It is not possible at this stage to comment on how many persons could be behind the incident, the spokesperson said.
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19:23   Cockpit recorder of crashed EgyptAir Flight 804 found
The damaged cockpit voice recorder of EgyptAir Flight 804 which crashed into the Mediterranean Sea last month has been found, Egyptian investigators said today.

The memory unit which is the most important part of the recorder has been retrieved, the authorities said.

The cockpit voice recorder should allow investigators to hear what the pilot and co-pilot were saying to each other, plus any alarms in the background.

Earlier today, the Egyptian government said it has found wreckage of EgyptAir Flight 804 in the Mediterranean.

The Airbus A320, which had 66 people aboard, crashed in the Mediterranean on May 19 on a flight from Paris to Cairo.
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19:00   Labour MP shot, stabbed in West Yorkshire
An Labour Party member of Parliament has been shot and stabbed in Birstall in West Yorkshire county of England, the BBC reports.

Unconfirmed reports suggest Jo Cox, Labour MP for Batley and Spen, was shot and stabbed following which she was injured and taken to Leeds General Infirmary by an air ambulance.

A man was also thought to have been stabbed.

It is learnt that the MP was holding a surgery at Birstall Library before the attack.

More details are awaited.
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18:34   Feb 9 event: JNU forms panel to hear appeals of penalised students
A month after the Delhi high court stayed the punishment to Jawaharlal Nehru University students in connection with the controversial February 9 event, the university today formed a four-member committee to hear appeals of those who had been found guilty of indiscipline by the varsity probe panel.

'The vice chancellor has formed a committee to assist him in his capacity as the appellate authority to hear the appeals from students who had been found guilty by the High Level Enquiry Committee of violating various university rules during the February 9 incident on campus,' an official statement said.

JNU was at the centre of a controversy in February this year because of an event on campus against hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru at which anti-national slogans were allegedly raised.

Three students including the Students' Union chief Kanhaiya Kumar were arrested in a sedition case over the event and are now out on bail.

21 JNU students were slapped with varied punishments ranging from rustication, hostel debarment to financial penalty on basis of the probe by the HLEC which found them guilty of violation of discipline norms.
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18:04   MHA cancels licence of Sabrang Trust run by Modi-baiter Teesta Setalvad
MHA cancels the registration of Teesta Setalvad's NGO- Sabrang Trust.

In September, the Home Ministry suspended the registration of Sabrang Trust for six months for alleged violation of Foreign Currency (Regulation) Act (FCRA) that invites termination of its license.

In an order, the Home Ministry said exercising the powers conferred under FCRA, the registration of Sabrang Trust has been suspended for a period of 180 days with effect from September 10.

According to the ministry, it was noticed that the organization received a total donation of Rs. 48.42 lakh in 2010-11 and Rs. 49.10 lakh in 2011-12, out of which they spent Rs. 30.97 lakh and Rs. 27.07 lakh during the two years respectively. This comes to 64.23 per cent for 2010-11 and 55.14 per cent for 2011-12 on administrative expenses.

As per section 8 (1)(b) of FCRA, this requires the approval of the Home Ministry before incurring expenses on administrative head exceeding 50 per cent limit, thus making it a violation of the Act.

The Trust, run by Setalvad and her husband Javed Anand, can make a representation against the order within 30 days. However, if the Home Ministry is not satisfied with the reply of the NGO, its registration will be cancelled.

Another NGO run by Ms Setalvad and her husband, Citizens for Justice and Peace, has already been put under prior permission category, thus making it mandatory for the organisation to take permission from the Home Ministry before accepting or utilising any foreign contribution.

Following a recommendation of the Home Ministry, the Central Bureau of Investigation has registered a case and launched a probe against Sabrang Communication and Publishing Pvt Limited, a commercial firm run by Setalvad, for allegedly accepting and utilising foreign contribution in violation of FCRA.

Setalvad has pursued the cases of post-Godhra riots victims in Gujarat when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief minister of the state.
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17:51   What will it take for India to be rich?
"China's development is on a different scale from India's. They are very far ahead. I don't think it will be possible in the next 30 years for us to catch them," says Aakar Patel. Read more
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17:48   Big shame for CBFC, says Aamir on Udta leak
Aamir Khan on the Udta Punjab leak: "If it is a censored copy that has leaked, it's a big shame for CBFC. But if it's not a censored copy then piracy is an issue we've been fighting against for very long:"
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17:46   Orlando fallout: House Republicans seek blanket ban on all refugees
Following the mass shooting in Orlando, a large group of House Republicans is seeking to immediately ban all refugees from resettling in the United States regardless of country origin or profile, according to a memo and draft legislation obtained by Foreign Policy. The measure would go even further than Donald Trump's controversial proposal to block the immigration of Muslims. Read more
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17:41   JeM man who handled Pathankot attackers has fled Pakistan: JIT official
The Jaish-e-Mohammed leader who gave directions over phone to the terrorists during the attack on Pathankot airbase has reportedly fled from Pakistan to Afghanistan, an official said.

