Writer and yoga exponent Ira Trivedi, who recently narrated her own #MeToo experience in a column in the Outlook magazine, accusing Chetan Bhagat of sexual misconduct, has slapped a legal notice on the Half Girlfriend writer for a range of misdemeanours, including defamation of character.


Bhagat on 15 October put up a screenshot of a mail Trivedi wrote to him in 2013 to counter her claim that he tried to forcibly kiss her in his room after inviting her to tea at the India International Centre.


Trivedi signed off with the word "kiss' which Bhagat used to pose the question "who kissed whom' to his 12.5 million Twitter users -- an action that Trivedi said has caused her enormous mental trauma.


To defend himself, the 44-year-old author had shared a screenshot of a 'self-explanatory' mail which apparently Trivedi sent to him in 2013. "So who wanted to kiss whom?", wrote Bhagat, adding, "@iratrivedi's self-explanatory email from 2013 to me, especially last line, easily shows her claims from 2010 are false, and she knows this too. This mental harassment of me and my family has to stop. Please don't harm a movement with #fakecharges #harassed".


Apart from a public apology, Trivedi has also demanded the removal of the defamatory statements made on social media.


Image: Ira Trivedi. Courtesy: @iratrivedi

In a country where life is so cheap and precarious, the passing away of an 86-year-old man should ordinarily provoke little comment. But the death of G D Agrawal, also known as Swami Gyan Swaroop Sanand, in Rishikesh on October 11 this year was no ordinary death. It came at the end of a fast that had lasted one hundred and eleven days. He had been fasting, as he had done many times before, in the cause of his beloved Ganga. 


Read Manini Chatterjee's column here

"One knew that Akbar had a glad eye like a lot of men have, but never to this extent that one is reading. I was very surprised. He educated you in journalism -- he told you what to do with your story, how to start it, etc. He had a hot temper and I owe a lot to him, but whatever he is today, I am pretty shocked.


"In Mumbai I knew he would call people to his room, but I never heard that anyone had complained about it.


"He had such a respected journalism career. It is sad how he has squandered everything."


Olga Tellis is one of Indian journalism's legendary reporters,  tells Rediff.com's Archana Masih how the work environment has changed for women journalists since she began her career 52 years ago. Read more

In view of the ongoing accusations of sexual harassment at workplace, the Supreme Court on Monday sought a response from various media regulatory bodies as to why they have not taken any steps in informing the police about violations of law committed by media organisations.


The top court has asked Press Council of India, Editors Guild of India and Indian Broadcasting Federation and News Broadcasting Standards Authority to file affidavits on whether they have reported to police the cases of media persons who have violated the statutory requirement under relevant laws.


The court observed that some of the offences have criminal liability and that it is quite clear that no prosecution has taken place by these bodies against alleged offenders (media persons and organisations).  -- ANI

Central Bureau of Investigation arrests Deputy SP, SIT CBI, Delhi, Devendra Kumar in connection with the Moin Qureshi case.

The board of directors of The Hindu Publishing Group has appointed senior journalist Suresh Nambath as editor of The Hindu with effect from March 1 next year. He will succeed Mukund Padmanabhan, who has been editor of the prominent newspaper since March 2016, the group said in a statement on Monday.  -- PTI

The Congress Monday accused the Modi government of conniving with fraudsters who had escaped the country and cited "conflict of interest" to say Finance Minister Arun Jaitley should be sacked after his daughter and son-in-law, both lawyers, allegedly received a retainership of Rs 24 lakh from fugitive Mehul Choksi. In the 44 months till January 2018, the Modi government witnessed an unprecedented 19,000 'bank fraud cases' involving Rs 90,000 crore, Congress leader Sachin Pilot said at a press conference along with party colleagues Rajiv Satav and Sushmita Dev.


