LIVE! 'Giriraj Singh will contest from Begusarai'

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Tue, 26 March 2019

'Giriraj Singh will contest from Begusarai'

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23:38 US toughens policy against foreign NGOs that perform abortions

The United States announced on Tuesday it is toughening a policy denying funding to foreign NGOs that perform or promote abortions.

When he came to power in 2017, US President Donald Trump restored the policy first announced by then president Ronald Reagan in 1984 at an international conference in Mexico City.

Since then, Democratic presidents have scrapped the rule and Republican ones have reinstituted it.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Tuesday a tightening of the policy, saying the US will refuse to provide assistance to foreign NGOs that give financial support to other foreign groups involved in what he called the "global abortion industry."

"We will enforce a strict prohibition on backdoor funding schemes and end-runs around our policy. American taxpayer dollars will not be used to underwrite abortions," Pompeo told reporters.

In 2017, progressive and women's advocacy groups criticised the Trump administration for reinstituting the so-called Mexico City policy.

23:17 'Giriraj Singh will contest from Begusarai'

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi said on Tuesday that BJP leader Giriraj Singh will contest the Lok Sabha election from Begusarai seat only.

"Giriraj Singh will contest from Begusarai only. He wanted to contest from Nawada. But I have faith that Giriraj Singh will not go against the party's decision," said Modi, while talking to media persons.

An emotional Union Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Giriraj Singh on Monday accused BJP's Bihar leadership of letting him down by "violating" his self-respect by denying him a ticket from Nawada, a seat which he won in 2014.

A day after grand alliance's talks with left parties failed in Bihar, the Communist Party of Indiaon Sunday confirmed that former president of the JNU Students' Union Kanhaiya Kumar will contest the ensuing Lok Sabha elections from Begusarai constituency.

Bihar will see polling in seven phases. The dates of polling in Bihar will be on April 11, 18, 23, 29 and May 6, 12 and 19. The counting of votes will take place on May 23.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the RJD had won only four seats and the Congress two. The JD-U, which contested separately, won two seats. The BJP-led NDA had won 31 seats.

Pakistan on Tuesday fully opened its airspace, nearly a month after shutting it for commercial flights following escalating tensions with India after the Pulwama terror attack and the subsequent aerial strike by Indian jets on a training camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammed in Balakot.

The Civil Aviation Authority announced the complete opening of Pakistan's airspace, with the national carrier resuming its flights across the country.

On Tuesday, two-way flights from Lahore to Islamabad and flights from Karachi to Multan departed as per schedule, said a statement issued by the national carrier - Pakistan International Airlines - on Tuesday.

Flights have also been resumed for Bahawalpur, Raheem Yar Khan and Dera Ghazi Khan. Flights from Sialkot will resume from March 28, after necessary repairs are carried out on the Sialkot airport runway, it said.

Earlier in February, the CAA partially opened the country's airspace after keeping it closed for several hours following a rare aerial dogfight between Indian and Pakistani jets.

The CAA had also declared an aerial emergency, saying Pakistani airspace is closed until further notice.

Pakistan closed its airspace on February 27 following escalating tensions with India.

The tension between the two nuclear-armed neighbours escalated after the February 14 Pulwama terror attack and a subsequent aerial strike by India on a JeM training camp in Balakot on February 26.

Pakistan retaliated the strike next day by unsuccessfully attempting to target Indian military installations. The JeM claimed responsibility for the Pulwama attack.

-- PTI

22:28 Nirav Modi's artworks sold for Rs 59.37 crore

Nirav Modi's extensive art collection, that was seized by the government, went under the hammer in Mumbai this evening and fetched a whopping sum of Rs 59.37 crore.

Saffronart was the auction was appointed to conduct the sale. Apart from artworks seized from Modi, the auction also includes a collection of Chinese paintings.

In total, 68 paintings of Modi were auctioned on behalf of tax recovery officer of the Income Tax department.

Last week, a special court in Mumbai had allowed the Income Tax department to undertake the auction of the paintings and deposit the proceeds to the court till further orders.

Modi is a defaulter of Income Tax also, so the department took permission of the court for auctioning these paintings which were seized by Enforcement Directorate in PNB case investigation.

This comes a week after Modi was arrested by the Scotland Yard in connection with a loan default case in India on last Tuesday. He was produced before a London court which sent him to the jail after rejecting his plea for bail. He will be in the judicial custody till March 29.

Fighting for the Mathura Lok Sabha seat on a BJP ticket, the sitting MP and film actor Hema Malini is a billonaire with the value of her assets having increased by a whopping Rs 34.46 crore in the last five years, discloses an affidavit filed by her with the poll panel.

The affidavit shows Hema Malini presently owns total wealth including bungalows, jewelleries, cash, jewelleries, shares and term deposits worth over Rs 101 crore, while five years ago before the 2014 general elections, her total assets had been valued at nearly Rs 66 crore.

The value of her actor-husband Dharmendra Singh Deol's assets grew to Rs 12.30 crore during the corresponding period, according to Hema Malini's affidavit, detailing her assets and liabilities along with those of her spouse.

The affidavit was submitted by her to the Election Commission of India while filing her nomination as Lok Sabha candidate from the Mathura parliamentary constituency.

The affidavit, accompanied by her income tax returns for the last five years, reveals that the couple earned Rs 10 crore each during the last five years.

In her IT returns, Hema Malini has shown an income of Rs 15.93 lakh in 2013-14 against that of over Rs 1.19 crore in 2017-18.

The affidavit shows her income to be Rs 3.12 crore in 2014-15, Rs 1.19 crore in 2015-16 and Rs 4.30 crore in 2016-17.

Thus, as per the affidavit, the yesteryears' 'Dream Girl' earned over Rs 9.87 crore, and her 'he-man' husband nearly Rs 9.73 crore in last five years.

The affidavit disclosed that Hema Malini has two cars, including a Mercedes bought for Rs 33.62 lakh in 2011. The other car is a Toyota that, she said, she bought for Rs 4.75 lakh in 2005.

The details of Dharmendra's assets in the affidavit indicate his passion for 'vintage' cars.

As per the details of her educational qualifications in the affidavit, Hema Malini, had to leave her formal education at an age of nine for the sake of her dance training, but she did her matriculation later besides completing her higher studies.

She got a PhD degree in 2012 from Padampati Singhania University at Udaipur.

