Patidar leader Hardik Patel, who has been on hunger strike for the last 15 days, was on Sunday discharged from a private hospital in Ahmedabad.

He was then taken to his residence near here from where he is continuing his indefinite fast which entered the sixteenth day on Sunday.

Media persons following Hardik were stopped by police personnel deployed in large numbers on the road leading to his residence.

Some reporters were roughed up and baton charged by the police to prevent them from entering the residence of the Patidar leader.

Hardik launched his indefinite fast on August 25 from his house for reservation in government jobs and education for Patidars and loan waiver for farmers.

The 25-year-old quota spearhead was first shifted to the Sola Civil Hospital by his supporters Friday as his health deteriorated, and later to the privately-run SGVP Holistic Hospital from where he was discharged on Sunday.

He had continued his fast from the hospital bed.

Before he was discharged from the hospital, the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti leader told his supporters through a Facebook Live message that he would continue the hunger strike from his residence.

Hardik said he was firm on his demands which included a farm loan waiver, Patidar quota and release of PAAS member Alpesh Kathiriya who was arrested on the charge of sedition.

Hardik also alleged in a tweet that a police officer had threatened to kill him.

In the tweet, Hardik condemned the "attack" on media personnel.

He stated that the deployment of police personnel reminded him of "Angrez hukumat" (British Raaj) and that the scene appeared to be one from the "Wagha border" (between India and Pakistan). -- PTI

Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje announced a four-per cent reduction in value-added tax on petrol and diesel on Sunday, which will reduce their prices by Rs 2.5 per litre in the state.

   

VAT on petrol will be reduced from 30 to 26 per cent and on diesel from 22 to 18 per cent, Raje announced at a public meeting organised in Rawatsar in Hanumangarh district as part of her 'Rajasthan Gaurav Yatra'.

 

The decision will cost the exchequer Rs 2,000 crore and will provide the people a relief of Rs 2.5 per litre on petrol and diesel.

 

"We have decided to reduce VAT on diesel and petrol by 4 per cent, which will provide much-needed relief to the people of the state, be it farmers or women or others," Raje told reporters in Rawatsar after making the announcement.

  

Petrol and diesel prices set new records Sunday as they continued their upward march on fall in rupee and surge in global crude oil rates.

 

The opposition Congress has called for a nationwide shutdown on Monday over rising fuel prices and depreciation of the rupee.

 

Targeting the Congress, the chief minister said that the party had failed to play the role of an effective opposition and came out of its shell just before the election. Assembly election in Rajasthan is scheduled for later this year. -- PTI 

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has been honoured at the Women in Film and Television India Awards in Washington.

 

The 44-year-old actor was felicitated with the Meryl Streep Award for Excellence, which has been established to honour the best female talent in Bollywood and Hollywood.

Aishwarya was accompanied by daughter Aaradhya and her mother Brinda Rai at the awards.

The actor posted pictures from the ceremony on Instagram where she can been seen in a black-and-golden gown along with her trophy and daughter.

"Heartfelt THANK YOU to all my well-wishers from India and all around the world, for being my inspiration and Strength... God Bless and all my love too," Aishwarya wrote.

 Apart from the actor, director Zoya Akhtar and "Dhadak" star Janhvi Kapoor, among others, were also honoured at the event. -- PTI  

Photograph: Kind courtesy Aishwarya Rai Bachchan/Instagram

Seeking and accepting sexual favours can be considered a bribe under the new anti-corruption law with the accused getting up to seven years jail term, a senior government official said on Sunday.

The Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018 incorporates the umbrella term "undue advantage", which means any gratification other than legal remuneration and also includes expensive club memberships and hospitality, the official explained.

The word "gratification" is not limited to pecuniary gratifications or to gratifications estimable in money, says the amended anti-corruption law.

 

The act has been notified in late July by the central government after getting assent from President Ram Nath Kovind. 

 

The 2018 law amends the 30-year-old Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, that covers instances of corruption by public servants.

 

"Under the amended law, investigating agencies like the CBI can now book officials for seeking and accepting sexual favours, expensive club memberships and hospitality or for providing employment to close friends or relatives among others," the official said.  

 

It also has the provision to punish bribe givers with a jail term of maximum of seven years.

 

Before this, bribe givers were not covered in any domestic legislation to check corruption.

 

Senior Supreme Court lawyer G Venkatesh Rao said the term undue advantage could mean any favours which are non-monetary, like expensive gifts or any kind of freebies, giving a free holiday or payment of airline tickets and stay.

 

"It would also encompass payments for any goods and services deliverable any other commercial entity too, like down payments for the purchase of property or movables and or payments towards memberships of clubs etc.

It also includes more specifically sexual favours, which is the most reprehensible of all expectations," Rao said.

Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and People's Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti today said her party will make every sacrifice to preserve Article 35 A of the Constitution, which is facing a legal challenge in the Supreme Court.

 

Addressing a workers meeting of the PDP at Kangan in central Kashmir's Ganderbal district, Mehbooba said her party was committed to preserve the sanctity of Article 35 A.

During my government, I made every effort from engaging top notch lawyers to raising political awareness in the country and the state about the need for protection of Article 35 A."

"... In future also whatever will be required, me and my party will do (it) for protecting the special status of the state, she said.  

 

The PDP president said resolving the problems in Jammu and Kashmir and working towards peace in South Asia by ensuring Indo-Pak friendship were the founding principles of her party.  

 

Ever since its formation, the PDP has been striving hard for realising these objectives with all seriousness," she said.

 

"When our party formed government in 2002 with Congress, we laid out a schematic plan for attainment of these basic goals and bringing succour to common masses in the state, she added.  

Mehbooba further said measures, which were unheard of in the past, were taken by the PDP-led government to get the ball rolling on several vexed issues.  

