LIVE! Trump bashes tax protesters who want him to release his returns

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Sun, 16 April 2017

Trump bashes tax protesters who want him to release his returns

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21:34 Trump bashes tax protesters who want him to release his returns

US President Donald Trump says he is unimpressed with this weekend's tax protests and indicated he has no plans to release his tax returns anytime soon.

"Someone should look into who paid for the small organised rallies yesterday. The election is over!" Trump tweeted Sunday.

Organisers said more than 100,000 people some with inflatable rubber chickens marched in cities across the United State on Saturday to protest Trump's refusal to release his tax returns.

With this year's tax deadline approaching on Tuesday, Trump is expected to maintain his refusal as president, breaking a four-decade precedent followed by presidents of both parties.

In blasting the protesters, Trump tweeted that "I did what was an almost an impossible thing to do for a Republican-easily won the Electoral College! Now Tax Returns are brought up again?"

The 'Yes' campaign to give Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expanded powers was ahead of its rival in a bitterly-contested referendum today that will determine Turkey's future destiny, initial results said.

The 'Yes' campaign won 63.2 per cent of the vote while the 'No' campaign mustered 36.8 per cent, the election commission said in figures quoted by the NTV channel, in an initial count based on 25 per cent of the ballot boxes.

Almost a fortnight after Pehlu Khan, the 55-year-old dairy farmer from Nuh in Haryana, was murdered in Alwar, the Rajasthan police say they will not arrest the six named in the FIR before interrogating them to make sure they were involved in the crime.

Alwar superintendent of police Rahul Prakash said they were raiding various places to nab the six people named in Khans FIR because they are absconding since April 5 but added that they would only be detained for interrogation.

We will arrest them only after we are sure that they were involved in the crime, he said.

Punjab minister Rana Gurjit Singh today lashed out at the Shiromani Akali Dal for its accusations against Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and the Gandhi family over the row involving Canadian Defence Minister Harjit Singh Sajjan.

The power and irrigation minister in the Amarinder-led Congress government in the state claimed that the "wild allegations" levelled by the SAD had exposed its "pro-Khalistani" leanings, considering that many Canadian liberals had criticised Sajjan for expressing such views.

The SAD, by siding with a "Khalistani sympathiser" like Sajjan, had proved that it did not have the welfare of Punjab or its people at heart but was only keen on promoting its "political interests" even if it meant "communalising" the state's environment, alleged Gurjit.

19:26 PM Modi arrives on his home turf in Surat

Soon after addressing the concluding session of the two-day BJP National Executive meeting in Odisha today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Surat for a two-day tour to Gujarat. This will be his eighth visit to his home state in the last nine months which is going to the polls in November.

The entire stretch from the Surat airport to the circuit house has been decked up and all government and commercial buildings along the route will be illuminated. PM Modi will hold meetings with Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and other BJP leaders at the circuit house.

19:06 Surat preps to welcome PM Modi

Modi will begin by holding a roadshow at Surat immediately after coming down from the BJP's two-day National Executive meet in the Odisha capital. He will then preside over a series of events in Gujarat, which will go to the polls later this year.

The owners of Kolkata's star category hotels and restaurants today hailed Union Minister of Consumer Affairs Ramvilas Paswan's suggestion to fix the quantity of food items served so that they were not wasted.

In this light they advised customers to carry with them the left-overs, if any.

A spokesman for Park Plaza hotel said, "We guide guests at the time of taking orders on the size of the items to be consumed in order to avoid wastage."

He says it needs to be noted that on 70 per cent occasions the orders are placed keeping in mind the fact that the food items are consumed by more than one guest.

"While the PMs vision is futuristic, we hoteliers need to think, strategise and innovate further to stop wastage of food. May be in future we need to sell food by weight and charge penalty on wastage," the spokesman said.

Popular upscale food joint The Bikers Cafe India Director, Sanjay Yadav, also hailed the decision as a positive one, saying that limiting food quantity would definitely check wastage which in turn would make food available to the deprived sections.

The owner of prime dining restaurants 'Oudh 1590', 'Chapter 2' and 'Chowman', Siladitya Choudhury said, "We support the cause and we already ask our guests to take away left-over food.