Prior to this, she was awarded Padma Shri by the Union government for her contribution to the field of arts and theatre.

-- PTI

21:31 Priyanka to visit Ayodhya, Amethi, Raebareli

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is likely to visit Ayodhya and the Gandhi family bastions of Amethi and Raebareli in her next leg of campaigning in Uttar Pradesh, beginning on Wednesday.

The party has planned a 50-km road show in Faizabad-Ayodhya on Friday, during which she is expected to address two meetings, Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee secretary Rajendra Pratap Singh said.

She will stop at over 30 other points during the road show, interacting with people, according to the schedule worked out so far.

The party is yet to announce if Priyanka Gandhi will visit any temple in Ayodhya, the town where the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site is located.

Former Faizabad MP Nirmal Khatri said the local unit of the party will try to get her to visit a temple in the town.

Earlier this month, she had taken the river route to visit parts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency Varanasi.

In Amethi on Wednesday, she will interact with the party's booth-level mpresidents who number 1,965 at the AH Inter College in Musafirkhana.

After this meeting in her brother and party president Rahul Gandhi's constituency, she will leave for Sonia Gandhi's Lok Sabha constituency Raebareli.

Priyanka Gandhi is the All India Congress Committee in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Earlier, she was scheduled to visit Ayodhya on Wednesday.

-- PTI

Criminal charges against Empire actor Jussie Smollett for fabricating a hate crime attack in Chicago have been dropped, his lawyers said.

Today, all criminal charges against Jussie Smollett were dropped and his record has been wiped clean of the filing of this tragic complaint against him. Jussie was attacked by two people he was unable to identify on January 29th, the actors legal team told NBC News.

The actor was charged with felony disorderly conduct for allegedly filing a false police report when he said he was the victim of a racist, homophobic attack in downtown Chicago late last month.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said his party consulted "big economists" including former RBI governor Rahuram Rajan before it came up with the idea of minimum guaranteed income to the poorest 20 per cent households in the country.

Gandhi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to transfer Rs 15 lakh to every bank account.

"We thought it was a good idea... Rs 15 lakh in bank accounts. But the promise was not fulfilled by Modi. We started our work six months back to make such a thing reality," he said.

He went on to say that his party consulted "all big economists, without telling anyone, without giving any speeches".

"We were engaged in this work for six months. Take the list of all big economists of the world, we consulted them... Raghuram Rajan... one by one," he said.

"First thing, we we came to know was that there should be a minimum income line. We calculated and the result was that the minimum income line should be 12,000 per month," he said.

Gandhi said his party will fulfil the promise.

On Monday, Gandhi had announced in New Delhi that Rs 72,000 per year will be given as minimum income to poor families, benefiting around 25 crore people, if his party is voted to power in Lok Sabha polls, and asserted it will be the final assault on poverty.

-- PTI

The man who stabbed tennis champion Petra Kvitova in her home in the Czech Republic has been sentenced to eight years in jail, local media report.

Radim Zondra, 33, went to her house in December 2016 saying he needed to inspect the boiler.

He then grabbed Kvitova from behind and held a knife to her throat. She suffered severe wounds to her left hand in the struggle to free herself.

Appearing at a regional court in Brno, Zondra denied all charges against him.

Last month Kvitova delivered graphic testimony via video link, telling the court that there was "blood all over the place".

The two-time Wimbledon champion suffered damage to ligaments and tendons in her playing hand, and had to have surgery. She returned to tennis five months later.

She is now in the US, competing in the Miami Open.

Congress leader Jitin Prasada will contest in the upcoming Lok Sabha election from Lucknow seat against Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, a source close to Prasada said.

Prasada will kick off his campaign on March 30 in Lucknow. He will initially address booth workers' meet and later hold public meetings.

Interestingly, Lucknow is a stronghold of BJP. Rajnath Singh is the sitting MP from the seat. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee used to contest from this seat earlier.

Lok Sabha's seven-phased elections will be held between April 11 and May 19. Results will be declared on May 23.

-- ANI

19:27 Kanhaiya crowdfunds his campaign in Begusarai

Kanhaiya Kumar, one of Bihar's most watched candidates for next month's national election, is making a twin appeal to his supporters - for votes, and for "notes". The student leader is crowdsourcing his election campaign in Begusarai, where the CPI has fielded him.

The fiery former JNU student, fighting his first ever election, faces a formidable opponent. Union Minister Giriraj Singh of the BJP may be a reluctant candidate - he wanted to stick to his Nawada constituency and resents his party for forcing him to shift - but he promises to be a challenging rival.

The last date of filing nominations are still a week away for Begusarai, which votes on April 29.

Kanhaiya Kumar, 32, is using all his oratorical and crowd-working skills to appeal for support in the form of donations. His campaign team has set a target of Rs 70 lakh. It may not be too unrealistic, his supporters feel.

Kanhaiya Kumar launched his campaign this morning and within hours, had racked up over Rs. 5 lakh.

Referencing the cases of Gauri Lankesh, MM Kalburgi, Rohit Vemula and the missing JNU student Najeeb, Kanhaiya says in his appeal on the crowdfunding site: "At a terrifying moment like this, we all share the struggle to protect the values of our constitution and of humanity. It is often that people who raise genuine issues have to face vile schemes on one hand and resource crunch on the other. We really hope that you will make a financial contribution to the best of your ability and strengthen us in this shared struggle."

The concept of "notes with votes", if one may call it that, is not a new phenomenon. Socialist leaders like Madhu Limaye and George Fernandes also used it to spectacular success against Congress candidates considered almost unbeatable.

19:15 Abhinandan goes to Srinagar on his sick leave

Ace fighter pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, who shot down a Pakistani F-16 from his MiG-21 chose to go back to his squadron in Srinagar during his four-week sick leave, instead of spending time at his Chennai family home.

After his debriefing and treatment at the Research and Referral Hospital got over a few days ago, the officer was advised to go on a four-week sick leave by his doctors.

"During his sick leave, the officer had the option of going to his family home in Chennai where his parents live but he decided to go back to Srinagar where his squadron is deployed for operations," sources in the air force said.

"At the moment, the officer has decided to stay with his men and machines in Srinagar and would be required to come back to New Delhi for a review medical board which will decide on his fitness for flying fighter planes," sources said.

The officer has the freedom to decide where he wants to spend his time during his sick leave period.