 

Though that momentum lost its pace after 2008, the party continued with its basic agenda and with people's approval when PDP came to power again in 2015, it made its alliance partner to commit on the issues of the state through an Agenda of Alliance, a document which got recognition at the national level, she said.  

Jack Ma, Alibaba co-founder and chairman, is not retiring and will unveil transition plans on Monday, the company-owned media outlet said on Sunday as it rejected a news report that he is stepping down from the Chinese e-commerce giant.

The New York Times report said Ma planned to use his 54h birthday to announce his retirement to devote his time to philanthropy focused on education.

According to the report, Ma in an interview said that his retirement is not the end of an era but "the beginning of an era".

Ma also said he would be spending more of his time and fortune focused on education.  

The report said Ma was retiring as China's business environment had soured, with the government and state-owned enterprises increasingly playing more interventionist roles with companies. 

However, the report is contradicted by an Alibaba spokesman who was quoted by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post as saying that Ma remains the company's executive chairman and will provide transition plans over a significant period of time.

The South China Morning Post is owned by Alibaba.

"The Times story was taken out of context and factually wrong," the daily quoted the spokesman as saying.  

Ma, the public face of the technology juggernaut, will unveil the power transition plans on Monday, the Post reported.

The succession plan to be unveiled by him would make Alibaba one of the very few Asian companies that consciously detaches its corporate structure and daily operations from the founder, the repot said.

"I sat down with our senior executives 10 years ago, and asked what Alibaba would do without me," Ma said in an interview with the Post.

"I'm very proud that Alibaba now has the structure, corporate culture, governance and system for grooming talent that allows me to step away without causing disruption," he said.

Known as Ma Yun in mainland China, Ma is one of China's wealthiest men, with his net worth estimated at USD 40 billion by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. -- PTI

The Shiv Sena Sunday spurned Congress' request to participate in the Bharat Bandh called on Monday by the latter against rising prices of petroleum products.

Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, Maharashtra Congress president Ashok Chavan said he had made the request to Sena.

"It is not just the Congress but the Nationalist Congress Party, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, the Samajwadi Party and others too are supporting the bandh," he said at the press conference.

"We expect Shiv Sena to support it. I have personally spoken to (Sena Rajya Sabha MP) Sanjay Raut about coming out in the open against the price hike, but we are still waiting for their response," Chavan informed.

Responding to the Congress' request, Raut said Sena won't participate in the bandh. "The opposition should show their unity. The Sena is looking at the bandh neutrally," he said.

"This issue (price hike of petroleum products) has affected the common man to a large extent. There is lot of discontent among people regarding it," Chavan said.

The Congress leader said that with the rise in prices of petroleum products, the government was trying to take money out of the common man's pockets.

Chavan said his party was in favour of petroleum products coming under GST, but till then, central excise duty and other taxes, which he said is the reason for the price hike, should be reduced.

"There is talk about petrol and diesel being brought under GST. We will appreciate that, but until it is implemented, we demand that central excise duty and other tax levied by the Central and state governments should be

immediately reduced," he said.

The Raj Thackeray-led MNS Sunday announced it was supporting the bandh. In a statement, Thackeray said MNS will not only back but also actively participate in the bandh. -- PTI

Giving rise to possibility of early elections to the Telangana assembly, the Election Commission has stopped all activities relating to the special summary revision of photo electoral rolls with reference to January 1, 2019.

   

The Election Commission has decided to publish the final electoral rolls list on October 8 compared to the previous schedule of special summary revision of the electoral rolls.

 

Telangana Chief Electoral Officer Rajat Kumar in a release said Saturday the decision for a revised schedule was taken in the wake of dissolution of the Telangana Assembly on September 6.

"...the Election Commission of India, after taking all aspects into consideration and the law laid down by the Supreme Court, has decided to stop all the activities relating to ongoing Special Summary Revision of Photo Electoral Rolls with reference to January 1, 2019 as qualifying date in Telangana state with immediate effect", the release said.

 

The ECI also ordered second Special Summary Revision of Photo Electoral Rolls with reference to January 1, 2018 as the qualifying date in the state, the release from the office of the chief Electoral Officer here said.

 

As per the revised schedule, the publication of the integrated draft electoral roll will be on Monday (September 10).

The period for filing claims and objections is from Monday to September 25, while the disposal of claims and objections is by October 4.

 

The updating database and printing of supplement will be completed before October 7 and the final publication of electoral roll will be on October 8, it said.

 

A three-member EC team is scheduled to visit Hyderabad Tuesday and discuss poll preparedness. PTI 

Setting the tone for the 2019 parliamentary election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi coined on Sunday a new slogan, 'Ajay Bharat, Atal BJP', highlighting his party's commitment to its core values and the country's progress and forward march under its rule. 

 

Addressing the BJP national executive meet, Modi also paid rich tributes to former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee through his slogan.

The new slogan, 'Ajay Bharat, Atal BJP', means an India which is victorious and cannot be subjugated by anyone and a party which is committed to its principles, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said briefing the media about Modi's speech in the closed-door meeting.

 

Taking a dig at efforts by opposition parties to stitch together a grand alliance against the BJP, Modi said, "People who do not see eye to eye are thinking of a grand alliance. It is vindication of our work."

 

He said that no one, not even smaller parties, was ready to accept the leadership of the Congress in such an alliance.

 

Describing his vision for the country, the prime minister said, "I want the country to be affluent, but its bedrock should be simplicity." -- PTI 

The Tamil Nadu government has taken a resolution to call for the release of the seven persons convicted for the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. 

The recommendation of the state cabinet will be sent to the governor immediately, said state minister D Jayakumar.

The convicts have been in jail for 27 years. In 2014, then chief minister J Jayalalitha had decided to release them, but the Centre had rejected the proposal.