He also alleged that 23 fraudsters escaped India under the government's watch after duping the country of over Rs 53,000 crore. Pilot said a sinking economy, banking frauds and flying fraudsters form part of BJP's-Jaitley's 'New India' and demanded that the minister should resign on moral grounds. -- PTI

A petition has been filed before the Punjab and Haryana High Court by a Gurugram-based lawyer seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry or the formation of a Special Investigation Team to investigate the Amritsar train accident.


Petitioner Dinesh Kumar Dakoria has sought directions for court monitored probe, besides seeking a direction to set up a commission under retired or sitting justices of the High Court for assessment and estimation of personal losses for granting adequate compensation.


Dakoria has also sought issuance of guidelines for duties and responsibilities of elected members in connection with their respective constituencies and the people thereof.


The petitioner stated that the elected members disown their responsibility, leaving the people in the lurch.


The accident took place in Choura Bazar near Jhoda Phatak area of Amritsar on October 19 after a train ran over the crowd, standing along railway tracks, to watch an effigy of Ravan being burnt. At least 60 people died while over 50 sustained injuries in the tragedy. -- ANI

A retired school teacher has allegedly committed suicide in Mangaldoi apparently as his name did not appear in the updated draft National Register of Citizens in Assam, a senior police official said Monday.


This was the third such incident since the publication of the complete draft of the NRC on July 30. Mangaldoi district is about 100 km from state capital Guwahati.


Nirod Kumar Das, who used to practise as a lawyer after retirement, was found hanging by the neck in his room by family members after he had returned from his morning walk Sunday, Superintendent of Police Sreejith T said.


In a note allegedly left behind, 74-year-old Das stated that he was taking the extreme step to "escape the humiliation of being marked as a foreigner after the NRC process," the family members said.


A local police official confirmed the cause of the death as hanging. All his family members, including his wife, three daughters, their husbands and children, as well as most of his relatives were enlisted in the NRC, they said.


Das was under distress since the exclusion of his name from the complete draft of the NRC, and more so, when the local NRC processing centre gave him a document, about two months back, stating that his name was put on hold as he had been marked as a foreigner, his family members said.


In his note, Das blamed nobody and listed five people whom he owed Rs 1,200 and asked his family members to return the money, the family and police said.


The agitated family members and locals had refused to let police take Das' body for postmortem Sunday, demanding that action be taken against the NRC processing centre for marking him a "foreigner". -- PTI

Kerala nun rape case witness Father Kuriakose Kattuthara's family files complaint with Alappuzha police seeking inquiry into his death.

A Delhi court on Monday sent son of former BSP MP Ashish Pandey, who was arrested for brandishing pistol at a five-star hotel in Delhi to 14-day judicial custody. Metropolitan Magistrate Dharmendra Singh sent the accused to jail till November 5 after the police said that he was not required for further custodial interrogation.


The court had earlier rejected his bail plea and issued a non-bailable warrant against him. A video of the incident which occurred on October 14 went viral on social media resulting in public outrage. It prompted the police to step in and launch a hunt for the accused who had gone missing after the incident. -- PTI

Amruta Fadnavis, the wife of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, said Monday that she was ready to apologise after a video, showing her clicking a selfie sitting on the edge of a cruise ship, went viral. She, however, maintained that the spot where she was sitting was safe. After the video circulated, Amruta Fadnavis was trolled on Twitter for taking a selfie in a risky manner.


She was attending the inauguration of domestic cruise liner Angriya in Mumbai on October 20.


"The spot where I clicked selfie was not dangerous because there were two more steps below," she told a Marathi newschannel today. "If anyone thinks I have made some mistake, then I apologise for it," she said. "I want to tell the youth that they should not take excessive risks for a selfie," she added. -- PTI

Shiv Sena, on Monday, compared the last week's Amritsar train mishap with Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919.


"An incident that reminds of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place in Punjab recently. Jallianwala Bagh incident took place during the British rule. However, the Amritsar tragedy has taken place in independent India. Even after getting freedom long ago, it has become people's destiny to die like insects," read an article in Saamna, the mouthpiece of Shiv Sena.