The Wing Commander was held captive by Pakistani authorities on February 27 after his MiG 21 Bison went down during a beyond visual range combat with Pakistani jets.

-- ANI

18:52 Shatrughan Sinha to join Congress on March 28

Bollywood actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha, who has been associated with BJP for about three decades, will join Congress at New Delhi on March 28, a senior party leader said on Tuesday.

"Shatrughan Sinha will join Congress in New Delhi on March 28 at 11.30 am ... He will be our candidate from Patna Sahib", chairman for the state Congress election campaign committee Akhilesh Prasad Singh told newsmen.

Sinha is a two-term BJP Lok Sabha member from Patna Sahib Singh but has been dropped by the saffron party which has chosen to field union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad from the seat.

Sinha has been openly critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah. Speculation had been rife for some time that he would join the Congress, which is an ally of the 'Mahagathbandhan' which also consists of the RJD and other local parties.

Asked whether Sinha would be induced in the party in the presence of AICC president Rahul Gandhi, as was being speculated in the media, Singh said top leaders will be present on the occasion".

-- PTI

The Bharatiya Janata Party has released the names of 40 candidates from upcoming Lok Sabha Elections. Among heavyweights who have been named in the list are Rita Bahugana Joshi, Varun Gandhi, Jaya Prada, Mahendra Nath Pandey, and Varun Gandhi.

While Union Minister Maneka Gandhi will contest from Sultanpur, her son Varun Gandhi will fight from Pilibhit. The BJP has fielded Rita Bahuguna Joshi from Allahabad.

Newly-inducted Jaya Prada will contest the general elections from Rampur -- to take on her bitter rival and SP nominee Azam Khan.

18:02 Nirav Modi to apply for bail again on Friday

Fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi, wanted in India on fraud and money laundering charges amounting to $2 billion, is set to appear before Westminster Magistrates Court in London on Friday, when his legal team will make a second bail application.

The 48-year-old had been denied bail by District Judge Marie Mallon at his first hearing soon after his arrest by Scotland Yard officers from a central London bank branch as he tried to open a new bank account and has been in custody at HMP Wandsworth prison in south-west London since last Wednesday.

"He is expected to be produced before the court for a second bail application hearing on March 29," a court official confirmed on Tuesday.

Crown Prosecution Service barrister Jonathan Swain, arguing on behalf of the Indian authorities, had objected to Modi's bail plea during last week's hearing, stressing that he was wanted in India for "high value and sophisticated" fraud and money laundering amounting to $2 billion.

Judge Mallon had ruled in favour of the Indian authorities, saying that she was convinced Modi had the means and incentive to jump bail and "fail to surrender".

The next hearing in the case is expected to be presided over by Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot, the judge who ordered the extradition of former Kingfisher Airlines boss Vijay Mallya to India last December. That case is currently in the UK high court as part of Mallya's application seeking leave to appeal against her ruling.

"Further to the Mallya case, India now has a template to refer to when dealing with the extradition procedure of Nirav Modi from the UK," said Sarosh Zaiwalla, Founder and Senior Partner at UK-based law firm Zaiwalla & Co.

Describing him as the "opposite of a flight risk" during the first bail application hearing last week, Modi's defence team had offered 500,000 as security and also submitted to any stringent conditions that may be imposed upon their client. It remains to be seen how they would further bolster that offer in order to convince the judge to grant bail during the second hearing, following which the case will proceed to a series of case management hearings and setting of a trial date.

-- PTI

Delhi Congress chief Sheila Dikshit on Tuesday lauded party president Rahul Gandhis minimum income guarantee programme announcement saying it is one of the biggest decisions ever taken to benefit the poor. Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Dixit showcased pamphlets to the media that displayed the slogan Aay pe charcha (Talk on income).

As far as I remember, this is one of the biggest decisions ever taken to benefit the poor anywhere in the world. People are praising this announcement (minimum income). We are receiving countless phone calls saying that it is a big step towards the welfare of poor people in the country, said Dikshit.

While replying to a question on a possibility of an alliance with the Aam Admi Party, the former Delhi chief minister said that decision will be taken by Congress president. When a decision will be taken then we will inform the media. Ultimately the decision is to be taken by Rahul Gandhi as he is the party president, all will abide by what he decides, Dikshit was quoted as saying by ANI.

In the same conference, Congress leader Rajesh Lilothia told reporters that the party will launch a programme called Aay pe charcha which will focus on providing employment opportunities in the country.

Before coming to power, BJP had promised to deposit Rs 15 lakh in poor peoples bank accounts and double farmers income. People have realised that they have been bluffed. Medium and small businesses are still trying to recover from the shocks of demonetisation and GST, Yusuf said.

According to the Central Statistics Office, there were 24.95 crore households in India in 2011. If every household in the bottom 20 per cent is eligible for this income, this translates into a total expenditure of about Rs 3.6 lakh crore annually over six times the outlay of Rs 55,000 crore under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in Budget 2019.

A Delhi court on Tuesday issued a non-bailable warrant against real estate tycoons Gopal Ansal and Sushil Ansal for allegedly tampering with evidence in connection with the 1997 Uphaar fire tragedy.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of Patiala House Court, Deepak Sehrawat, issued the NBW to the Ansal brothers. The NBW was issued against the duo due to their non-appearance before the court.

Meanwhile, lawyers for the Ansal brothers approached the court for cancellation of the NBW. The court is likely to hear the plea on March 26.

The court is hearing the case related to alleged tampering of evidence after chairperson of the Association of Victims of Uphaar Tragedy, Neelam Krishnamoorthy, who lost her two children in the tragedy, called for the early resolution of the matter.

She has been fighting on behalf of the victims' families for over 20 years now.

Up to 59 people died and more than 100 were injured in the subsequent stampede in Uphaar Cinema in south Delhi's Green Park area after a fire broke out during the screening of Hindi movie 'Border' on June 13, 1997.

-- ANI

Suspect cash, illegal liquor and drugs worth about Rs 540 crore have been seized across the country since parliamentary election schedule was announced by the Election Commission a fortnight ago, official data showed Tuesday.

Tamil Nadu recorded the maximum seizure of these illegal inducements, suspected to have been routed and used to bribe voters, worth Rs 107.24 crore, followed by Uttar Pradesh Rs 104.53 crore, Andhra Pradesh Rs 103.4 crore and Punjab Rs 92.8 crore.