Amid efforts to unite non-Bharatiya Janata Party forces in the run-up to the 2019 parliamentary election, Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said that party president Rahul Gandhi would find "automatic" acceptance in the opposition ranks sooner than later.

 

In an exclusive interview to PTI, the Congress veteran said the people of India were looking up to Gandhi to dislodge the BJP and his acceptance among the opposition leaders would ultimately materialise, today or tomorrow.

 

To drive his point home, Kharge, a former Union minister, asked which opposition leader, save Gandhi, had pan-India acceptance -- from Puducherry to Jammu and Kashmir?

 

"When Rahul Gandhi is working, everyone is praising his work. Acceptability is there. Because of this, there will be automatic acceptance (of Rahul Gandhi's leadership) today or tomorrow," Kharge said, when asked if the Gandhi family scion will find acceptability among the larger opposition camp.

 

Asked who will lead the opposition in the 2019 parliamentary election, he said it would be decided after the election but the primary purpose now was to unite everyone to oust the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi from power.

 

Referring to Gandhi's assertion that the 2019 Lok Sabha election would be an ideological fight to dislodge the BJP first, Kharge said, "We want to take the lead in dislodging the BJP. Our leader Rahul Gandhi is naturally leading this fight. We want everyone's support in this. We want everyone's cooperation. Everyone is coming together. Everything will get sorted before the election."

 

The veteran Congressman also said people's support for Gandhi would translate into his larger political support among opposition ranks as well.

 

"In this fight we want to dislodge the BJP from power for which we are all uniting. The truth also is that the people of India are looking at Rahul Gandhi, so this (his acceptability) will ultimately materialise," Kharge said to another specific question on whether senior opposition leaders such as Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, Bahujan Samaj Party's Mayawati and Nationalist Congress Party supremo Sharad Pawar will accept a relatively young Gandhi the way they accepted former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.

 

Rahul Gandhi, 48, took over the mantle of the Congress party from his mother Sonia Gandhi in December last year.

Uttar Pradesh, followed by Kerala, topped the list of states where the maximum number of cases was registered for gay sex under Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which was partly struck down by the Supreme Court last week.

   

Altogether, 4,690 cases were registered between 2014 and 2016 under Section 377, which criminalised sexual activities "against the order of nature".

 

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), as many as 2,195 gay sex cases were registered under Section 377 in 2016, 1,347 in 2015 and 1,148 cases in 2014.

 

Uttar Pradesh topped the list in 2016, with 999 such cases, followed by Kerala 207.

In Delhi, 183 cases were registered under Section 377 and in Maharashtra 170 such cases were registered.

 

According to the NCRB data, in 2015, the highest number of cases under Section 377 was registered in Uttar Pradesh at 239.

 

In 2015, Kerala and Maharashtra registered 159 gay sex cases each, Haryana saw 111 cases and Punjab registered 81 such cases.

 

However, among the 1,347 cases registered in the country in 2015, in 814 cases, the victims were children.

 

Among these 814 cases, 179 were in Uttar Pradesh, 142 in Kerala, 116 in Maharashtra and 63 in Haryana.

 

Those accused of consensual gay sex and facing trial or whose petitions are under review can breath easy now as the Supreme Court's September 6 verdict, decriminalising part of Section 377 of the IPC, gives them a ray of hope, home ministry officials said.-- PTI

The Committee of Administrators in all likelihood will have a discussion with chief coach Ravi Shastri on Indin team's below par show in England.

 

India lost the ODI as well as Test series to the hosts and the CoA is expected to assess the team's performance after the end of the fifth Test.

 

''There is a CoA meeting in Mumbai on September 11. While the main discussion will be on implementation of new constitution, the performance of England series will certainly come up for discussion,'' a senior BCCI official told PTI today.

 

''It will be CoA's call whether they want to meet Ravi Shastri in person or seek his feedback via written report. At this point in time, Cricket Advisory Committee is non functional. Till elections are held, it's CoA which will be in charge. So it's only imperative that they will assess the performance'' he added.

        

If a meeting happens, then chairman of selectors MSK Prasad's opinion will also be sought.

       

There is a convention for more than three decades of manager's report being submitted after each and every series (home and away) but usually the coach never gives any report.

        

However, contrary to popular belief the manager does not have the mandate of to review team's performance .

        

''The manager's report is a templated one. Sunil Subramanium's duties are purely administrative and it has got nothing to do with cricketing performance. It will be purely based on logistics issues like accommodation, choice of food, travelling facilities, practice conditions etc. Sunil doesn't have the mandate to write anything else. So cricketing feedback depends on either Shastri, Kohli or MSK,'' the official clarified.

        

After Greg Chappell's departure, no Indian coach has submitted performance review report, in writing, to the BCCI after foreign series.

       

The convention has been either secretary or the president meeting the coach or the captain for a discussion on the series gone by.

        

However, acting president CK Khanna will not be entrusted with any such responsibility while acting secretary Amitabh Chaudhary's powers have been curtailed by the CoA.

       

It will be interesting to note if CoA asks for the team physio Patrick Farhart's report on the injury status of certain players during the ongoing tour which is likely to conclude in the next couple of days.

      

''Was Bhuvneshwar Kumar forced into playing the third ODI despite back injury? Was Ravichandran Ashwin fully fit during the Southampton Test? In both case, the official word was aggravation of injury which proves there was an injury in first place. Hope CoA asks for this report,'' another senior BCCI official said. -- PTI 

Nick Jonas has opened up about his love story with Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra and the singer says even though they just dated for a few months before getting engaged they knew "it was right". 

 

The former Jonas Brothers band member shared the story during an appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon".

"Our lives were kind of taking us in different places... People thought we were being coy, and so did we until we cut to now (and) we're engaged," Nick said. 