"The alleged JeM handler who communicated by telephone more than two dozen times with the terrorists in Pathankot, before they carried out the attack on the airbase on January 2, has managed to cross into Afghan border," a member of the joint investigation team (JIT) probing the attack told PTI on Thursday.

He said the JeM handler, who is in his late 20s, was in the tribal area of Pakistan when he communicated about 18 times with the terrorists.
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17:17   Udta Punjab leaked online: Kashyap asks people to wait till Sat to download film
Udta Punjab co-producer Anurag Kashyap has posted a fervent appeal on Facebook asking people to wait till Saturday before downloading the film.

The controversial film was leaked online on Wednesday, two days ahead of its scheduled release in theatres. However, the film's team managed to remove it online on war footing from torrent sites.

On Wednesday afternoon, it emerged that the Abhishek Chaubey directorial film which has been in news for the makers' run-in with the censor board -- was available on torrent sites for illegal download. However, soon the download links were "removed due to a copyright complaint', the websites read.

This evening, Kashyap wrote that he has never downloaded a film on Torrent because he does not know how to and asked viewers to wait till the film released to Torrent it.

Kashyap writes, "I have never downloaded a film on torrent, i don't know how to. yes occasionally i have seen downloaded films borrowed from friends and found a way to pay for them later, by buying them on DVD or blurray, and when i say this i also say that no one can stop your right to download a film. This time its a different fight, its a fight against censorship and if you are that audience that always downloads a film, then i won't ask you to not do that , please do, but wait till saturday which is the day you would normally download a film.

"Piracy happens because of lack of access and in a world of free internet, i do not have a problem with it. My problem is that this time its a case of vested interests trying to demoralise people from fighting for their rights. So all downloaders of Udta Punjab , i urge, wait till saturday till you decide to not pay for the film, don't download and share , curb the curiosity for two more days. Thank you for reading this."
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16:54   Sena leader, chamcha slap bank employee in Yavatmal
In a shocking incident, Shiv Sena leader Praveen Shinde and another Sainik slapped a bank employee in Yavatmal (Maharashtra). The incident was caught on camera. In the video, Shinde and his friend are seen slapping and abusing the bank employee. In a similar incident, a Shiv Sena MLA in Dadar was caught on camera hitting a woman.

Image: Screen grab of the Sainiks slapping the bank employee.
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16:12   No achche din for trade
India's monthly foreign trade 
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16:03   Don't interfere, BJP raps Shatrughan for praising Varun Gandhi
After BJP leader and Patna Sahib MP Shatrughan Sinha on Sunday backed Sultanpur MP Varun Gandhi as party's face for the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections due next year, the party has asked him politely, to keep out of these matters.

BJP MP Shyam C Gupta said today, "We would request Shatrughan Sinha-ji to not interfere in UP assembly election matters."

Sinha, known for his adversarial relationship with the party had said,  "Varun Gandhi is known among the people as a fighter who strives hard for the party. He has the acceptability of the people of Uttar Pradesh and he is a leader with wisdom."

However, Sinha had also maintained that it is upon the party to decide who will be its face for the chief ministerial candidate.

Recently, a rash of "unofficial' posters has broken out in Allahabad.

The hoardings showed disgruntled BJP politicians Varun Gandhi, Shatrughan Sinha and Sanjay Joshi, none of whom has a comfortable relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi or party chief Amit Shah.
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15:32   Udta set to fly, Punjab and Haryana HC clears film
Just in: And the final, if small, hurdle for Udta Punjab. The Punjab and Haryana high court dismiss the plea against the film and give the go ahead for tomorrow's release. The court says the film has not been shown in a bad light.

Just ahead of this order, the Supreme Court refused to stay the release of the film allowing the petitioner to approach the Punjab and Haryana HC where the petition is pending

The court today heard a plea by Punjab-based NGO Human Rights Awareness Association to halt the screening of the film Udta Punjab, which focuses on the widespread drug menace in the agrarian State.
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15:16   Will invite North Korea's Kim Jong-Un to US, says Trump: Report
The Republican Party's presumptive presidential candidate Donald Trump said he would invite North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to the US, but not for an official state dinner.

The business mogul made the remark on Wednesday when he mocked his Democratic Party rival Hillary Clinton for her criticism of Trump's willingness to speak with Kim, calling the former secretary of state a "rank amateur", Politico reported.

"She's been doing it forever and she still doesn't get it," Trump told supporters at a rally in Atlanta."What the hell is wrong with speaking? And you know what? It's called opening a dialogue. It's opening a dialogue."