Karnataka saw the total seizure of inducements and cash worth Rs 26.53 crore, Maharashtra Rs 19.11 crore and Telangana Rs 8.2 crore.

An Election Commission official said the total value of seized items was Rs 539.99 crore.

The polls were declared by the Election Commission on March 10 and as per data updated till March 25, a total of Rs 143.37 crore suspect cash, Rs 89.64 crore worth of liquor, drugs valued at Rs 131.75 crore, gold and other precious metals worth Rs 162.93 crore and other freebies of Rs 12.20 crore have been seized, the EC data for all states for Lok Sabha polls said.

The EC has deployed hundreds of general observers, expenditure observers and static and mobile surveillance teams in the country to keep a check on flow of black money and other illegal gratification so that the level playing field of holding fair polls is not disturbed.

The seven phase polls will begin from April 11 and the counting of votes will take place on May 23. -- PTI

Actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha, who is all set to quit the BJP and join the opposition alliance in Bihar, on Tuesday showered praise on Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, calling him the "master of situation" and his proposed minimum income guarantee scheme--'NYAY'a "masterstroke".

Sinha, a two-term sitting MP from Patna Sahib, also slammed the BJP for doubting the feasibility of the proposed scheme. and drew a phrase from a yesteryear chartbuster years to make his point aap kare to raasleela baki kare to character dheela.

It is a masterstroke by the master of situation @RahulGandhi declaring #MinimumIncomeGuarantee scheme. It has rattled our people so much that some of our prominent people had to rush for a press conference, calling the whole declaration/announcement chhal-kapat (skulduggery), Sinha tweeted.

He said he would like to know from BJP leaders that when they announced various "jumlas" about Rs 15 lakh in the banks accounts of every individual, farm loan waiver and subsidies to farmers, and more than two crore jobs for the youth, was that fair.

"Aap kare toh rasleela, baki kare toh character dheela! What is right for Peter, should be right for Paul, Sir! The people have welcomed this move and are very excited. Farmers loans have been waived as promised by them recently in three different states," he added referring to the newly elected Congress governments in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

This is how things are paid in the same coin. That is why it is called master of situation Rahul Gandhi, Sinha said in his final tweet.

Speculation is rife that Sinha, one of the most vitriolic critics of the cetral governent and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will join the Congress in the next few days and contest Lok Sabha poll from Patna Sahib. -- PTI

The Samajwadi Party on Tuesday announced an alliance with the Nishad Party, Janwadi Party-Socialist and the Rasthriya Samanta Dal for the April-May Lok Sabha election in Uttar Pradesh.

The SP has earlier tied up with the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party and the Ajit Singh-led Rashtriya Lok Dal to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party.

"The Nishad Party, the Janwadi Party-Socialist and the Rashtriya Samanta Dal will work for ensuring success of alliance candidates throughout the state," SP chief Akhilesh Yadav told a joint press conference with leaders of these parties inLucknow.

Uttar Pradesh has 80 Lok Sabha seats.

Yadav alleged that the BJP was using governor, government agencies and the media for its campaign.

Attacking the BJP, he said, "The main issue for BJP in these polls are only opposition and 'chowkidar' and campaigners of the BJP are governor, government agencies and media."

He was referring to Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh's statement that Narendra Modi should become the prime minister once again.

On March 23, Singh, talking to reporters in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh had said, "We all are BJP workers and we want the BJP to emerge victorious. We want that Modi ji should become the prime minister. It is important for the country."

Replying to a question, Yadav said, "My team is working on issues that are to be taken up. We will come out with a manifesto soon." -- PTI

15:27 Nawaz Sharif gets bail for treatment

In a relief to Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan's Supreme Court Tuesday granted bail to the jailed former prime minister for six weeks in a corruption case on medical grounds.

Sharif, 69, is in jail since December last year, serving a 7-year imprisonment in the Al Azizia Steel Mills graft case.

He filed appeal earlier this month against a judgment by the Islamabad High Court which on February 25 rejected his bail on medical grounds in the same case.

A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa in a short order granted bail to Sharif for six weeks for his treatment.

But the court ruled he cannot go out of the country during this period.

Three corruption cases - Avenfield properties, Flagship investment and Al-Azizia steel mills - were registered against the Sharif family by the anti-graft body in 2017 following a judgment by the Supreme Court that disqualified Sharif in the Panama Papers case in 2017.

He was sentenced to 10 years in prison in the Avenfiled corruption case in July 2018 which was related to his properties in London. Later he was given bail in September. -- PTI

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday promised a "surgical strike" on poverty and said his party had been working on how to eradicate it for the last six months.

Addressing a rally in Suratgarh a day after declaring his party would roll out a minimum income guarantee scheme for the poorest 20 per cent households if voted to power, Gandhi said only the rich could dream under the Narendra Modi rule.

"We will eradicate poverty in the country. This is a 'dhamaka'. No country has done this in history. There should not be a single poor person in the country," Gandhi said.

He said his party would work to reduce unemployment if it comes to power.

"If Modi gives money to the rich, the Congress will give money to the poor," Gandhi said.

Alleging that Modi had helped those who had black money, the Congress president said those lifted from poverty by the UPA government had again been made poor in the last five years.

According to him, 14 crore people were lifted from poverty by the UPA government.

"It is a shame that there are still 25 crore poor people in the country," Gandhi said.

"You will get the right price for your labour and product," he told the gathering.

The UPA government had launched schemes over 10 years but Modi ended them all, the Congress chief said, adding that the prime minister had failed to understand the MGNREGA job scheme.

Taking a jibe at Modi, he said the prime minister was indeed a "chowkidaar" but of industrialist Anil Ambani. -- PTI

15:12 Nitin Gadkari shows Rs 6.4 lakh income

Union minister Nitin Gadkari has declared movable and immovable assets worth Rs 25.12 crore in an affidavit filed along with his nomination papers for the Nagpur parliamentary constituency.

Gadkari filed his papers for the Nagpur Lok Sabha seat on Monday. Polling in the constituency will be held on April 11.

As per his tax return forms, his total income stood at Rs 2,66,390 in 2013-14 and Rs 6,40,700 in 2017-18.

According to his affidavit, he has movable assets worth Rs 69,38,691, while his wife has movable assets worth Rs 91,99,160.