 

"The story sort of wrote itself. It was kind of immediate, and I think we just knew it was right and jumped right in. And we're very happy," he added. 

 

Nick, 25, also shared some details on the couple's recent engagement celebrations in India. He described their Roka ceremony and said the two left the momentous occasion "full of joy."

 

After the host asked Nick to give Priyanka, 36, his best wishes, the singer pointed out that his fiancee was sitting in the audience. -- PTI 

Petrol and diesel prices set new records on Sunday as they continued their upward march on fall in rupee and surge in global crude oil rates.

 

Petrol price was on Sunday raised by 12 paise a litre and diesel by 10 paise per litre, according to the price notification issued by state fuel retailers.

 

The increase pushed the petrol price in Delhi to Rs 80.50 per litre. Diesel rate touched its highest level of Rs 72.61 a litre.

Fuel prices in Delhi are the cheapest among all metros and most state capitals due to lower taxes.

Opposition parties have called for a nation-wide 'Bharat Bandh' on Monday (September 10) to protest against the spiralling fuel prices. They blame the government's unwillingness to cut excise duty for the high fuel prices and consumer burden.

Since mid-August, petrol price has risen by Rs 3.42 a litre and diesel by Rs 3.84 per litre as rupee hit record low against the US dollar, making imports costlier.

Almost half of the retail selling price of the two fuels is made up of central and state taxes.

 

According to oil companies, petrol at refinery gate costs around Rs 40.50 a litre and diesel Rs 43.

The Centre currently levies a total excise duty of Rs 19.48 per litre of petrol and Rs 15.33 per litre on diesel. 

On top of this, states levy value added tax, the lowest being in Andaman and Nicobar Islands where 6 per cent sales tax is charged on both the fuels.

Mumbai has the highest VAT of 39.12 per cent on petrol, while Telangana levies the highest VAT of 26 per cent on diesel. Delhi charges a VAT of 27 per cent on petrol and 17.24 per cent on diesel.

The Central government had raised excise duty on petrol by Rs 11.77 a litre and that on diesel by 13.47 a litre in nine installments between November 2014 and January 2016 to shore up finances as global oil prices fell, but then cut the tax just once in October last year by Rs 2 a litre.

This led to its excise collections from petro goods more than doubling in the last four years -- from Rs 99,184 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 2,29,019 crore in 2017-18. States saw their VAT revenue from petro goods rise from Rs 1,37,157 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 1,84,091 crore in 2017-18. -- PTI 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate a statue of Sardar Patel, described by the Gujarat government as the world's tallest, on the birth anniversary of India's first home minister on October 31, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said Sunday.

   

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of the Bharatiya Janata Party's national executive meeting, he said the statue with a height of 182 metres will be a symbol of the country's unity and integrity.

It has been called as statue of unity by the Gujarat government.

Rupani said the Bharatiya Janata Party had collected iron, soil and water from across the country to use them to build the statue in the state, a decision announced by Modi in 2013 when he was its chief minister.

 

In an apparent reference to the issue of Naxalism following the arrest of some activists for allegedly collaborating with Left ultras, Rupani said the statue will highlight Patel's works for the country's unity at a time when a few people are working to break it.

 

When Modi had made an announcement that his government would build the world's tallest statue to commemorate Patel, opposition parties had termed it as "empty talk" but it has now been raised with world class facilities, he said.

 

While the Congress had sidelined Patel, Modi has brought him and his works in front of the world, he said.

 

Patel, a Congress leader, has become a revered figure for the BJP which has sought to project an ideological connect between its espousal of nationalism and his efforts to integrate hundreds of states and regions into India following its independence. -- PTI

Legendary actor Dilip Kumar, who was admitted to a hospital in Mumbai due to chest infection, has shown "lots of improvement" and is currently doing fine.

   

The actor was diagnosed with mild pneumonia, his wife Saira Banu said Thursday. 

The 95-year-old actor was admitted to Lilavati hospital in suburban Bandra on Wednesday.  

 

"He is in ICU but is fine now. There has been a lot of improvement in his health. Doctors are doing the check up and the treatment is on too. He is normal and we are very much happy with the progress," Ajay Kumar Pande, vice president of Lilavati Hospital told PTI.

 

Dilip Kumar's nephew Faisal Farooqui had first shared the news about the actor's ill health on his official Twitter account.

"Saab has been admitted to Mumbai's Lilavati Hospital as he was bit uneasy due to a chest infection. He's recuperating. Requesting your duas and prayers," he had written. 

Known as the 'Tragedy King of Bollywood', Dilip Kumar has given memorable performances in films such as Andaz, Aan, Madhumati, 'Devdas and Mughal-e-Azam. -- PTI

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his wife on Sunday offered 'pind daan' at a temple in Gaya for the salvation of their ancestors' souls.

The couple performed the 'pind daan' rituals at the Vishnupad temple for peace and salvation of their ancestors' souls.

They also performed 'jal tarpan' on the bank of Falgu river.

Amarnath Meharwar, who blessed the couple after the ritual, onfirmed it.

Doval, a Z-plus protectee, reached in Gaya along with his wife on Saturday to offer the pind daan and had put up at the Officer's Training Academy.

        

Gaya senior superintendent of police Rajiv Mishra and city SP Anil Kumar were personally present on the occasion. -- PTI 

Photogarph: PTI Photo

In the midst of a political  firestorm over the Rafale jet deal, the Indian Air Force is quietly making preparations, including readying required infrastructure and training of pilots, to welcome the fighter aircraft, official sources said.

 

They said the IAF is sending a batch of pilots by the end of this year to France for training on Rafale jets.

A number of IAF teams have already visited France to help Dassault Aviation, the manufacturer of Rafale, incorporate India-specific enhancements on-board the fighter aircraft.