Trump, however, said that the meeting probably would never happen."But there's nothing -- I wouldn't go there," he said.
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14:50   Chidambaram attempted to give clean-chit to Ishrat Jahan: Rijiju
With Home Ministry Additional Secretary B.K. Prasad-led one-man inquiry committee in its report stating that four of the five missing documents continue to be untraceable, Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju on Thursday alleged that former home minister P. Chidambaram attempted to give a clean-chit to Ishrat Jahan during the UPA rule.


"We have already got the reports by the one-man committee constituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs. We have seen the report and some of the important documents are still untraceable. And the intention is very clear. How these important documents are taken out of the records in the Home Ministry and why a hard core terrorist was declared as innocent through an affidavit?" he said.


"I can't tell you what next steps would be. And it is not advisable to spell out at this point of time. But the steps taken by the UPA government, particularly during Chidambaram's time, are very unfortunate. We will see what is to be done next," Rijiju added. Meanwhile, Chidambaram today accused Prime Minister Narebdra Modi-led government of creating a "fake controversy" over two affidavits filed in the Ishrat Jahan case and preparing a "doctored" report on the missing files.


"The news report published in the Indian Express today (16 June 2016) comprehensively exposes the fake controversy created by the NDA government on the two affidavits filed by the Central government in the Ishrat Jahan case," Chidambaram said.

He further said Judge Tamang in his report on September 7, 2009, found that Ishrat Jahan and three others had been killed in a fake encounter. The former union minister said he takes full responsibility for filing the 'further affidavit' which was absolutely the correct thing to do.

"The moral of the story is that even a doctored report (of the Inquiry Officer) cannot hide the truth. The real issue is whether Ishrat Jahan and three others were killed in a genuine encounter or a fake encounter. Only the trial of the case, pending since July 2013, will bring out the truth," he added.

According to a report published in a daily, a Union Home Ministry official, who headed the probe into the missing documents in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case, not only told a witness the questions he would ask but also suggested to him what answers he should give - that he had not seen any of the documents.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had earlier said many documents related to the preparation of the ministry's second affidavit in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case are missing and an internal inquiry has been ordered
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14:41   Here you go, Mr Jethmalani
RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav hands over the Rajyasabha MP certificate to eminent Supreme Court lawyer Ram Jethmalani. Earlier in 2016, though Jethmalani had offered to represent Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi in the National Herald case, he withdrew his support after the Congress refused to let the Rajya Sabha function smoothly in the February session.
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14:31   Taylor Swift spotted kissing Tom Hiddleston at beach
It seems singer Taylor Swift has moved on after her split with Scottish DJ Calvin Harris. She was photographed kissing British actor Tom Hiddleston at a beach."Love Story" hitmaker Hiddleston was clicked packing on the public display of affection during a day out on a Rhode Island beach, mirror.co.uk reports.

In one image, the 26-year-old singer and the 35-year-old actor are seen embracing and kissing each other. Another photograph shows the "The Night Manager" star and Swift looking happy and relaxed as they walked hand-in-hand.

An onlooker told The Sun: "They were all over each other, hugging and kissing, even though there were 20 people coming and going on the beach.

"They looked like any young couple madly in love without a care in the world," he added.

Swift split from Harris this month after dating for one year.
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14:28  
Three Russian football fans to be deported from France for Euro 2016 violence: Authorities
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14:14   Euro 2016: dozens arrested after England and Russia supporters clash
French riot police use teargas to disperse fans with dozens arrested and 16 people taken to hospital over course of the day.
Read more
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13:56   SSC students get 'message' from Vinod Tawde...
Maharashtra Education Minister Vinod Tawde of the Bharatiya Janta Party has grabbed the perfect opportunity to reach out to over 13 lakh households across the state. The aptitude test results, which were handed over to successful SSC candidates on Wednesday, had Tawde's photo on it with a brief introduction of his portfolios and a message wishing the candidates good luck. Read more
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13:51   Why CNN News18 had no Politician of the Year award
Giving awards to politicians  is a bit dicey if you do not want to displease the ruling big daddies. It leads to awkward situations if the jury picks the wrong person, writes Hoot.

Last year CNN News18 (then known as CNN IBN) gave a politician of the year award to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, as part of its Indian of the Year awards in different fields. This year when the awards for 2015 came around, voila! No politician of the year award. The jury picked Bihar CM Nitish Kumar unfortunately. Wrong guy, so drop the award. In our quest to confirm this we also discovered that not all the eminences listed as part of the jury actually participated in  the jury selection. 
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13:43   Udta Punjab will release tomorrow, SC refuses to intervene
Just in: The Supreme Court refuses to stay the release of Udta Punjab.
The court allows the petitionerto approach the Punjab and Haryana HC where the petition is pending

The court today heard a plea by Punjab-based NGO Human Rights Awareness Association to halt the screening of the film Udta Punjab, which focuses on the widespread drug menace in the agrarian State.