A sum of Rs 66,07,924 is in the name of the Hindu Undivided Family.

Similarly, Gadkari has immovable assets worth Rs 6,95,98,325, his wife Rs 6,48,60,325. A sum of Rs 9,40,31,224 was in the name of HUF.

Gadkari declared over 29 acres of agricultural land in Dhapewada in Nagpur, of which 15 acres are registered in the name of his wife and 14.60 acres owned by HUF.

Gadkari declared an ancestral house at Mahal (Nagpur) and a flat at an MLA Society in Worli (Mumbai).

The Union minister, in his affidavit, has informed that he has invested Rs 3,55,510 in savings scheme, mutual funds, bonds and shares.

He has Rs 8,99,111 in his banks account, according to the affidavit.

Similarly, his wife's bank balance stood at Rs 11,07,909.

The senior BJP leader also has liabilities of Rs 1,57,21,753 by way of bank loans.

Gadkari declared six cars in his affidavit, four of which are in the name of his wife. -- PTI

The government's recent advisory asking states to clamp down on e-cigarettes may not be enough to root them out, say experts, advocating a "special mechanism" to ensure a blanket ban on the devices that many users mistakenly view as a safer alternative to combustible cigarettes.

Terming e-cigarettes poisonous and as dangerous as regular cigarettes, the experts said the Centre and state have made efforts but clandestine online portals and dingy shops selling them in nooks and crannies across India's towns continue to function.

"Even if the advisory of the government asks states to curb the sale of e-cigarettes in their jurisdiction, it is very difficult to keep a check at the ground level if the sale is happening through small vendors," Dr P C Gupta, director of HEALIS-Sekhsaria Institute for Public Health, Mumbai, told PTI.

"There is need for a special mechanism by the government to keep a tab on the vendors from time to time, he added.

On March 12, the Central Drug Standard Control Organisation wrote to all drug controllers in states and Union territories to not allow the manufacture, sale, import and advertisement of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems, including e-cigarettes and flavoured hookahs, in their jurisdictions.

The move was in concert with several other organisations.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, too, proposed an amendment to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules 2018 to ban the advertisement of e-cigarettes.

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs also issued a circular recently, directing that all import consignments of e-cigarettes must be cleared first by the drug controller.

There is no legislation to regulate the sale of e-cigarettes in the country, experts have said while calling for a blanket ban.

Actor Sanjay Dutt has denied reports that he would be contesting in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections 2019.

The actor took to Twitter to clear the air surrounding the reports that claimed he was set to follow in his father, late actor-Congress MP Sunil Dutt's foosteps and contest polls from Ghaziabad.

"The rumor about me contesting for the Loksabha elections is not true (sic)" Dutt tweeted.

He further extended his support to his sister, Congress MP Priya Dutt ahead of the general elections.

"I stand with my country and in full support for my sister @PriyaDutt_INC. I urge everyone to come out in maximum numbers and cast their vote for our nation!" Dutt wrote. -- PTI

The Congress on Tuesday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party to clearly spell out whether they support its proposal to give Rs 72,000 annually to five crore poor families under a minimum income guarantee scheme, claiming many BJP ministers were opposing the idea.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the Nyunatam Aay Yojana (Nyay) is not a "top-up scheme" and is a women-centric scheme whereby the money will go directly into the bank accounts of the woman member of a family.

Speaking a day after Congress President Rahul Gandhi made the announcement about the poll promise after a meeting of the party's working committee, Surjewala alleged that it was "shameful" that the "pro-rich" Prime Minister Modi was opposing the world's biggest anti-poverty scheme.

Gandhi made the scheme public soon after it was given a go-ahead by the Congress Working Committee, that had met at the AICC headquarters to give final shape to the party's manifesto for the April-May parliamentary election, to be released soon.

The Congress leader also attacked Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for dubbing the scheme as a "bluff announcement", saying no other political party has "betrayed" India for more than seven decades in the name of poverty.

Surjewala also attacked government think tank NITI Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar dubbing the body he headed as "Rajneeti Ayog" and asked him to run the organisation from the BJP office and contest elections instead. -- PTI

Prime Minister Imran Khan has said Indo-Pak relations would remain tense till the general elections in India are over.

Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated after the February 14 attack by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed in Pulwama.

Amid mounting outrage, the Indian Air Force carried out a counter-terror operation, hitting what it said was a JeM training camp in Balakot, deep inside Pakistan on February 26.

The next day, Pakistan Air Force retaliated and downed a MiG-21 in an aerial combat and captured an Indian pilot, who was handed over to India later.

Khan said shadows of war were still hovering over Pakistan and India as Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration could go for "another misadventure" before the general elections.

"The danger is not over. The situation will remain tense till forthcoming general elections in India. We are already prepared to avert any aggression from India," Dawn quoted Khan as saying. -- PTI

13:18 Jaya Prada joins BJP

Actor-turned-politician Jaya Prada has joined the Bharatiya Janata Party.

The former Samajwadi Party leader had won the Rampur Lok Sabha seat in 2004 and 2009.

According to media reports, Jaya is likely to contest Lok Sabha elections from Rampur against SP's Azam Khan.

13:06 Pak man held by BSF along Gujarat IB

A Pakistani national was apprehended by the Border Security Force along the Indo-Pak International Border in Gujarat, officials said Tuesday.

They said Muhammad Ali (35), who was speaking Sindhi, was apprehended by a Border Security Force patrol from the 'Kumar' border post in the frontier district of Banaskantha on Monday evening.

Nothing substantial was recovered from the man and central security agencies were interrogating him, they said. -- PTI

NASA's plan to conduct the first all-female spacewalk this month had to be scrapped after the crew aboard the International Space Station encountered an unexpected setback, the lack of well-fitting spacesuits, the US space agency said.

NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Christina Koch were scheduled to conduct the historic spacewalk on March 29 to install powerful lithium-ion batteries for one pair of the station's solar arrays.

Since the space station was assembled in 1998, 214 spacewalks have taken place, all of which had at least one male astronaut.

However, after McClain conducted her first spacewalk on March 22, she realised that a medium-size hard upper torso -- essentially the shirt of the spacesuit -- fits her best.

Since only one medium-size torso can be made ready by March 29, Koch will wear it, the US space agency said in a statement.

McClain now is tentatively scheduled to perform her next spacewalk on Monday, April 8 with Canadian Space Agency astronaut David Saint-Jacques.