India had inked an inter-governmental agreement with France in September, 2016, for procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets at a cost of around Rs 58,000 crore. 

The delivery of the jets -- capable of carrying a range of potent weapons and missiles -- is scheduled to begin from September next year.

Sources said Dassault Aviation has already started test flight of Rafale jets to be supplied to India and the company has been told to strictly adhere to the timeline for delivery of the aircraft.

The Rafale jets will come with various India-specific modifications, including Israeli helmet-mounted displays, radar warning receivers, low band jammers, 10-hour flight data recording, infra-red search and tracking systems among others.

A team of IAF pilots have already trained on Rafale jets in France and they will again go there by end of the year, sources said.

The Congress has raised several questions about the deal, including rates of the aircraft, while the government has rejected the charges.

Sources said the first squadron of the aircraft will be deployed in Ambala air force station, considered one of the most strategically located bases of the IAF. 

The Indo-Pak border is around 220 km from there. 

The second squadron of Rafale will be stationed at Hasimara base in West Bengal.

Officials said the government has already sanctioned around Rs 400 crore to develop required infrastructure like shelters, hangers and maintenance facilities at the two bases.

The sources said France has been regularly briefing India about progress in the project to supply the jets.

In July last year, Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa, during his visit to France, flew a Rafale jet at the Saint-Dizier airbase to gain a first-hand experience of the aircraft.

According to the deal, the delivery of the jets will start in 36 months and will be completed in 67 months from the date the contract was inked. -- PTI

Regulator, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has imposed penalties on major telecom operators, including Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular (now merged), for slipping on various service quality benchmarks for the March quarter, according to multiple sources.

 

The fines cover various parameters and service areas, and all the operators are in the process of making the payment, sources told PTI.

About Rs 34 lakh fine has been imposed for March 2018 quarter on Reliance Jio, the aggressive player whose offerings since 2016 have shaken the market and triggered a bruising tariff war among operators.

The penalty on the Mukesh Ambani-led firm is on account of Trai-defined service quality parameters, including Point of Interconnect congestion, accessibility of call centres or customer care, and percentage of calls answered by operators (voice to voice) in a set timeframe.

An e-mail sent to Reliance Jio seeking its response on the penalty did not elicit a response.

Maintaining its watch on service quality in the sector, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India had tightened the rules and asked players to abide by its new quality of service (QoS) benchmarks from October 1, 2017.

The latest assessment reflects how the operators have fared between January and March 2018 on Trai's new service quality benchmarks.

 

Bharti Airtel -- which was the largest telecom operator in the country till the merger of Vodafone and Idea Cellular shuffled the pecking order late last month -- has been fined to the tune of about Rs 11 lakh for the three months to March, as per sources.

 

Its penalties are on account of norms relating to metering and billing (postpaid), accessibility of call centre and customer care, percentage of calls answered by operators within defined timeframe parameters.

 

The fine imposed on Idea Cellular is about Rs 12.5 lakh for the March quarter.

 

The penalties pertain to various circles on parametres like call drops, percentage of calls answered by operators within a set timeframe, and requests for closure of services complied within seven days.

 

In case of Vodafone, the March quarter penalties stood at only about Rs 4 lakh on issues like metering and billing (pre-paid), time taken to comply with request for termination or closure of service, and percentage of calls answered by operators within a timeframe.

 

While Bharti Airtel declined to comment, Idea Cellular and Vodafone did not respond to e-mails queries on the issue.-- PTI

England pacer James Anderson has been fined 15 per cent of his match fee for showing dissent at an umpire's decision during the second day of the ongoing fifth Test against India.

   

In addition to the fine, one demerit point has been added to the disciplinary record of the fast bowler, for whom it was the first offence since the introduction of the revised Code in September 2016, the ICC said in a statement.

 

The incident happened in the 29th over of India's innings when Anderson snatched his cap and jumper from umpire Kumar Dharmasena and then spoke to him in an aggressive manner following an unsuccessful LBW review against India skipper Virat Kohli on Saturday.

 

He was found to have breached Article 2.1.5 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to "showing dissent at an umpire's decision during an International Match".

Anderson admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by ICC match referee Andy Pycroft. 

 

The charges were levelled by on-field umpires Kumar Dharmasena and Joel Wilson, third umpire Bruce Oxenford, all from the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires, and fourth umpire Tim Robinson.

Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50 per cent of a player's match fee, and one or two demerit points. -- PTI   

The Bharatiya Janata Party today passed a resolution reaffirming the party's commitment to build "New India" by 2022, and said the opposition has neither a leader nor a policy while Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the most popular leader in the country. 

   

The political resolution which was presented by the senior party leader and Home Minister Rajnath Singh at its ongoing national executive. 

 

The BJP said the opposition's plan to defeat the saffron party was a "day dream".

 

Briefing the media, Union minister Prakash Javdekar said a lot of developmental work has been done in the last four years, and a New India will by formed by 2022.

"This government has vision, passion and imagination, and the works of this government can be seen. By 2022, India will be free of terrorism, casteism, communalism and nobody will be homeless," Javadekar said.

Taking on the opposition, the party in its resolution said it has no agenda or policy, or strategy. 

 

"The opposition is frustrated and it neither has leader nor policy; its sole agenda is to stop Prime Minister Narendra Modi," Javadekar said. 

 

He said Modi was the most popular leader in the country and even after four years in power, Modi's approval rating is more than 70 per cent.

 

The minister said the BJP will win with an even bigger majority in 2019. --   PTI

Lashing out at Kerala MLA PC George for using 'abusive language' against an alleged rape victim, National Commission for Women chairperson Rekha Sharma on Sunday said such incidents are shameful.

   

Sharma noted that the commission would be writing to Kerala DGP Lokanath Behera to take action against such lawmakers.