Union Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan earlier had asked restaurants and hotels to consider specifying the portion of food items to customers so that they order the right amount.

Pope Francis urged an end to "horror and death" in Syria today as he celebrated the traditional Easter Day mass in Rome.

The Easter mass, the highlight of the Christian calendar began under a cloudy sky where worshippers had gathered since the early hours to gain access amid tight security.

He expressed hope that Jesus' own sacrifice might "sustain the efforts of all those actively engaged in bringing comfort and relief to the civil population in Syria, prey to a war that continues to sow horror and death."

And he prayed for peace for the entire Middle East "beginning with the Holy Land, as well as in Iraq and Yemen."

He also spoke out against the hostilities and famine in Africa, notably in South Sudan, Sudan, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

He further urged world leaders to hear the message of peace as they contend with "the complex and often dramatic situations of today's world," and to work "to prevent the spread of conflicts and to put a halt to the arms trade."

18:14 Petrol bomb hurled at CRPF party in J&K

A petrol bomb was today hurled at a CRPF party in Rainawari area but no one was hurt in the incident, police said. Some miscreants threw a petrol bomb at a Central Reserve Police Force party which exploded on the road side near one of their vehicles, a police official said.

He said no one was injured in the incident. However, tarpaulin of the vehicle suffered minor damage, the official said.

Raveena Tandon-starrer Maatr has run into trouble with the Central Board of Film Certification over the use of expletives in the film.

The board members walked out of a screening of the film earlier this week and after watching the film on Saturday, they have rejected the film - practically banning it for the time.

A report in Quint quoted a source as saying, Maatr has graphic and gruesome violence against women. The film is carpeted with maa-bahen expletives. We cant even recommend that the abuses be beeped as they run through the course of the film in an ongoing rush of profanity.

Rape sequences are always tricky. We never know when they stop becoming shocking and get into the voyeuristic/titillating zone. In Maatr, the womens violation is subject to allegations of excessive elaboration. Though the film is well-intended and hard-hitting, we cannot take the risk of incurring the wrath of organizations devoted to prevention of violation against women, the source further said.

Raveena Tandon plays the titular role in Maatr. Written by Michael Pellico and directed by Ashtar Sayed, Maatr is scheduled to hit theatres on April 21.

Indian wrestler Babita Phogat on Sunday joined the bandwagon of sports personalities condemning the video featuring a security personnel being roughed up by a youth while he was returning from a polling booth in Srinagar.

Offering her support to the CRPF jawan, Phogat insisted that strict action should be taken against those who have insulted our soldiers.

"Our army personnel remain vigilant throughout the day and night to ensure that we have a sound sleep. So, they should not be treated like this. Every day, there is news of someone pelting stones on them," Phogat said.

"Everyone should support him because it is our soldiers, who protect us day and night.Absolutely, strict action should be taken against those who insulted our soldiers. These activities will be accelerated if not stopped on time," she added.

Earlier, Indian batsman Gautam Gambhir, former opener Virender Sehwag and Olympic wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt all lashed out at the video, which features a CRPF personnel using immense restraint even when he was attacked by the youth.

After a former Snapchat employee alleged that the social media company's CEO Evan Spiegel was disinterested to expand the business to "poor countries" like India, Indians took to social media in huge numbers to express their displeasure with these unverified comments.

Very soon, #BoycottSnapchat became the top trending topic on Twitter. People began to uninstall the app and give it poor ratings and reviews on the App Store. However, not everyone seems to have received the memo that the outrage has to be directed towards Snapchat - for many are uninstalling ecommerce website Snapdeal's app instead!

Read more HERE

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu today flagged off the trial run of vistadome coaches between Visakhapatnam and Araku stations.

According to reports, the train service for passengers is likely to be rolled out by Thursday.

The vistadome coaches will have features like glass roofs, LED lights, rotatable seats, GPS-based information system etc.

The air-conditioned tourist coaches with large glass windows will enable tourists an uninterrupted view of the valleys to enjoy the scenic beauty of Araku.