These will be the 215th and 216th spacewalks in the history of International Space Station assembly and maintenance. During the first spacewalk of the series, on March 22, McClain became the 13th woman to perform a spacewalk. Koch will become the 14th on March 29.

No difference exists in a male's or female's suit, but female astronaut usually require a smaller size.

The shuttle spacesuit was designed to be made of many interchangeable parts, to accommodate the large number of astronauts with widely varying body sizes. These parts (upper and lower torsos, arms, etc.) are made in different sizes.

The body measurements of each shuttle astronaut are taken and recorded. Then the measurements are plotted against the size ranges available for each spacesuit component, according to NASA. -- PTI

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to acknowledge the claim of the TTV Dinakaran-led outfit over 'pressure cooker' as common election symbol.

The apex court, however, directed the Election Commission to consider granting common free election symbol to the candidates of the Dinakaran-led outfit for the upcoming general and assembly by-elections in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi also made clear that its order asking the EC to consider granting common election symbol would not amount to granting recognition to his outfit as a political group and the candidates of the group would be treated as Independents for all practical purposes.

The bench, which also comprised Justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna, said that it was the duty and the rights of the Election Commission only to consider granting registration to Dinakaran's outfit as a political party and it will be done in due course by the poll panel. -- PTI

12:28 China destroys maps showing Arunachal in India

Customs officials in China have destroyed 30,000 world maps printed in the country for not mentioning Arunachal Pradesh and Taiwan as part of its territory, according to a media report.

China claims the north-eastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh as part of South Tibet.

China routinely objects to Indian leaders visiting Arunachal Pradesh to highlight its stand.

India says the State of Arunachal Pradesh is its integral and inalienable part and Indian leaders visit Arunachal Pradesh from time to time, as they visit other parts of the country.

The two countries have so far held 21 rounds of talks to resolve the border dispute covering 3,488-km-long Line of Actual Control.

China also claims the estranged island of Taiwan as its part.

The maps were meant for export to an unspecified country, state-run Global Times reported on Tuesday.

Almost 30,000 "incorrect" world maps, showing Taiwan as a separate country and wrong depiction of the Sino-Indian border, were destroyed by the customs authorities in Qingdao, it said.

"What China did in the map market was absolutely legitimate and necessary, because sovereignty and territorial integrity are the most important things to a country. Both Taiwan and South Tibet are parts of China's territory which is sacred and inviolable based on the international law," Liu Wenzong, professor from the department of International Law of China Foreign Affairs University said. -- PTI

Indian Premier League Chairman Rajeev Shukla has claimed that IPL captains, including Virat Kohli and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, had decided against 'Mankading' during a meeting held before one of the editions of the event.

Kings XI Punjab captain Ravichandaran Ashwin kicked up a storm on Monday after running out Rajasthan Royals' Jos Buttler at the non-strikers' end on his delivery stride, a legally permissible but controversial form of dismissal popularly called 'Mankading', in an IPL match in Jaipur.

Ashwin's action was heavily criticised by RR's brand ambassador Shane Warne, who also questioned those who found nothing wrong with it.

Weighing into the matter, Shukla said a call had been taken to avoid such dismissals in a meeting of captains and match referees in which Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Kohli and Chennai Super Kings skipper Dhoni were also present.

"If I remember in one of the meetings of captains & match referee where I was also present as chairman it had been decided that if non striking batsman steps out bowler as a courtesy will not run him out @IPL @BCCI," he tweeted.

"Most probably this meeting was in Kolkata on the eve of one of the editions of ipl where Dhoni & Virat both were present @BCCI @IPL," he added without specifying the exact edition before which this decision was made.

Ashwin's run out of Buttler is the first case of 'Mankading' in the 12 editions of the IPL. -- PTI

United States President Donald Trump on Monday asserted that the release of special counsel Robert Mueller's report would not bother him at all and the decision to make the report public lies with the Justice Department.

The report by Mueller, a former FBI director, is a nearly two-year investigation into the allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential elections.

Trump on Sunday claimed victory after a summary of the report, submitted to the Congress, found no conspiracy "despite multiple offers from Russian-affiliated individuals to assist the Trump campaign".

Opposition Democratic party, which has been alleging that Russian interference helped Trump win his presidency, are demanding that the report be made public.

"It wouldn't bother me at all," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked if he wanted the complete report to be released.

He said it is up to Attorney General William Barr to decide whether to release the full report.

Trump says he is glad that Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling is over and wishes it could have gone quicker. "We can never let this happen to another president again," he said.

Earlier, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders also said the President would have no problem with the release of the Mueller report

"I don't think the president has any problem with it. He's more than happy for any of this stuff to come out because he knows exactly what did and what didn't happen and now frankly the rest of America knows," Sanders said on NBC's Today show. -- PTI

Former Bharatiya Janata Party president and Lok Sabha MP Murli Manohar Joshi has been asked by his party to not contest the coming general election, a development in line with its decision to not field many of its veterans, including its founding member and longest serving chief L K Advani, in the polls.

Joshi's office confirmed the development. It said Joshi has issued a brief statement for voters in Kanpur, from where the 85-year-old leader had won in 2014.

The statement said BJP general secretary (organisation) Ram Lal, a Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh appointee, had conveyed Joshi the party leadership's decision that he should not be contesting the elections.

He had vacated Varanasi seat, which he had won in 2009, for Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014.

It, however, remains to be seen if the former Union minister, who along with former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Advani, was seen as BJP's face for more than two decades, will reconcile to the decision or not.

Joshi heads Parliament's Estimates Committee and some of its observations, including on jobs, the GDP and non-performing assets, embarrassed the government.

BJP leaders said the party has taken a "principled decision" that veterans should make the way for younger leaders.

The BJP has also not given tickets to likes of B C Khanduri, Kariya Munda, Kalraj Mishra, Bijoya Chakravarty, all many term MPs and over 80 years of age, besides Advani (91).-- PTI

Shares of Jet Airways continued to rise for the second day on Tuesday, zooming nearly 9 per cent on the bourses following the exit of founder and chairman Naresh Goyal and his wife Anita Goyal from the board of the ailing airline.

The stock opened on a bullish note Tuesday and jumped 8.80 per cent to Rs 276.90 on the BSE and at the NSE, shares advanced 8.93 per cent to Rs 276.80.