A vacation bench of Justices Adarsh Kumar Goel and L. Nageswara Rao hearing the plea at the end of matters listed for the day. "We will hear the matter at the end of the board and see if we can entertain the plea in the absence of the June 14 Bombay High Court judgement directing the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to issue an 'A' certificate to the film with just one cut," the bench said.

Appearing for he movie's producer, Phantom Films, senior counsel Meenakshi Arora said the CBFC had given the certificate and the film was released overseas. The film is scheduled for release across 8,000 screens countrywide on Friday.
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13:24   'Aunty National' Smriti Irani's 'Jerry Maguire' moment on FB
Days after her Twitter spat and the massive lampooning she received on social media, Union HRD minister Smriti Irani vents on Facebook.

Irani had been Twitter fodder after her snarky tweets to Dr Ashok Choudhary, the Bihar Congress president, over being addressed as 'dear'.

In her Facebook post today, Irani talks about rebelling at every stage of her life and career against women being told to ignore attempts to humiliate them. "Why not respond? Why zip it? The standard answer such a question begets is 'It is not worth it. Nuksaan tumhara hoga, ladke ka kuchh nahi bigadega (you will lose, not the boy)".
 
Here's what she wrote:

"As the politician mumbled apologies and explained his position regarding the twitter spat to my state leader on the mobile while our contingent drove back from Bhagalpur last night; I watched his supporters trend a hashtag in my name, irrespective of their netas public apology. As those who scream murder and whip themselves up into a feminist frenzy at the drop of a hat tried to endear themselves to me on Twitter, I reflected on the near Jerry Maguire like moment that was upon me."

Read more

And scroll to the end of the post to read what she signs off as...

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13:03   Unkindest cut: Who leaked Udta online?
The better part of Udta Punjab was leaked online and downloaded many times today, prompting an executive of its production company to suggest that the censor board had tried to sabotage the film two days before its release.

Neither the chairman nor the CEO of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) was available for comment in spite of repeated attempts by this newspaper to contact them.

The leak has taken place in the middle of preparations by the producers to release the movie on Friday after winning a court battle against the board that had prescribed many cuts.

Sources in Anurag Kashyap's Phantom Films, the co-producers of the film, said they received a message around 1pm yesterday that two long clips of the film - lasting about 2 hours 20 minutes and 40 minutes - were available for download on illegal websites where pirated versions of films are put up. The entire film is 2 hours and 45 minutes long.

Read more
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13:00   Sheila Dikshit to helm Congress in Punjab after Kamal Nath resigns
Congress leader and former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit has been appointed Congress in-charge of Punjab a day after Kamal Nath tendered his resignation to party chief Sonia Gandhi, news channel India Today reported.

The Congress party is yet to make an announcement, but Dikshit meet Congress President Sonia Gandhi today.

The party had come under strident attack for naming Kamal Nath, a politician long under a 1984 anti-Sikh riots cloud, as party in-charge of Punjab and Haryana.

Dikshit, born in Punjab, had last served as Governor of Kerala. During her political career, she has served as Delhi chief minister for three consecutive terms as well as a Member of Parliament in 1984.
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12:37   Kamal Nath's resignation as Punjab chief proves complicity in 1984 riots: BJP
With Congress leader Kamal Nath resigning as the party in charge of Punjab affairs, the BJP on Thursday said the move simply proved his complicity in the 1984 riots, adding that the grand old party had "teased" the people of Punjab by appointing him despite knowing his involvement in the riots.


"Two things have come to the fore: first, it is the acceptance of the guilt, which proves there was the complicity of Kamal Nath in the 1984 riots; and, by appointing him as Punjab in-charge, the Congress was teasing the people of the state, which was appalling," said BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra.


"Secondly it shows the dearth of leadership in the Congress, because knowing the fact that his name has cropped up in the riots case, he was made the in charge. This happened probably because there was no other leader left in the Congress. That's why the Congress took such an appalling step and today the Congress stands exposed," said Patra, while reacting to Kamal Nath's resignation.


Kamal Nath, whose appointment had drawn sharp criticisms from the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), stepped down as the general secretary in-charge of the Punjab Affairs following a controversy over his alleged role in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.


In a letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Kamal Nath had on Wednesday requested her to relieve him from his duties so that the attention of the party is not diverted from the real issues such as the 'rampant drug trade' in Punjab.


"Certain elements are raking up these issues now only for political gains. I am touched by the support shown by our party workers and leaders in Punjab in repudiating the false accusations. I am a practitioner of Nehruvian politics and maligning of the Congress party using false accusations is unacceptable to me," Nath said in the letter.