 

The NCW chairperson said the nun was allegedly facing discrimination after levelling sexual assault charges against Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal and that she was not getting support from the church.

 

Sharma's comments come amid reports of Kerala MLA PC George abusing the nun. In his statement, the MLA asked why didn't the nun report the incident earlier.

In July this year, the nun filed a complaint with the Kottayam district police chief, alleging that Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal had raped her and had unnatural sex with her multiple times at a small town near Kottayam between 2014 and 2016.

 

Mulakkal has claimed innocence and said the truth will come out in the police investigation. -- PTI  

Arif Alvi, a close ally of Prime Minister Imran Khan and one of the founding members of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, was sworn in as Pakistan's new president on Sunday.

 

The 69-year-old dentist was administered the oath of office as Pakistan's 13th President by Chief Justice Saqib Nisar at a simple ceremony held at the Aiwan-e-Sadr (the President House) in Islamabad.

His predecessor President Mamnoon Hussain left the President House at completion of his five-year term on Saturday.

The oath-taking ceremony was attended by top civil-military brass including Prime Minister Khan and Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and foreign diplomats.

Dr Alvi had defeated Pakistan Peoples Party candidate Aitzaz Ahsan and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz nominee Maulana Fazl ur Rehman in a three-way presidential contest.

Alvi was active in the student movement during Field Marshal Ayub Khan's era in 1969. 

He was shot during a protest in Lahore and proudly carries a bullet in his right arm.

In 1979, he was a Jamaat-e-Islami candidate for the provincial assembly but elections did not take place.

Alvi is one of the founding members of PTI. He served as PTI secretary general from 2006 to 2013. 

He won the National Assembly elections from NA-247 (Karachi) during the July 25 polls. He was also elected member of the National Assembly in the 2013 general election. 

In Pakistan, the President is considered as a symbol of the federation and head of the state and exercises all powers on the recommendations of the prime minister. 

With his close ally Alvi as President, Khan can smoothly implement his agenda, according to observers. -- PTI  

READ: Pakistan's new prez Arif Alvi is son of Nehru's dentist

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu has said those involved in incidents of hate and lynching cannot call themselves nationalists while holding that legislation alone was not enough as a change in societal behaviour was required to prevent such cases.

The vice president also expressed anguish over the politicisation of incidents of lynching, saying such cases should not be linked with political parties.

"Societal change (is needed). This (lynching) is not because of this party or that party. The moment you attribute it to these parties, the cause is lost. That is what is happening, let me be very frank," he said.

Asked about the incidents of hate and lynching, he said it was not a new trend and there were such instances in the past also.

"It is the societal behaviour that has to change...when you kill the other man, how can you call yourself nationalist. On the basis of religion, on the basis of caste or on the basis of colour, or on the basis of gender, you discriminate. Nationalism, Bharat Mata Ki Jai has a wider meaning," Naidu told PTI in an interview on Tuesday.

He said "some of these things" cannot be tackled through legislation alone, and a societal change was needed to check them.

The government has been under attack from Congress and several other opposition parties for a spate of lynchings in various parts of the country in the last couple of years. 

According to home ministry data, around 40 people were lynched in nine states in the past one year.

The opposition and various civil rights groups have also accused the government of not coming down hard on those involved in the incidents. 

On July 17, the Supreme Court said that "horrendous acts of mobocracy" cannot be allowed to overrun the law of the land and issued a slew of guidelines to deal with mob lynching and cow vigilantism. It also asked the Centre to consider enacting a new law to sternly deal with such incidents.

A panel appointed by the government to examine ways to contain such incidents is believed to have recommended framing a new legislation. 

"When the Nirbhaya issue came, there was a clamour for Nirbhaya act. Nirbhaya act has come, did they stop. I am not getting into politics, the political parties they have their own way of highlighting it. I (had) said, what is required is not a mere bill, political will, administrative skill, and then go for the kill of the social evil. I had said in Parliament," said Naidu. -- PTI

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday criticised Farooq Abdullah, the president of the National Conference, saying that the latter is playing party politics ahead of the panchayat and urban local body polls in Jammu and Kashmir. 

BJP general secretary Ram Madhav said that the Kashmiri leader does not want the people of his state to avail democratic rights.

After announcing his party's plans to withdraw from the panchayat polls a few days ago, Abdullah on Saturday threatened to boycott Lok Sabha and assembly elections also if the Centre fails to give an assurance on protecting the Articles 35A and 370 respectively, which are enjoyed exclusively by the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Reacting to the NC chief's threat, Madhav said, "In order to provide Kashmir people with their democratic rights, we want local body election to happen in the Valley, Jammu and Ladakh. Farookh Abdullah has always done politics of his own party and never made efforts to ensure the democratic rights of people. Now when Prime Minister Modi is doing so then he is opposing it by making excuses."

He added, "I want to ask Farooq Abdullah if he is opposing panchayat election because of Article 35A, then why did he contest the election in Kargil and how did he win 10 seats? These are just excuses."

While addressing an event commemorating the death anniversary of his father late Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah on Saturday, the former chief minister said, "We will not only boycott panchayat elections but also Lok Sabha and assembly elections if the Centre doesn't clear its stand on Article 35A and Article 370." -- ANI

The body of a 54-year-old nun was found today in a well in the Mount Tabor convent at Kollam's Pathanapuram, police said.

   

Sister Susan was a teacher at a school attached to the convent, they said.

 

Blood stains were found from inside her room and near the well from where the body was found this morning, they added.

According to a police official, they received information at around 9 am that the nun's body was found in the well.

Congress leader Bindu Krishna termed the death shocking.

 

"Blood stains were found inside her room and her hair was also found cut, according to reports," she claimed.