Shares of Jet Airways had zoomed 15.5 per cent on Monday.

Naresh Goyal and his wife will resign from the board of the airline, according to a regulatory filing Monday.

The decision was taken at the airline's board meeting held in Mumbai Monday.

In the filing to the stock exchanges, Jet Airways Monday said Naresh Goyal, Anita Goyal and one nominee of Etihad Airways PJSC would step down from the board.

Abu Dhabi-based Etihad is a strategic partner with 24 per cent stake in Jet Airways.

Naresh Goyal would also cease to be the chairman, the filing had said.

Further, an immediate funding of up to Rs 1,500 crore would be provided to the cash-strapped airline by "way of issue of appropriate debt instrument", the filing added.

Jet Airways, which has been operating for more than 25 years, is grappling with financial crunch and is also looking to raise fresh funds.

The airline has suspended operations on at least 14 international routes till the end of April and over 80 planes are on the ground. As many as 54 aircraft have been grounded due to non-payment of lease rentals. -- PTI

Rajat Gupta, India-born former Managing Director of McKinsey, feels not testifying at his insider trading trial was a "bad call" and he regrets not taking the stand in his defence.

Gupta, 70, has penned his memoir 'Mind Without Fear' that released on Monday and tells of his dramatic rise to the top of the corporate and financial world in America and then his fall after being charged in 2012 in one of the largest insider trading cases in the United States. He served a 19-month prison term and was released in 2016.

"I always believed that I should testify and I kept telling this to my lawyers. Till the very last weekend (of the trial) I was going to testify," Gupta told PTI in an interview.

The former director of Goldman Sachs said he had been telling his lawyers to prepare him to testify in court and he had been preparing himself for it. He, however, said that his lawyers advised him throughout the case that he should not take the stand in the courtroom.

"They kept saying don't testify, don't testify. It was a bad call on my part. I always regret it (not testifying in court)," he said adding that it was a very difficult circumstance for him since he did not know anything about the legal system.

"Here were my lawyers, my advisers who are supposed to be in my interest. Right? They kept saying don't testify," he said.

Gupta said throughout his life as a consultant, he has given advice to his clients and they listened to him.

"The situation was reversed. I was the client. So in the end I succumbed to their arguments. I felt it was a moment of weakness. I feel very badly about it that I didn't testify," he said.

In 2012, Gupta was found guilty of passing confidential boardroom information to then hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam, who is currently serving 11 years in prison for insider trading. One such information the prosecutors alleged Gupta shared with Rajaratnam in September 2008 was about Berkshire Hathaway's five billion dollar investment in Goldman Sachs.

The prosecutors said Gupta participated in the Goldman Sachs board meeting via telephone and then 16 seconds after the Goldman call ended, he called Rajaratnam's direct office line at the Galleon Group hedge fund.

Gupta maintains that he did not pass any inside information to Rajaratnam and said that it was routine for him to make phone calls when he got out of board meetings.

"They (prosecutors) made a big thing about 16 seconds. I make calls after board meetings all the time, within 16 seconds. I get out of the board meeting, I make a call generally. I make call to my secretary saying who do I have to call, what do I have to attend to," he said.

Gupta pointed out that Goldman chairman and chief executive Lloyd Blankfein had admitted during the trial he too used to make phone calls after getting out of board meetings.

"The fact that I called him (Rajaratnam) after 16 seconds has no particular meaning. It's just the normal procedure," he said.

10:50 ED arrests defence agent in VVIP choppers case

The Enforcement Directorate has arrested a defence agent from Delhi in the Rs 3,600-crore VVIP choppers deal case, officials said Tuesday.

They said Sushen Mohan Gupta was arrested late Monday by agency sleuths under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Gupta, they said, has allegedly dealt in defence deals, including the AgustaWestland helicopters deal.

He will be produced before a special PMLA court in New Delhion Tuesday.

Lawyer Gautam Khaitan and alleged British middleman Christian Michel were earlier arrested by the ED in the case.

The ED officials said Gupta's role in the case came to light on the basis of disclosures made by Rajiv Saxena, who has recently turned approver in the case after he was deported from the UAE and arrested by the ED.

It is suspected that Gupta has in his possession some payment details in the purchase of VVIP choppers and the link is to be unravelled, they said.

He has, hence, been arrested, they said.

On January 1, 2014, India scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the Indian Air Force over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of paying kickbacks to the tune of Rs 423 crore by it for securing the deal.

The Central Bureau of Investigation and the ED have filed multiple charge sheets in the case and named former IAF chief S P Tyagi and his family members as accused besides others. -- PTI

10:37 RBI conducts forex swap for $5 billion

Even as one reads this, the Reserve Bank of India will be conducting a $5 billion forex swap, whereby it will buy dollars from banks for three years in exchange for rupees.

The move will lead to, one, the central bank boosting its forex reserves and, two, infuse more cash into the banking system.

The auction is scheduled to be held between 9.30 am and 11 am today, and its success may well decide if the RBI will take recourse to this option in the future as well, when faced with a liquidity crunch.

You can read all about the forex swap on Bloomberg.com, here.

Photograph:

10:30 4 Naxals gunned down in Chhattisgarh

Four Naxals were gunned down in an encounter with security forces on Tuesday in the insurgency-hit Sukma district in Chhattisgarh, police said.

The encounter took place around 6 am in a forest in the Chintalnar police station area, Deputy Inspector General (anti-Naxal operations) Sundarraj P told PTI.

An elite unit of the CRPF's Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) was cordoning off the forest area near Karkanguda village, around 500 km away from the state capital, when a group of Naxals started firing on them, leading to a gun-battle, he said.

In the encounter, four Naxals were killed.

One INSAS rifle and two .303 rifles were recovered from the spot, he said.

Further details were awaited, he added. -- PTI

10:25 Bomb hoax on Mumbai-Singapore flight

A Singapore Airlines flight carrying 263 passengers landed safely at the Changi International Airport in Singapore on Tuesday, after the pilot had raised a bomb threat alert, which later turned out to be a hoax.

SQ Flight 423 had taken off at around 11:35 pm (local time) on Monday from Mumbai. Shortly after it took off, the airline received a call claiming that there was a bomb on the plane, the Straits Times reported.

The flight was safely escorted back to Changi airport by Singapore's air force and made an emergency landing at about 8 am (local time).