Hoping that the party focuses on the upcoming elections rather than the furore over his appointment, he added that the Congress must highlight the issues of mis-governance, misery of farmers and youth, break down of law and order and rampant drug trade that caused misery to the people of Punjab.


"Given this, I request that I may be relieved of my charge to ensure that the attention is not diverted from the real issues facing Punjab," Nath said.
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12:24   Gaiutra Bahadur: 'How could I write about women whose existence is barely acknowledged?'
My great-grandmother Sujaria didn't leave behind letters or diaries describing the circumstances that led her to climb aboard a ship bound for the other side of the world on a summer's day in 1903, in the middle of the monsoon, while four months pregnant and alone. Read more
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12:20   Gravitational waves detected for second time
For the second time, scientists have directly detected gravitational waves created by the collision of two black holes 1.4 billion light years away, which once again confirms Einstein's theory of general relativity.

The scientists detected the gravitational waves - ripples through the fabric of the space-time continuum - using the twin Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) interferometers in the US.

On December 26 last year both detectors, situated more than 3,000 kilometres apart, picked up a very faint signal amid the surrounding noise.
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12:12   Germany coach Joachim Low apologises for scratch and sniff incident
Germany coach Joachim Low has apologised after television cameras caught him putting his hands down his trousers and sniffing his hands. Low was trolled on social media for his unhygienic actions during his side's Euro 2016 victory over Ukraine.

"I saw the pictures and obviously sometimes you do things subconsciously and not deliberately. It happened and I am sorry. It was adrenaline and concentration. I will try to behave differently in the future," he added.

Downplaying Low's actions, German footballer Lukas Podolski said with a laugh, "I believe 80% of you, and me as well, sometimes scratch your nuts from time to time.So everything is fine. It is not an issue in the team."
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12:07   Jisha rape and murder case: Main suspect in police custody
In a major breakthrough in the Jisha rape and murder case, police officials have allegedly arrested the main suspect in the case. According to news reports, the suspect was caught by police officials two days back. The suspect is said to have confessed to his crime later. He was caught at the Palakkad border and is now being questioned by police officials.
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12:06   In east Rajasthan, a river comes to the people
Nanduwali started flowing again when the villagers of Ghewar decided to work with nature and not against it. Read more
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12:00   Mega traffic jam on Mum-Pune Expressway
Avoid Mumbai-Pune Expressway today. Reports of a 5-km long traffic jam after an accident took place on the highway.
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11:58   Sensex tanks 325 pts after BoJ, Fed policy meets
The benchmark BSE Sensex plunged by over 324 points to 26,401.51 in late morning deals, tracking heavy selling in other Asian indices after Bank of Japan kept policy rates unchanged and refrained from offering more stimulus.

Sustained selling was seen in bank, capital goods, teck, IT, energy, FMCG, auto, financials, power, healthcare and Oil&Gas sectors. Weak global cues after the US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen reiterated global growth concerns and Britain's potential exit from the European Union also weighed on the sentiment.


The 30-share index resumed lower at 26,686.03 and slid to 26,393.55. It was quoting at 26,401.51 at 1100 hours, showing a loss of 324.83 points or 1.22 per cent. The NSE 50-share Nifty also was trading down by 99.35 points, or 1.21 per cent, at 8,107.25. Major losers were Bharti Airtel 2.59 per cent, Maruti 2.53 per cent, NTPC 2.21 per cent, ITC 2.07 per cent and L&T 1.92 per cent.
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11:35   AAP spokesperson Alka Lamba suspended for not towing party line
Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has removed Alka Lamba as its spokesperson, reportedly for straying from the party line on a minister accused of corruption, reports NDTV.


AAP acted hours after Lamba told reporters that Gopal Rai, who quit as Transport Minister on Monday, was asked to step down by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The party had said that Rai quit as transport minister - he has five other portfolios - because of health reasons.


"I am a disciplined worker of the party and I respect its every decision. If I have unknowingly made any mistake then I will remedy it, so that the party's anti-corruption fight does not suffer because of me," tweeted Lamba, who has been suspended from the post for two months.


Responding to media questions this morning, Lamba said she had "no such intimation" from the party. Rai has been accused by the BJP of trying to benefit a private operator in a premium bus scheme he introduced last month. When he resigned, AAP asserted that he gave up the transport department because it involves a heavy workload and the minister needs to recuperate from his surgery.

Rai recently had a surgery to remove a bullet embedded in his neck for years.


Lamba told reporters, however, that Kejriwal had asked Mr Rai to step down for a fair probe into the allegations against him.

AAP sources say the comments have infuriated the leadership as the party has strongly refuted the charges against Rai and denied that he was forced to quit.

The transport department has now been handed over to minister Satyendar Jain, who also handles five other portfolios.