 

An impartial probe is essential, she said. -- PTI

Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on Saturday dismissed charges from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party that the Congress party is responsible for stalling the triple talaq bill and not letting it pass in the Rajya Sabha.

"We never opposed the triple talaq bill. Their allies also have objections on the issues of criminality. It is good that the BJP is worried about the Muslim women in the country. What about every woman then? Why are they not introducing the Women Reservation Bill? They have numbers as well," Sharma said.

Slamming the government on the twin policies like the Goods and Services Tax and demonetisation, Sharma took a potshot at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying, "Dr. Manmohan Singh was a democrat prime minister and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a dictator. India has the highest rates of GST. Many products such as the petroleum, liquor are out of the GST slab, and yet, the rates are higher. The MSME have suffered loss and crores of people have their jobs because of the demonetization. It is the responsibility of the government in power and not the opposition."

Mocking the government that they are "worried" about the grand alliance between the Congress and other parties to counter the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Sharma added, "We haven't announced any Grand Alliance, yet, they are worried. There will be a state-wise alliance and in many states, there will be a direct fight between Congress and BJP. They are worried about the unity of the opposition, especially after Kairana, Phoolput, and Gorakhpur." -- ANI

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Sunday said the state government was working on various proposals to give relief to the people from the rising fuel prices.

Talking to PTI, Fadnavis also said bringing petroleum products under Goods and Services Tax was one of the ways of reducing the prices.

"The state government is working on various proposals to reduce the prices of fuel in the state," he said without elaborating on the measures.

"The best way to control fuel price is to bring it under GST. If the GST Council moves this proposal, then Maharashtra will support it," Fadnavis added.

Taking a dig at the opposition, Fadnavis said the NDA government reduced the petrol prices 13 times in the first three years.

"They know that oil prices are dependent on the international markets. This government reduced the price of petrol 13 times in the first three years. Now, international prices of crude oil have skyrocketed," he said.

He added that if the opposition is so concerned about the high fuel prices, it should announce in the states ruled by the Congress or their alliance partners that there would be no tax on petrol and diesel.

"But they will not do so, because this is all politically motivated," Fadnavis said.

The chief minister also slammed the opposition over its call for 'Bharat Bandh' Monday over on the issue.

The BJP-led government has under fire over the fuel price hike. The Congress has given a call for a nation-wide shut-down on Monday to protest the increasing petroleum prices.

With 40 deaths in 75 accidents between September 2017 and August 2018, the railways has registered its best safety figures in five years for the corresponding 12-month period, a ministry official has said, quoting official data.

 

While between September 2016 and August 2017, there were 80 train accidents and 249 fatalities -- -- the Indore-Patna Express derailment near Kanpur in November 2016 alone had killed over 150 passengers -- in the corresponding period for 2017 and 2018, the number of deaths stood at 40, the official said. 

There were two major accidents during this period -- the derailment of the Utkal Express in August 2017 which killed over 20 people, and the the death of 13 children in Uttar Pradesh on April 26 this year after a train rammed into their school van.

Similarly, between September 2013 and August 2014, the number of deaths was 275 in 139 accidents, in the corresponding period in 2014-2015, the number was 196 deaths in 108 accidents. 

"Comparing the figures of the period between September 1, 2013 to August 31, 2014 to that of the number between September 1, 2017 to August 31, 2018, the fatality figures in collisions and derailments (whose causes the railways can address, according to the official) taken together have come down from 62 to 4 -- a 93 per cent reduction," he said.

"Better tracks, replacement of existing coaches with LHB ones and more focus on maintenance in the last four years have resulted in fewer accidents due to technical reasons," he said.    

The official further said that the vast reduction in injuries and fatalities happened primarily because of the massive renewal of tracks, regular safety reviews, better safety training of staff and close monitoring of safety performance undertaken during the period.   

Another aspect which has contributed to better safety figures is removal of unmanned level-crossings -- the railways plans to eliminate them completely by March 2020. 

Uttar Pradesh minister Mukut Bihari Verma sparked a controversy with his comments that the Ram temple will be built in Ayodhya because the Supreme Court is ours.

Mandir hamara aradhya hai .. mandir banega .. mandir bananey ki liye hum log sankalpbadh hai (Temple is our resolve. It will surely come up and we are all committed to it), he said, talking to journalists in Bahraich on Saturday.

When a journalist reminded him that the verdict in the temple case in the Supreme Court is yet to be delivered, the minister casually said, Supreme Court main hain tabhi toh! .. Supreme Court bhi toh hamara hi hai na, Supreme Court bhi hamara hai ... nyay palika bhi hamari hai .. Vidhan Palika bhi hamari hai .. yeh desh bhi hamara hai .. mandir bhi hamara hai (yes, precisely because the matter is with Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is ours, isnt it? The judiciary is ours, the country is ours and the temple is ours too).

Verma, a four-term BJP lawmaker from Bahraich, is the minister for cooperatives.

Some in the opposition felt that such remarks were a deliberate attempt to keep the temple issue in the news in the hope it would help polarise the atmosphere ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has urged former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yashwant Sinha to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in 2019.

However, the Aam Aadmi Party national convener did not name the party or the constituency from which the former finance minister should contest the polls.

After asking people whether Yashwant Sinha should contest in elections or not, the Delhi CM said, "Recently you (Yashwant Sinha) announced that you won't contest elections, but if good people like you won't do it then who would? Sir, it's the public demand that Yashwant Sinha should contest elections."

The CM was addressing a 'Jan Adhikar' rally, organised to mark the end of a 'padayatra' under the leadership of AAP leader and Uttar Pradesh in-charge Sanjay Singh. The 10-day padayatra by Singh was started from Saharanpur to raise issues of farmers and governance.