The coaches are specially designed to give a panoramic view to passengers. "The coaches are equipped with observation lounge, Infotainment system, wide side door for Divyangs, automatic sliding compartment door," Prabhu said.

According to the railways, the cost of coaches is around Rs 4 crore for four coaches inducted for the trial run.

Image: The interior of the coach with glass roofs, LED lights, rotatable seats, GPS-based information system

16:18 BJP releases manifesto for MCD polls

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday released its manifesto for the upcoming municipal polls in Delhi.

To provide relief to small traders and shopkeepers paying high conversion charges, the Delhi BJP announced lower rates.

The manifesto also focuses on education and health sectors.

To improve the standard of education in municipal schools, compulsory English from nursery, compulsory moral education for classes I to V, computer labs for class IV and V students and a change in the midday meal menu to include more nutrients are a part of the manifesto.

The manifesto also stated that the party will make sure the presence of women rise in the Startup India campaign.

15:58

JUST IN: Bill for increasing quota for socially and economically backward Muslims passed in Telangana assembly

15:44 Lucknow likely to host main Yoga Day event this year

Lucknow - the City of Nawabs - is likely to host the main event of the International Day of Yoga celebrations in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi may also participate.

"Lucknow is likely to hold the main event of the International Day of Yoga, which falls on June 21. However, a final decision in this regard is yet to be taken," a senior state BJP leader said.

The first IDY celebration was organised at Rajpath in New Delhi on June 21, 2015 in which representatives of 191 countries had participated. Last year, the main function took place in Chandigarh.

US President Donald Trump wants to ride in the Queen's gold-plated royal carriage when he travels to London on a state visit -- an insistence that has thrown British security forces into a tizzy.

The White House has made clear it regards the carriage procession as an essential element of the itinerary for US President Trump's visit currently planned for the second week of October, The Sunday Times reported, citing officials.

But security officials have warned that the carriage journey down The Mall to Buckingham Palace will require a "monster" security operation, far greater than for any recent state visit, the paper said.

World leaders have been treated to the traditional Horse Guards welcoming parade --in which the Queen's carriage is drawn down The Mall to Buckingham Palace by six white horses.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping have also taken such carriage rides during state visits.

A week after the by-election for Srinagar, which saw a unprecedented violence and a record low turnout, videos have surfaced in which a worker of the ruling PDP and trader from South Kashmir are seen chanting anti-India slogans at gun-point. The party says the videos were recorded a fortnight ago -- ahead of the by-elections for which the separatists had issued a boycott call.

Party sources said a group of gunmen had barged into house of Wali Mohammad Bhat. In the video, which is now doing the rounds on social media, Bhat is seen looking scared. An AK-47 rifle can be seen, held by a person off camera. Bhat can be heard saying he does not associate with pro-India politics and chanting slogans prompted by men off-screen.

No police case has been filed and Bhat was not available for comment. Senior leaders of the PDP said the worker has been keeping a low profile since the incident.

14:18 Sai Praneeth wins Singapore Open

World No 30 Sai Praneeth won the Singapore Open Super Series Men's singles after defeating countryman Srikanth Kidambi in three sets -- 17-21, 21-17, 21-12.

This is Praneeth's maiden Super Series title.

This was the first first time in the history of badminton, two Indians clashed in a Super Series final. Only three nations -- China, Indonesia and Denmark -- have so far had two of their shuttlers playing in finals of a Super Series event.

14:04

Singapore Open Super Series Final: Sai Praneeth wins second game 21-17 vs Kidambi Srikanth to draw level

13:57 After tax raids, ruling AIADMK-Amma battles internal strife

The ruling AIADMK-Amma is battling twin troubles in Tamil Nadu, with a group of senior leaders rising in revolt against party deputy secretary TTV Dinakaran and an aggressive DMK piling pressure on the government.

Sources said calls were getting louder for Dinakaran to step down after the election commission cancelled the RK Nagar assembly byelection following the cash-for-vote scandal.

Dinakaran, a nephew of general secretary VK Sasikala who is serving time in a corruption case, is the partys RK Nagar candidate.