All the passengers were disembarked safely and had to undergo a security check before they could leave. However, authorities have detained a woman and a child and are being questioned by the police.

"Singapore Airlines confirms there was a bomb threat concerning SQ423 operating from Mumbai to Singapore. The aircraft arrived in Singapore on 26 March 2019 at about 0800hrs (local time). There were 263 passengers on board. We are assisting the authorities with their investigations and regret that we are unable to provide further details," said a spokesperson for the airline.

Further details in the matter are awaited.

Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leaders Lal Krishna Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi have not made it to party's list of 40 leaders who will be campaigning for the party's candidates during the first two phases of Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh.

It is worth mentioning that both Advani and Joshi have also not made to the list of parliamentary candidates announced so far by the BJP.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah and top leaders such as Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj, Uma Bharti, Nirmala Sitharaman, and Yogi Adityanath are some of the key leaders who are part of this list of star campaigners.

Lok Sabha elections are scheduled to be held from April 11 and will go on till May 19 in seven phases.

Polling in Uttar Pradesh will be held in all seven phases, and counting of votes will take place on May 23. -- ANI

09:57 Take my money, save Jet: Mallya tells banks

Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Tuesday lashed out at public sector banks for "double standards" under the current National Democratic Alliance regime for their intervention to bailout Jet Airways while the same lenders made his Kingfisher airlines "fail ruthlessly".

In a series of tweets reacting to banks led by State Bank of India taking over management control of troubled Jet Airways, Mallya said,"...Only wish the same was done for Kingfisher".

"Happy to see that PSU Banks have bailed out Jet Airways saving jobs, connectivity and enterprise," he said.

He further said,"the same PSU Banks let India's finest airline with the best employees and connectivity fail ruthlessly. Double standards under NDA."

Mallya, who is facing extradition to India from the UK, lamented that his efforts to save Kingfisher Airlines was "not recognised and instead slammed in every possible way".

"I invested over Rs 4,000 crores into Kingfisher Airlines to save the company and its employees," he claimed.

He also lashed out at the BJP for differential treatment meted out to Kingfisher and Jet Airways.

"BJP spokesman eloquently read out my letters to PM Manmohan Singh and alleged that PSU Banks under the UPA Government had wrongly supported Kingfisher Airlines," Mallya said.

He further said, "Media decimated me for writing to the current PM. I wonder what has changed now under the NDA Government."

The fugitive businessman reiterated his offer to pay off dues through his assets.

"And I repeat once again that I have placed liquid assets before the Hon'ble Karnataka High Court to pay off the PSU Banks and all other creditors. Why do the Banks not take my money. It will help them to save Jet Airways if nothing else," he said.

Last month Mallya, who is wanted in India on alleged fraud and money laundering charges amounting to an estimated Rs 9,000 crores, had filed his application in the UK High Court, seeking permission to appeal against an extradition order signed by the British Home Secretary. -- PTI

Jawaharlal Nehru University vice-chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar alleged on Monday that the varsity students forcibly entered his house and confined his wife inside for several hours.

Police, however, said there was a call for a march by some students, but security personnel stopped them when they tried to gain entry.

"This evening few hundred students forcibly broke into my JNU residence and confined my wife inside home for several hours while I was away in a meeting. Is it the way to protest? Terrorosing (sic) a lonely lady at home?" Kumar asked on Twitter.

A student from a Left outfit rejected the allegation and said a group of students had gone to meet the vice-chancellor, but they were allegedly manhandled by the security personnel.

Seven students have been on a hunger strike since last week in protest against the online system of entrance exam that will be implemented from this academic session.

According to sources, students from Left outfits went to the vice-chancellor's residence to demand an audience with him since he had not been meeting them. When they went to meet him last week, he offered them sweets rather than addressing their concern.

On Monday evening, the students allegedly barged inside Kumar's residence while he was away and surrounded his wife. Police were called in and the wives of other university professors rescued her, a professor said. Kumar's wife was rushed to a hospital as she was in a state of trauma.

"We had gone to his residence to meet the V-C. We were manhandled by security personnel and many students have sustained injuries, including JNUSU president N Sai Balaji," a student said.

The police said the situation was under control. The university professors were patrolling the campus to ensure that no untoward incident happened. PTI

Acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan said Monday he had authorised $1 billion to build part of the wall sought by President Donald Trump along the United States-Mexico border.

The Department of Homeland Security asked the Pentagon to build 92 kilometers of 5.5-meter fencing, build and improve roads, and install lighting to support Trump's emergency declaration as concerns the border.

In February, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency in order to funnel billions of dollars to wall construction.

08:31 BJP busy in T-shirt marketing: Priyanka

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra took a jibe at 'Namo again' and 'chowkidaar' T-shirts, being sold as a part of poll merchandise for the ensuing Lok Sabha election.

Gandhi took to Twitter and slammed Bharatiya Janata Party leaders for ignoring the "needy".

"BJP leaders are busy marketing T-shirts. I wish they would have paid attention to those who are suffering," she tweeted.

She also raised the employment issues affecting anganwadi workers, shiksha mitra, adhoc teachers, auxiliary nurses in the state and how their plight was neglected by the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, too, raised the same issues on Twitter yesterday.

"The hard work of Uttar Pradesh's 'shiksha mitras' is insulted every day. Hundreds of sufferers have committed suicide. Those who took to the streets to protest were beaten with lathis and were slapped with National Security Act," she said in the tweet.

A petition has been launched proposing New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern as the recipient of the upcoming Nobel Peace Prize for her response during Christchurch mosques shootings. The petition was launched by French poet Dr Khal Torabully founder of the intellectual centre, House of Wisdom Fez-Granada.

"Following the tragic events of Christchurch and the adequate, open and peaceful response of New Zealand Premier Jacinda Ardern, we wish to propose her as the recipient of the upcoming Nobel Peace Prize," Torabully was quoted as saying.

Stating that Ardern acted for the general public, Torabully said that in many countries, especially in France, there is a gap between the political elite and the people. "She inspired love and hope across the world. We need leaders like that.

This is a really big step for peace in the world. I believe New Zealand can be a place where something big can happen for mankind," he added.

Calling the mosque shootings one of New Zealand's darkest days, Ardern announced a ban on military style, semi-automatic guns and assault rifles following the Christchurch mosque shootings.

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