Recalling measures taken by his party in education and healthcare sectors, and regulation of power tariffs, Kejriwal asked, "If we can transform the government schools in Delhi, create hundreds of mohalla clinics and provide power at the lowest tariff in the country, why can't Modi Ji do it across the country?"

Jemima Goldsmith, the UK-based former wife of Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan, has launched a scathing attack on her ex-husband's government for withdrawing the nomination of noted economist Atif Mian from a newly-constituted economic panel "because of his minority faith".

Goldsmith, 44, who is prolific on social media, tweeted her disappointment at Khan's apparent bowing to far-right pressure to remove Mian over his Ahmadi faith.

Ahmadis are designated non-Muslims in Pakistan's Constitution and their beliefs are considered blasphemous in most mainstream Islamic schools of thought. They are often targeted by the extremists and their places of worship vandalised.

"Indefensible & v [very] disappointing. New Pak gov asks renowned & respected Prof of economics to stand down because of his Ahmadi faith," Goldsmith said in a message posted on Twitter on Friday.

"NB [Note]: The founder of Pakistan, 'Quaid-i-Azam' (Muhammad Ali Jinnah) appointed an Ahmadi as his Foreign Minister," she said.

Goldsmith, a leading columnist and campaigner in the UK, went on to re-tweet a second message in reference to this, which quoted Jinnah from 1947 when Pakistan was created as a result of Partition with India.

"You are free; you are free to go to your temples. You are free to go to your mosques or to any other places of worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion, caste creed that has nothing to do with the business of the state," Jinnah's quote reads.

Goldsmith, who has two sons with Imran, had been among the first to congratulate him on his victory in the general elections but had also sounded a note of caution in her Twitter message back in July.

She said at the time: "22 years later, after humiliations, hurdles and sacrifices, my sons' father is Pakistan's next Prime Minister.

"It's an incredible lesson in tenacity, belief & refusal to accept defeat. The challenge now is to remember why he entered politics in the 1st place. Congratulations".

The sister of Conservative party MP Zac Goldsmith is known for her outspokenness.

The attack on her ex-husband's methods comes in the wake of mounting criticism of the Imran-led government for giving in to extremist pressures by withdrawing the nomination of the leading economist because he belonged to a minority faith.

The move triggered resignations from other members of the Economic Advisory Council, including London-based economist Dr Imran Rasul, who said he "profoundly disagree[s]" with the circumstances in which Mian was asked to resign from the council.

Japanese authorities say 37 people have been confirmed dead from a powerful earthquake that struck the northern island of Hokkaido last week.

  

The Hokkaido government said on Sunday that two people remain missing and one other person has no vital signs.

Rescue workers are using backhoes and shovels to search for the missing in a tangle of dirt and the rubble of homes left by multiple landslides in the town of Atsuma. All but four of the victims are from the community of 4,600 people.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited a hard-hit area of Sapporo, the main city in Hokkaido.

The magnitude 6.7 earthquake before daybreak Thursday knocked out power and train service across Hokkaido. It took two days to restore electricity to most of the island of 5.4 million people.

Serena Williams insisted she was not cheating in the US Open final on Saturday before accusing the sport which has made her a global icon of sexism. Naomi Osaka won the final 6-2, 6-4 to become Japan's first ever Grand Slam singles champion. It also delayed Williams's bid for a record-equalling 24th major title. However, the final was overshadowed by the American's angry and tear-filled meltdown in the second set.

She was handed a code violation for coaching, a penalty point for racquet abuse and a game penalty for calling umpire Carlos Ramos a "liar and a thief" and insisting "you owe me an apology".

Williams insisted that her coach Patrick Mouratoglou had not been coaching her even though the Frenchman told ESPN that he had and that all coaches do it.

Williams said women players are treated differently to their male counterparts in the sport.

"I've seen other men call other umpires several things. I'm here fighting for women's rights and for women's equality," said the 36-year-old.

"For me to say 'thief' and for him to take a game, it made me feel like it was a sexist remark. 

"He's never taken a game from a man because they said 'thief'. For me it blows my mind. But I'm going to continue to fight for women."

Two days after he authored a concurring judgement in the landmark Supreme Court verdict that decriminalised homosexuality, Justice D Y Chandrachud Saturday expressed disappointment at the Centres decision to leave sensitive issues to the wisdom of the court and asked why politicians sometimes hand over power to judges.

Referring to the Centres affidavit, which left the decision on petitions challenging the validity of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code to the wisdom of the Supreme Court, Justice Chandrachud said: But the legislature and government leave it to the court to decide sensitive issues such as the power to administer and govern the National Capital, issue of passive euthanasia and also challenge to Section 377 besides other sensitive issues.

Why do politicians sometimes hand over power to judges, and we see that happening in the Supreme Court every day. We saw that in 377 where the government told us that we are leaving this to the wisdom of the court, and this wisdom of the court was too enticing a principle for me not to respond so I responded in my judgment the other day, he said.

Quoting from his 180-page concurring opinion, Justice Chandrachud said: It is well for a judge to remind himself or herself of the fact that flattery is often the graveyard of the gullible. He was part of the five-judge Constitution Bench, which Thursday scrapped the colonial-era Section 377, along with Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and Justices R F Nariman, A M Khanwilkar and Indu Malhotra.

A government photographer told investigators that he intentionally cropped photos of US President Donald Trump's inauguration to remove empty space and make the audience look larger, according to newly released documents.

The admission, contained in newly released records from a 2017 investigation, shed new light on what happened after the National Park Service shared a social media post comparing the crowds that attended the inaugurations of Trump and former US President Barack Obama.

Trump claimed footage of the event did not jive with the number of people he saw from the stage. His then-press secretary, Sean Spicer, gathered reporters the following evening and claimed, "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration -- period."

The identity of the photographer and many other government officials are redacted from the documents, which were first obtained by The Guardian.