The seat fell vacant after the death of chief minister J Jayalalithaa on December 5 and the bypoll has turned into a battle for her legacy between Sasikala, her aide of almost 30 years, and O Panneerselvam, a loyalist.

With health minister C Vijayabaskar, who is close to Sasikala, in trouble with tax authorities and three other ministers booked for intimidating income-tax officials, many in the party want the ministers to be dropped.

The Sasikala familys control, however, could face a challenge in the coming days. Back channel talks were on between senior leaders of the two factions to save the party, sources said.

13:50

JUST IN: Singapore Open Super Series Final: Kidambi Srikanth takes opening game 21-17 vs B Sai Praneeth

13:42 Sonepat man live-streams suicide on Facebook

A 32-year-old man hanged himself from a ceiling fan in Haryana's Sonepat district and live-streamed the suicide on his Facebook page, police said today.

Sonepat SP Ashwin Shenvi said Deepak scribbled the reason behind him taking the extreme step on the wall of his room before ending his life.

The man wrote that he was "facing threat to his life from a married woman in his neighbourhood and her alleged lover after he told her husband about their illicit relationship".

Shenvi said Deepak live-streamed the suicide on his Facebook page.

"The woman and her paramour are employed with the Delhi Police, while her husband is part of the Haryana Police.

"Deepak wrote on the wall that the woman, an ASI, had an affair with an inspector and after he came to know about it, he narrated everything to her husband," the SP said.

The man wrote that the woman and her alleged lover had threatened to kill him.

Sonepat City SHO Ajay Malik said Deepak's family has filed a complaint based on which an FIR has been registered against the woman and her alleged lover on charges of abetting the suicide.

A 26-year-old Indian worker in Dubai has been jailed for five years for beating another Indian to death with a wooden rod while he was inebriated, according to a media report.

The victim and his 30-year-old countryman were drinking liquor when the accused joined them in December last year. The victim, who seemed to be troubled, started talking about his family disputes, when his 26-year-old countryman asked him to stop discussing his family problems as he was not interested in listening it, Gulf news reported.

This irritated the victim who beat the accused with a wooden rod. The defendant snatched the rod away and hit back at the victim, who fell down unconscious, the paper said.

The victim died before the arrival of police.

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat met NSA Ajit Doval over the current situation in Jammu-Kashmir.

Normal life has been affected due to a strike called by separatists to protest the killing of a 23-year-old man allegedly in firing by BSF jawans in Batamaloo area of the city.

Shops, fuel stations and other business establishments were shut. Public transport was off the roads.

General Rawat also spoke to Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday amid this controversy surrounding the video showing a man tied to an army vehicle during polling for the bypoll.

Gen Rawat apprised Mehbooba about the situation in the Valley and assured her of timely action against its personnel who were responsible for the act of tying the man to the vehicle at Budgam.

Evan Spiegal, the chief executive officer of Snap Inc., the parent company of ephemeral social media platform Snapchat, has found himself in the eye of a storm and at the receiving end of Indian Twitterati's ire after reportedly saying Snapchat was not for 'poor countries like India'.

The 26-year-old Spiegal's unverified comments were published this week in a Variety report about a lawsuit that an ex-employee filed against Snapchat in the United States.

Anthony Pompliano, the former Snapchat employee, claims in his lawsuit that Spiegal once said, "This app is only for rich people...I don't want to expand into poor countries like India and Spain."

Indians took to Twitter to slam, ridicule and troll Spiegal, causing #snapchat, #boycottsnapchat and #uninstallsnapchat to trend on the social media platform on Saturday.

On Sunday, Snapchat appeared to have responded to the claim. The company has been quoted as saying, "This is ridiculous. Obviously Snapchat is for everyone! It's available worldwide to download for free."

At least 21 people, including four children, were killed when a mountain of garbage came crashing down on homes following a fire near Sri Lanka's capital, with rescuers racing against time to find any survivors.

Police have launched a probe to ascertain whether the collapse of the 91-metre open garbage pile on Friday was a natural calamity or an act of sabotage.

A 10-member team of geologists of the Peradeniya University has been sent to the spot, Colombo Page reported.

Over 100 houses were completely destroyed and more than 600 people fled in the aftermath of the fire and the collapse in Meetotamulla area in Kolonnawa.