On October 19, a speeding train mowed down Dussehra revellers on a railway track at the Jhoda Phatak area of Amritsar, the same city in which the British Indian Army fired on an unarmed crowd, killing hundreds on 13 April 1919 in Jallianwala Bagh.


Poking holes in the railway infrastructure and functioning, the Sena criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central and the Congress-party led Punjab government. It also took a pot shot at the bullet train project.


"Hundreds of people die in train accidents. Every time such incidents happen, a Railways Minister quits and is replaced by another. It has become a tradition. Earlier, Suresh Prabhu went and Piyush Goyal was chosen as his replacement... Railways always had a separate budget, but the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government removed that too," the Shiv Sena stated.

Heart patients should interrupt sedentary time every 20 minutes with a seven minute bout of light physical activity to prolong life, according to a study. Previous research has shown that being sedentary for long periods could shorten life but taking breaks to move around may counteract the risk, particularly if it means burning more than 770 kilo calories (kcal) a day. This study, presented at the annual Canadian Cardiovascular Congress in Toronto, investigated how many breaks, and for what duration, are needed to expend 770 kcal. -- PTI

Update: Father Kuriakose Kattuthara, who was a key witness in the rape case against Bishop Franco Mulakkal, was found dead in Punjab's Jalandhar on Monday. "Father Kattuthara used to stay in a church in Dasuya. He was 62. The Father was taken to a hospital where he was later declared dead. I have been told that there were no marks on his body and he vomited on bed. They have also found a blood pressure tablet. He was not provided security. Now we will do post-mortem," AR Sharma, DSP, Dasuya told ANI.

Bishop Mulakkal, who recently came out on bail from a Kerala jail, is facing allegations of repeatedly raping a nun of his own congregation, a charge that he denies.

The allegations against the senior catholic priest whipped up a storm, polarising the church hierarchy with several priests speaking against Bishop Mulakkal.

... but still didn't have answers to this one. An ex-colleague on the editor-politician felled by the #MeToo storm.  Read the column here.

Vikas Bahl has responded to the show cause notice sent to him by Indian Film & Television Directors' Association, saying the sexual harassment allegations levelled against him are "false, malicious, motivated".


Last year, a female employee at the now dissolved Phantom Films, which had Bahl as one of the partners along side Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane and Madhu Mantena, had alleged that Bahl sexually harassed in Goa in 2015.


In his response to the notice, which was sent to him by IFTDA earlier this month, the "Queen" director said no criminal complaint has been filed against him and he should be presumed to be innocent till proven guilty.


"I deny all the alleged sexual harassment charges levelled against me and as stated in your said notice. These alleged charges are not only false, erroneous, malicious, motivated but have no factual basis.


"Further, you may also not that till date neither has any criminal complaint been filed against me in respect of the alleged sexual harassment charges nor have I been called upon by any investigation agency for investigation with respect to the same. The allegations levelled against me merely anonymous and hearsay. Thus, I am presumed to be innocent till proven guilty," Bahl said.


The director's former production partners Kashyap and Motwane had criticised him in separate statements following the HuffPost interview in which the victim reiterated her allegations. Bahl has filed a defamation lawsuit against Motwane and Kashyap. In his response to IFTDA, the director said his former partners have tried to malign his reputations to settle personal scores.


"... My partners Mr Anurag Kashyap and Mr Vikramaditya Motwane have published defamatory tweets/articles/statements against me with an intent to settle personal scores, exact vendetta, and due to professional jealously and with the sole intent to defame me, malign my image and destroy my career and hence I request your good office not to rely upon any statement so made by them."


Bahl requested IFTDA since the matter was sub judice no action should be taken against him. "Since the matter is sub judice I request your good office not to take any action against me and not to terminate my membership with IFTDA in the interim and without giving me a personal hearing." -- PTI


Image: Former partners Anurag Kashyap and Vikas Behl

The Prime Minister's Office is upset at the ongoing controversy in the Central Bureau of Investigation.  Prime Minister Narendra Modi is said to be upset with the tug of war in the bureau which may have ramifications in the general elections next year. 