Lamba, who quit the Congress to join AAP in 2013, was accused last year of vandalizing a shop during a protest. She was also injured at the time. AAP sources say the party feels this is not the first time she has deviated from the party line.
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11:26   US wants access to Omar Mateen's Facebook pages

US Senate Homeland Security Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) is asking Facebook to turn over material from five accounts used by Omar Mateen before and during his assault Sunday on a gay night club in Orlando, Fla.

In his Wednesday letter to Facebook Chairman Mark Zuckerberg, Johnson said his staff has learned that Mateen was searching out "Pulse Orlando" and "shooting" on Sunday.

"It is my understanding that Omar Mateen used Facebook before and during the attack to search for and post terrorism-related content," Johnson wrote in the two-page letter. Read more


Read the letter here

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11:20  
Udta Punjab hearing in Supreme court adjourned as order of Bombay High Court was not placed before SC Bench.
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11:12   SC to hear NGO plea against Udta Punjab
Supreme Court agrees to hear  plea of Punjab-based NGO seeking stay on release of film Udta Punjab today.
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10:57   Was probe into missing Ishrat Jahan papers fixed?
On March 10, Home Minister Rajnath Singh, speaking in the Lok Sabha, announced a probe into the circumstances around the UPA government's second affidavit that dropped references to Ishrat's alleged Lashkar links and allowed for a CBI probe into her June 15, 2004, killing.   

Heading the probe was B K Prasad, Additional Secretary (Foreigners) in the Union home ministry, whose report, submitted yesterday to the government, remained inconclusive on the missing papers. Which has led P Chidambaram, former home minister who had come under a cloud, to say that he has been vindicated.   

So far so good.   

Unfortunately for Prasad, when the Indian Express called him on April 25 to ask him why the government had denied a visa to Chinese dissident Dolkun Issa. While he was on the phone and was being recorded by the Express reporter -- you can listen to the conversation here -- Prasad received another call so he put the reporter on hold and spoke to the other caller.   

Who, judging by the conversation, was an officer who was scheduled to give his statement as part of the probe. Subsequently, the Indian Express says, it 'confirmed that the officer Prasad spoke with was Ashok Kumar, Joint Secretary (Parliament, Hindi Division and Nodal Officer for monitoring of court cases) in the department of commerce. Between March 1, 2011 and December 23, 2011, Kumar was director in the internal security division of the home ministry that dealt with the Ishrat Jahan case.' 

He also confirmed to the Express that Prasad had called him as part of the inquiry. 

What followed on the phone was a classic case of tutoring. We quote verbatim from the Express report:   

'Prasad told Kumar that his probe into the Ishrat Jahan missing papers required him to pose a question to all officers who may have dealt with the matter: "Aapne ye paper dekha? (Have you seen that paper?)' Prasad then told the officer: "Aapko kehna hai ki 'Maine ye paper nahi dekha.' Seedhi si baat hai (You have to say, 'I have not seen that paper.' It's as simple as that).' 

'Prasad told Kumar that the consequences of giving a different reply would be that doubts would be raised about the officer having played a role in the disappearance of the papers. "Aapko itna toh kehna hoga ki ya toh woh file hi maine kabhi zindagi mein deal nahi kiya, kabhi file ko dekhne ka kabhi mauka hi nahi mila (You will have to, at least, say that either you have never dealt with that file in your life, or have never had a chance to see it)' I don't think you have seen that file at any point'. Bas, that is what I want from you: 'I have not seen that file at all',' Prasad told the officer. 

'Prasad also told the officer: "And another question will be, 'Did anybody give you these documents to be kept separately with you?' Aap bologe, 'Nahi, mere ko kisi ne nahi diya.' (You will say, 'No, nobody gave them to me').'   

Prasad replied to the Express's queries on this via email: "You have stated that during my conversation with a senior officer on 25.4.2016 I have told him that I will ask him question on the missing Ishrat Jahan file papers and he should answer 'I have not seen that paper.' I would like to clarify that on 25.04.2016 I have sent a questionnaire to Mr Diptivilasa, the then Joint Secy and after 25.04.2016 I have enquired the following officers only: Mr Dharmendra Sharma, the then JS; Mr Rakesh Singh, the then JS; Mr Ashok Kumar, the then Director. None of the officers, whom I have enquired on 25.04.2016 or thereafter, have replied to any of the queries as quoted by you, i.e., 'I have not seen that paper''.   

You can read the full Indian Express report here.
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10:44   Kerala student's rape, murder: Cops make first arrest
The police have identified and arrested the main suspect in the rape and murder of a Kerala law student, which had rocked the state in April. 

According to local police, the woman, a 30-year-old law student, hailing from a poor family was raped and brutally assaulted using sharp edged weapons before being murdered at her house at Perumbavoor in Ernakulam district on April 28.