As the BJP holds its two-day National Executive in Bhubaneswar, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik perhaps is reminded of how his father Biju Patnaik once described the party. The BJP, Odishas tallest leader had said, was no more than a signboard party.

Read full story HERE

Airport security agencies have received a specific tip off about a plan to hijack aircraft departing from Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad airport simultaneously on Sunday.

The hijacks, which according to the information received will be carried out by a team of 23 people, have led to the security agencies to put all the three airports on high alert.

An Airport Security Coordination Committee meeting was held on Saturday in response to the threat. It would be prudent for passengers who plan to board flights from these three airports to check-in on time and avoid last-minute delays.

"An email was sent by a woman who overheard 6 boys discussing a plan to simultaneously carry out hijacks from Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad airports," said a source. "A total of 23 people will be involved in the 3 hijacks which has been planned for Sunday," the source added.

O P Singh, Director-General CISF confirmed that the security agencies in these three airports have been put on high alert. "A number of security measures have been put in place. We have increased and strengthened the patrolling, access control. The number of security personnel deployed has been increased," Singh said.

The airport security agencies have also coordinated with the city police and other forces. Mumbai already has a city counter terrorism contingency plan, but in Hyderabad and Chennai it's currently being put in place.

10:50 President, V-P, PM greet the nation on Easter

President Pranab Mukherjee today greeted the people on the occasion of Easter, saying everyone should unite to eradicate violence and hatred from society.

"May this Easter be a time of renewal and rejuvenation. The teachings of Lord Jesus Christ inspire us to lead a life filled with truth, forgiveness, love and selfless service.

"Let us unite together to eradicate violence and hatred from society. Let us dedicate ourselves to the service of the weak and downtrodden," Mukherjee said.

On the joyous occasion of Easter, he said, "I extend best wishes and felicitations to all my countrymen in India and abroad, especially to my Christian brothers and sisters."

Vice President Hamid Ansari too extended his Easter greetings to the people and hoped the festival brings peace and harmony in the country.

"I convey my warm greetings and good wishes to the people of our country on the auspicious occasion of Easter, marking the resurrection of Lord Jesus Christ," Ansari said. "This solemn occasion reminds us that love is stronger than hatred. Let us celebrate Easter by being compassionate towards all human beings irrespective of caste, creed or religion. May this festival bring peace and harmony in our lives," he added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: 'Easter greetings to everyone! May the teachings of Jesus Christ further the spirit of harmony, compassion & togetherness in our society.'

10:46 UP couple killed in suspected honour killing

In a suspected case of honour killing, a 17-year-old girl and her boyfriend were allegedly strangulated to death by her family members in Mansurpur in Muzaffarnagar, UP, the police said today.

Anchal was in a relationship with Arun Kumar (18) but her family was against it, the police said. The girl and her lover were strangulated to death by her brother, his friend and three others yesterday, the superintendent of police (city) Rajesh Kumar Singh said.

They later dumped the bodies in the Ganga canal, he said.

A case was registered in the matter and Kumar's body was recovered from the canal while a search is on for Anchal's body, Singh said.

The police have arrested the girl's brother and his friend in connection with the case while three other accused are absconding, the officer said.

On Saturday, the people of Bhubaneswar got the surprise of their lives when Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in the city for the BJP's national executive meeting, unclasped the seatbelt of his Range Rover, and rode on the footboard of the SUV for a large part of the drive to Raj Bhavan and then to Janata Maidan, venue of his party's crucial meeting.

Ashutosh Mishra and Lelin Malick report in The Telegraph, Calcutta, that Modi 'unclasped the seatbelt soon after the SUV had travelled around half a kilometre, opened the door and started waving at the spectators who lined the road chanting "Modi, Modi, Modi"....

'Then the prime minister stood on the footboard and rode in similar fashion for the next one-and-a-half kilometres. The 30-vehicle motorcade had slowed down considerably and Special Protection Group commandos ran alongside the Range Rover.'