The CBI has booked its own special director and number two in the organisation, Rakesh Asthana, in a bribery case. Asthana, who is named as the prime accused in an FIR that was filed on October 15, is alleged to have received kickbacks, amounting to Rs 2 crore, from a businessman, Moin Qureshi, to settle a money laundering case against him.


Cabinet Secretary PK Sinha and Principal Secretary Nripendra Mishra are believed to have had a meeting on the right time for the government to move the Supreme Court in the matter.


CBI director Alok Verma is retiring on the last working day of January 2019. An administrative policy decision is likely to be taken today according to highly placed sources.

Father Kuriakose Kattuthara, one of the few people in the church who has been vociferously speaking against Bishop Franco Mulakkal and has also given a statement to the police against him in the rape case of a nun was found dead in Jalandhar today, reports the News Minute.


The exact cause of his death is not known yet. According to media reports, Father Kuriakoses family suspects a conspiracy in his death.


Father Kuriakose had given a statement against Bishop Franco Mulakkal to the Kerala police in the rape case of a nun from Missionaries of Jesus. His brother, Jose Kattuthara, told Mathrubhumi news that he was suspicious about his brothers death, and alleged that he had been killed for giving a statement against Bishop Franco Mulakkal.  Father Kuriakose has maintained that he was constantly threatened by church officials for his support of the nun who has accused the bishop of rape


Bishop Franco Mulakkal was granted conditional bail on October 15 in the nun rape case. He had received a heros welcome when he returned to Jalandhar on October 17, with supporters showering rose petals on him.

A new controversy is brewing for Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami and it isn't looking good. An audio tape in Tamil has gone viral on social media, alleging the involvement of a Tamil Nadu minister in a #MeToo incident.


If the tape is indeed genuine, speculation is rife whether the minister will have to quit like Union Minsiter MJ Akbar, who had to step down after several women journalists accused him of sexual harrasment and molestation during the time he was a journalist. Opposition DMK is seeking the  resignation of the state minister. 


Watch this space. 

The Supreme Court Monday declined urgent hearing on a PIL seeking the registration of FIRs based on allegations of sexual misconduct and assault levelled by women across various sectors, part of what is being referred to as India's #MeToo movement.


A bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice S K Kaul told lawyer M L Sharma, who had filed the petition, that it will come up for hearing in the regular course.


Besides FIRs, the petition also seeks a direction to the National Commission for Women to give security and assistance to women who have come out in the open with their allegations. -- PTI


Image: MJ Akbar, MoS External Affairs, accused of sexual harassment by his former colleagues during his stint as an editor, resigned last week.

Normal life was disrupted in the Kashmir Valley Monday due to a strike called by separatists over the death of seven civilians in a blast at an encounter site in Kulgam district. Shops, private offices, fuel stations and other business establishments were shut in Srinagar.


They said public transport was off the roads while private cars were seen plying in few areas of the city. The strike affected attendance in government offices and banks, the officials said. They said while there were no restrictions anywhere in the city, there was heavy deployment of security forces at several places here as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order.


Separatists Sunday called for a strike on Monday over the death of civilians in a blast at an encounter site in Laroo area of Kulgam district of south Kashmir. The strike was called by separatists Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik under the banner of Joint Resistance Leadership.


Three militants were killed Sunday in the encounter, while seven civilians lost their lives in a blast following the gunfight there. -- PTI


Image: Public transport was off the roads though private cars were seen plying in few areas of the city. A child capitalises on the empty roads in Srinagar today for a tricycle ride.  Pic: Umar Ganie

I also object to #MeToo because I see that, so far, it is only the most empowered Indian women who are making allegations. When it begins to include women who are truly vulnerable, it will have my fullest support.