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10:34   Orlando shooter appeared in a documentary about BP oil spill
Omar Mateen appeared in a documentary about the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico -- and was unwittingly caught on camera insulting the people working to clean up the mess. 

Mateen's brief appearance in 'The Big Fix' is the first known video footage of the man who would commit the deadliest shooting in modern American history. 

A hidden camera captured Mateen on the job, working as a guard for the security company G4S.
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10:15   Sensex dives 200 points on weak Asian cues
The Sensex fell over 200 points, while the broader Nifty50 dipped below its key 8,150-mark. The headline indices slipped tracking negative trend seen in Asian markets after US Federal Reserve and Japan's central bank kept their respective monetary policies steady.
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09:37   Ishrat Jahan case: Report vindicates position I took, says Chidambaram
Reacting to The Indian Express report on Thursday on B K Prasad, the home ministry officer heading the Ishrat Jahan missing papers inquiry, tutoring a witness to say he had not seen any of the documents, former Home Minister P Chidambaram said the news report "comprehensively exposes the fake controversy created by the NDA government on the two affidavits filed by the Central government in the Ishrat Jahan case."

The news report published in The Indian Express today comprehensively exposes the fake controversy created by the NDA government on the two affidavits filed by the Central government in the Ishrat Jahan case.

The Indian Express report completely vindicates the position that I had taken on the two affidavits. The first affidavit (August 6 2009) disclosed the intelligence inputs that had been shared by the Central government with the State government. Judge Tamang in his report (September 7 2009) found that Ishrat Jahan and three others had been killed in a fake encounter. The report caused an uproar in Gujarat and elsewhere. The first affidavit was misinterpreted and misused to defend the encounter. It was, therefore, necessary to clarify the first affidavit. Hence, a further affidavit was filed (September 29 2009) clarifying that intelligence inputs do not constitute conclusive proof and it is for the State government and the State police to act on such inputs.
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09:30  
JUST IN: Aam Aadmi Party's Alka Lamba suspended from the position of party spokesperson for two months.
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09:24   Assam Congress chief passes away
Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Anjan Dutta passed away this morning at the AIIMS hospital following cardiac failure. Dutta, 64, was admitted to the hospital on May 18, and was under treatment at the department of Pulmonary Sciences. 

He was initially admitted to the Apollo Hospital in New Delhi on May 12 with complaints of severe chest infection. He died due to cardiac failure at 7:11 this morning, Dutta's close relative Geetartha Darshan Baruah said. 

The Congress leader leaves behind his wife and three daughters, one of whom had unsuccessfully contested the recent assembly elections in Assam.
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09:23   Uttar Pradesh polls: Ghulam Nabi Azad to be Congress' CM candidate?
Desperate to improve its footprint across Uttar Pradesh, which goes to polls in 2017, the Congress is grappling with factors like getting the caste equation right while deciding whether or not it should announce a face for the chief minister's post. The issue of having a new state unit chief has gained momentum after the sudden induction of Azad, who replaced Madhusudan Mistry as the state incharge.

Read more HERE
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08:55   Hacker spams IS Twitter accounts with gay pride, porn after Orlando shootings
An anti-Islamic State crusader called @WauchulaGhost has hacked hundreds of Twitter accounts owned by Islamic State supporters, replacing them with porn and gay pride slogans. 

In many cases, he inserted a new Twitter handle, "Jacked by a Ghost", followed by the revelation, "It's time I shared with you a secret, I am gay and I am proud."

It is believed that Wauchula Ghost, a member of the hacking clan "Anonymous," has compromised hundreds Twitter accounts of Islamic State supporters and flooded them with pornography. "Daesh doesn't like porn," Ghost said, referring to the Islamic State in its Arabic transliteration. 

He declined to give his real name. "They don't like women in general. We just started using it to poke fun at them and diminish their presence online."
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08:29   Disney alligator attack: Two-year-old boy found dead
The two-year-old boy who witnesses said was pulled by an alligator into a lagoon near a Walt Disney World hotel has been found dead by the Orange County dive team, Sheriff Jerry Demings said. 

The body of the boy, Lane Graves, was found intact not far from where the boy was grabbed Tuesday night, Demings said. His body had only a few puncture wounds, according to a source familiar with the investigation.

He likely drowned, Demings said. "Of course, the autopsy has to confirm that, but there is likely no question in my mind that the child was drowned by the alligator," Demings said.
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07:59   Kiwis soft on India's NSG bid, Turkey backs Pakistan
While some holdouts like New Zealand seem to be softening their position on India's NSG membership, seeking only a criteria-based process for group expansion and not a one-time exception to any country, Turkey continues to bat for Pakistan, insisting that applications of both India and Pakistan be considered simultaneously.

Adviser to Pakistan's PM on foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz has thanked Turkey for its "principled" position on the issue. 