In the vehicle that followed the Prime Minister's SUV, the SPG's inspector-general of police Y K Jethwa must have had more than a few anxious moments over what is any security professional's worst nightmare come true, for he too stood on the footboard of his vehicle, keeping a close watch on the motorcade, reports the newspaper.

But the experience was not to end soon. 'After a 15-minute break at the Raj Bhavan, Modi set out to Janata Maidan, covering almost the entire distance of 4km standing on the footboard and waving,' report Mishra and Malick.

For the public lined up on both sides of the road to see the prime minister, of course, it was a dream come true. 'I was so happy to see the prime minister from such a close range," said Sujit Sahoo, a college student. "He is really the people's PM," gushed Rani Patra, a homemaker, according the The Telegraph.

You can read the report here.

Behind the success of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's ban on alcohol, are the state's women who are often the worst sufferers of the malaise of alcoholism. Geeta Anand reports in the New York Times on Bihar's women power, here.

Fishermen in Tamil Nadu have been advised by port officials not to put out to sea as there was a possibility of a deep depression in the Bay of Bengal intensifying into a cyclone and making landfall in a few days.

The state's assistant director of fisheries Kulangainathan said the depression had formed between Myanmar and Andaman and Nicobar Islands and might make landfall in the state over the next few days, he said.

As such, country boat fishermen had been advised not to put out to sea as there could be strong winds and choppy waves, he said.

Mechanised boats will not put out to sea due to the 60-day ban in the state, which came into effect from Friday.

The ban, which used to be for 48 days annually from April 14, was extended to 60 days this year following an acute shortfall in fish population in Palk Straits and the surrounding areas.

The Met department had said the deep depression was expected to bring heavy rainfall over the Andaman Islands in the next 24 hours.

09:24 Delhi court summons Snapdeal top brass

E-commerce major Snapdeal's CEO Kunal Bahl and two others have been summoned by a Delhi court on a criminal complaint of an entrepreneur who alleged that his idea of connecting sellers and buyers through an e-platform was unauthorisedly usurped by the firm and its officials.

Additional sessions judge R K Tripathi issued a notice to Snapdeal CEO Kunal Bahl, COO Rohit Bansal and its former chief financial officer (CFO) Vijay Ajmera for allegedly cheating entrepreneur Gaurav Dua's concept of "non-inventory holding marketplace model for retail" in the garb of collaborating with him.

"Heard. Record perused. Issue notice of revision petition to respondents vide all prescribed modes returnable for May 17, 2017," the judge said.

Dua had lodged a criminal complaint against the founders and the CFO under sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC, which was dismissed by a trial court earlier. He had then filed a revision petition before sessions court.

A parliamentary panel has rapped intelligence agencies for the terror attacks in Pathankot, Uri and a few other places, saying these strikes "exposed the deficiencies" of the agencies but there was no analysis of their "failure".

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, headed by senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, said a year had passed since the January 2, 2016, terror attack at the Indian Air Force station in Pathankot but the probe has not been completed by the National Investigation Agency.

Moreover, it said, no analysis seems to have been done of the "failure" of the intelligence agencies to provide credible and actionable inputs regarding the attacks at Pathankot, Uri, Pampore, Baramulla and Nagrota.

"The committee feels that these attacks have exposed the deficiencies of our intelligence agencies," it said.

"The committee, therefore, recommends that the (home) ministry should instruct the NIA to complete the investigations of these attacks at the earliest so as to identify the loopholes in the intelligence setup in the border areas," it said.

A magisterial court in Mumbai has issued a bailable arrest warrant against Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt for not appearing before it to answer a complaint of criminal intimidation filed by producer Shakeel Noorani.

Dutt, however, attributed his non-appearance before the court to a "communication lapse" between his counsel and those of Noorani and vowed to "rectify the situation."

"We had sought an arrest warrant against Dutt for non- appearance. The court has allowed our application," said advocate Neeraj Gupta, Noorani's lawyer.

The next hearing will be on August 29.

A pornographic clip was recently played on an LED screen at New Delhi's busy Rajiv Chowk Metro Station by three unidentified men, a preliminary probe by the Delhi Metro has found.

The 30-second-long amateur video has been circulating on social media.