Senior journalist Tavleen Singh's open letter to Barkha Dutt on why she objects to the #MeToo movement. Do read

A bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice SK Kaul considered the submissions of lawyer Mathews J Nedumpara that his petition seeking review of the constitutional bench judgment be listed for urgent hearing.


"We know that there are 19 review petitions pending. By tomorrow we will decide," the bench said. Nedumpara was mentioning the petition filed by National Ayyappa Devotees Association.


A five-judge constitution bench by a ratio of 4:1 had held that women of all age groups should be allowed entry in Kerala's Sabarimala Temple.
-- PTI

A low-intensity quake shook Himachal Pradesh's Kinnaur district Monday. No loss of life or property was reported, officials said. A 3-magnitude earthquake was recorded at 9:11 am, Shimla Meteorological Centre Director Manmohan Singh said.


The epicentre of the quake was at a depth of five kilometres in the northeast of Kinnaur, he said, adding mild tremors were also felt in the adjoining areas. Most parts of the hill state, including Kinnaur, fall in high seismic sensitive zone. Mild quakes are a regular feature in the region.
-- PTI

Here's what's happening in the Supreme Court today.


The apex court today refused to hear urgently the mentioning by a lawyer seeking suo motu cognisance or action by the National Commission of women against all the accused persons in the #MeToo movement.


The Supreme Court also said they will consider tomorrow when it can take up the hearing the fresh petitions (writ and review) in regard to the entry of women in the age group 10-50 in Kerala's Sabarimala temple. There are 19 review petitions pending before the Supreme Court in connection with the Sabarimala temple.


Today will be the last chance for women bellow 50 years of age to make history by walking it though the doors of the Sabarimala temple since the temple opened on Wednesday for the the first time after the top court's ruling.


The Ayyappa shrine, which was scheduled to be open for 5 days, will shut tonight at 10 pm. So far, 9 women in the 'banned' age group have attempted the trek to the hilltop temple and have met with angry protesters forcing them to return. In the latest case, a woman yesterday suffered from a panic attack and had to be taken to a hospital near Sabarimala after masses of protesters surrounded and heckled her. Police officials today informed media in the shrine and in the Pamba camp to vacate the area as police had inputs of a targeted attack being planned on the media.

The rupee strengthened by 8 paise to 73.24 against the dollar in early trade Monday on increased selling of the US currency by exporters and banks amid easing crude prices. Forex dealers said weakness in the dollar against a few currencies overseas and early gains in domestic equities gave some support to the rupee. -- PTI

The benchmark BSE Sensex Monday recovered over 321 points in early trade on fresh buying by investors amid a firm trend in Asian markets and better-than-expected earnings from HDFC Bank. Moreover, the rupee appreciating by another 8 paise to 73.24 against the US dollar and easing crude prices also buoyed sentiments.


Brent crude, the international benchmark, was trading 0.44 per cent down at USD 79.65 a barrel. The 30-share barometer, which had lost 847 points in the previous two sessions, was trading higher by 321.41 points, or nearly 1 per cent, at 34,637.04. Sectoral indices led by healthcare, bankex, capital goods and auto were trading in the green with gains of up to 0.92 per cent.


The NSE Nifty was quoting 49.60 points, or 0.48 per cent,higher at 10,353.15. Brokers said emergence of buying by investors, driven by positive trend at other Asian bourses, and encouraging quarterly earnings from HDFC Bank, influenced trading Sentiments.


Stock of HDFC Bank was trading higher by 1.36 per cent after the private lender posted better-than-expected earnings. Other big gainers were Adani Ports, SBI, ITC Ltd, ICICI Bank, HDFC Ltd, SunPharma, Reliance Industries, IndusInd Bank Vedanta Ltd, Coal India, Hero MotoCorp, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Tata Steel and Axis Bank, gaining up to 2.28 per cent. -- PTI

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that on Tuesday (October 23) he will deliver a statement revealing the truth on the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at a meeting of the ruling Justice and Development Party.