Reports from Vienna, where the NSG met last week to chalk out the agenda for the upcoming plenary, had earlier said that Turkey was among a handful of countries, including New Zealand, Austria, Ireland and South Africa which had opposed membership for India as it had not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
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04:14   First lady to promote education in Liberia, Morocco, Spain
Michelle Obama plans to promote her year-old global girls' education initiative during upcoming stops in Liberia, Morocco and Spain on what could be her final solo overseas excursion as first lady.
The White House announced yesterday that the three-country trip is booked for June 27-July 1.

Her travelling companions are daughters Malia and Sasha, and her mother, Marian Robinson.

Actresses Freida Pinto and Meryl Streep are lending their star-power to the first lady's Africa appearances.

In Liberia, Obama is scheduled to visit a Peace Corps training facility in Kakata to meet with girls and young women participating in an empowerment camp. 

The stop is meant to highlight the Peace Corps' role in the Let Girls Learn initiative, along with support from the US Agency for International Development.
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02:32   Egypt says it has found plane wreckage
Egypt says it has spotted the wreckage of the EgyptAir plane that crashed into the Mediterranean last month, killing all 66 people on board.
The committee said in a statement late today that a vessel contracted by the Egyptian government to join the search efforts for the data recorders and the wreckage of the doomed A320 " had identified several main locations of the wreckage, accordingly the first images of the wreckage were provided to the investigation committee."
Based on the wreckage locations; The search team and investigators onboard of the vessel will draw a map for the wreckage distribution spots, it added.

The plane disappeared from radar en route to Cairo from Paris. No group has claimed an attack. 
UZM
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02:08   Trump to discuss terrorism watch list, no fly ban with NRA
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said today that he will be meeting with the National Rifle Association to discuss ways to block people on terrorism watch lists or no fly lists from buying guns as
his party scrambles to respond in the aftermath of the worst mass shooting in modern US history.

Trump announced the meeting with a tweet, writing "I will be meeting with the NRA, who has endorsed me, about not allowing people on the terrorist watch list, or the no fly list, to buy guns." He did not provide any details on the time or place of the meeting and his campaign did not immediately respond to requests for further information.
The NRA, one of the nation's most powerful lobbying groups, responded in a statement. 
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02:08   Threats against Muslims must stop after Orlando attack: US
US authorities today warned that threats against Muslims would not be tolerated, after alleged incidents in the wake of the Orlando gay club massacre, which was carried out by a Muslim gunman.
Officials asked the public to help in the investigation of Sunday's carnage at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando -- the worst mass shooting in American history, which left 49 people dead and 53 others wounded.
Gunman Omar Mateen was killed in a shootout with police. 

Authorities refused to comment on reports that Mateen's wife would face charges over her alleged knowledge of his intentions to carry out an attack, calling any talk of charges "premature" and saying no stone would be left unturned in the probe.
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01:39   Gravitational waves from colliding black holes detected again
Two black holes whirled violently towards each other, under the pull of the immense gravity between them, combining into a mass around sixty times that of our own sun. 

They collided with such force they created a disturbance in spacetime itself. In September of 2015, the disturbance made itself known on Earth as an infinitesimal shiver in two 2.5-mile-wide L-shaped tubes. In December, the day after Christmas, the tubes shivered again.

"Its wonderful," David Shoemaker, Director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's LIGO lab, told Popular Science. "Its so different from the first one ... but its importance is no less."
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00:24   US Senate conditions USD 300 million aid to Pakistan
Ignoring concerns of the White House, the US Senate has moved to block USD 300 million military aid to Pakistan unless the Defence Secretary
certifies that Islamabad is taking demonstrable steps against the Haqqani Network.

This forms part of the National Defence Authorisation Act-2017 passed by the Senate 85-13 votes yesterday.

Notably Defence Secretary Ashton Carter is yet to give the necessary certification to Pakistan for a similar legislation passed by the Congress last year under NDAA-2016.

As a result the Pentagon has not been able to release USD 300 million of Coalition Support Fund to Pakistan for the fiscal year 2015-2016 ending September 30 this year. 
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00:18   Israel revokes VIP permit of Palestinian liaison
Israel's defense minister revoked on Wednesday the VIP entry permit of the Palestinian Authority's outreach liaison to Israeli society today, on charges that he committed "subversive political activities."
The Defense Ministry says Avigdor Lieberman revoked the permit of Mohammed Al-Madani because he tried to create a political party that included Arab citizens of Israel and Mizrahi Jews, or those of Middle Eastern descent. 

The VIP permit allowed Al-Madani to enter Israeli territory without long waits at checkpoints.

Al-Madani said he met with hundreds of Israelis across the political spectrum in an attempt to reactivate the moribund peace process and reach a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He denied he was starting a party.

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