The clip, made on April 9, was played on one of the screens of a giant video wall, a grid of 12 LED screens.

While some commuters can be seen passing by it without noticing it, some of them can bee seen filming it on mobile phones.

The surfacing of the video had prompted Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to launch a probe into the incident.

"From preliminary investigation, it is established that the incident is of April 9 around 5 pm. The LED TV (smart TV having multiple features) system was under commissioning and wi-fi port was accessible.

"Prima facie, as per CCTV footage, three men have run porn clip through their mobile on the TV at Rajiv Chowk station. Attempts are being made to identify these men. CCTV footage is under examination to identify the culprits," DMRC's spokesman Anuj Dayal was quoted as saying in a statement.

Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik has said he would "take his own stand" on state Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's plans to introduce English language from nursery in the state.

"In my capacity as the Uttar Pradesh governor, I will take my own stand as and when required and when the Bill is placed before me," said Naik.

The governor was addressing a gathering at Mumbai's suburb of Goregaon on Saturday where he presided over a two-day bilingual lecture series organised as part of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay's birth centenary.

Naik extolled the virtue of Sanskrit language and stressed that every effort should be made to enrich national and regional languages.

The police on Saturday arrested as many as 75 persons after raiding an illegal dance bar at Ulhasnagar in Thane district of Maharashtra.

The accused were arrested under section 294 of the IPC (obscene act in public place) and under the Prohibition of Obscene Dance in Hotels, Restaurants and Bar Rooms and Protection of Dignity of Women Act, 2016.

The accused included 17 women dancers, 37 customers and staff of the bar.

Two youths have been arrested from Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh for their alleged involvement in "secessionist" and anti-national activities.

The youths, both residents of Janjgir Chapa district, had multiple bank accounts with several suspicious transactions, Bilaspur's superintendent of police, Mayank Shrivastav, said.

They have been booked under IPC section 121 (waging war against the country), he said.

The two had connections with members of a terror module busted by the Madhya Pradesh ATS recently, the police said.

Further, they were also suspected to have links with Satvinder Singh, who was arrested in Jammu and Kashmir last year on charges of espionage, they added.

08:20 Petrol, diesel prices hiked from midnight

The price of petrol was hiked on Saturday night by Rs 1.39 per litre and of diesel by Rs 1.04 a litre in sync with firming international rates.

The hike comes on the back of a Rs 4.85 per litre reduction in rates of petrol and Rs 3.41 a litre in diesel effected from April 1.

Indian Oil Corp (IOC), the nation's largest fuel retailer, said the price of petrol was being increased by Rs 1.39 per litre, excluding state levies, and that of diesel by Rs 1.04 (excluding state levies) with effect from midnight.

The actual increase in price will be more after taking into account local VAT.

Petrol in Delhi currently costs Rs 66.29 a litre while a litre of diesel is priced at Rs 55.61.

"The current level of international product prices of petrol and diesel and INR-USD exchange rate warrant increase in selling price of petrol and diesel, the impact of which is being passed on to the consumers with this price revision," IOC said in a statement.

The movement of prices in the international oil market and the INR-USD exchange rate shall continue to be monitored closely and developing trends of the market will be reflected in future price changes, it said.

IOC also said it intends to shortly start daily changes in price of petrol and diesel on pilot basis, in Udaipur, Jamshedpur, Pondicherry, Chandigarh and Vizag.

08:13 North Korea fails missile test, reports US

The US defence department has confirmed that North Korea carried out a missile test, and said the launch failed "almost immediately".

"The missile blew up almost immediately. The type of missile is still being assessed," the US Pacific Command said in a statement.

The US Pacific Command detected and tracked what it assessed was a North Korean missile launch at 2121 GMT on April 15 (2.51 am IST on April 16), the statement said.

"The launch of the ballistic missile occurred near Sinpo," US Pacific Command spokesman CDR Dave Benham said.

USPACOM is fully committed to working closely with its allies in the Republic of Korea and in Japan to maintain security, Benham said.

The failed launch came a day after North Korea showcased nearly 60 missiles at a giant military parade to mark the 105th birthday of its founder Kim Il-Sung.

Image used for representational purpose only.

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