Sputnik International quoted Erdogan as saying, "We continue to seek justice, this is not an ordinary case. Why 15 people [from Saudi Arabia] came to Turkey [on the day of Khashoggi's death? Why 18 people were arrested? I will make a detailed statement in an address to the [parliamentary AKP] fraction on Tuesday."


The statement comes post Saudi's admission of the killing of Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.


Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir on Sunday admitted that the killing of the Saudi journalist was a mistake and a rogue operation.


The journalist went missing on October 2 after cameras captured him walking into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. He was, however, declared dead by Saudi Arabia after two weeks of denial about any information on his disappearance.


Saudi Arabia's Attorney General confirmed that preliminary investigations indicate that the journalist died inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul after a brawl within the premises. -- ANI


Image: Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi

The Sabarimala temple will close at 10 pm today after a five-day puja. The shrine had opened on October 18 for the first time since the Supreme Court's landmark verdict, allowing women in the menstruating age group to 10 to 50 to enter the temple.


However, in the last four days, nine women in the 10-50 age group have been stopped by protesters from going to the temple. Yesterday a 47-year-old woman suffered a panic attack at the entrance of the temple after protesters surrounded and heckled her.


Journalists who have been reporting from Pamba have been told by the police to leave the area as they had information about targeted attacks on the media, said news agency ANI.


The temple administration has written to the government that it would lock the temple and stop rituals if any tradition is broken. Now there are concerns over more than a thousand men camping inside the temple, who can take law into their own hands, to stop women less than 50, from entering the shrine claimed the temple authorities.


The BJP has denied allegations that it has deployed its party workers at the temple, to intensify the protests. The party has demanded a special assembly session to seek the Centre's intervention, while the Congress sought an ordinance by the Centre to override the Supreme Court's order. Both the parties have alleged that the CPI(M)-led government in Kerala was trying to destroy the sanctity of the shrine.

The Sabarimala temple will close at 10 pm today after a five-day puja. The shrine had opened on October 18 for the first time since the Supreme Court's landmark verdict, allowing women in the menstruating age group to 10 to 50 to enter the temple.


However, in the last four days, nine women in the 10-50 age group have been stopped by protesters from going to the temple. Yesterday a 47-year-old woman suffered a panic attack at the entrance of the temple after protesters surrounded and heckled her.


Journalists who have been reporting from Pamba have been told by the police to leave the area as they had information about targeted attacks on the media, said news agency ANI.


The temple administration has written to the government that it would lock the temple and stop rituals if any tradition is broken. Now there are concerns over more than a thousand men camping inside the temple, who can take law into their own hands, to stop women less than 50, from entering the shrine claimed the temple authorities.


The BJP has denied allegations that it has deployed its party workers at the temple, to intensify the protests. The party has demanded a special assembly session to seek the Centre's intervention, while the Congress sought an ordinance by the Centre to override the Supreme Court's order. Both the parties have alleged that the CPI(M)-led government in Kerala was trying to destroy the sanctity of the shrine.

In what could bring respite to citizens, fuel prices witnessed deduction on Monday.In Delhi, petrol price was slashed by 30 paise to retail at Rs. 81.34 per litre, while diesel is being sold 27 paise lower at Rs. 74.92 per litre on Monday.


The price of petrol has been reduced by 30 paise to retail at Rs 86.91 per litre, while diesel is being sold at Rs 78.54 per litre after a 28 paise cut in Mumbai.


Meanwhile, in the national capital, all 400 petrol pumps along with linked CNG dispensing units will remain shut from 6 am on Monday till 5 am on Tuesday in protest against Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government's refusal to reduce Value Added Tax on diesel and petrol.


In a bid to ease the crunch caused by soaring fuel prices, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had, on October 4, announced a reduction of Rs 2.50 per litre on both petrol and diesel prices after curbing excise duty on the commodity by Rs 1.50 per litre. He had also directed all state governments to slash rates. -- PTI