sp-bsp alliance a monumental leap of (l-r) yudhvir...

CIRCULATED THROUGH : TORONTO, MARKHAM, SCARBOROUGH, RICHMOND HILL, VAUGHAN, WOODBRIDGE, ETOBICOKE, NORTH YORK, MALTON, REXDALE, BR AMPTON, MISSISSAUGA, OAKVILLE, HAMILTON, MILTON, STONEY CREEK, BURLINGTON

SAUDI TEENAGER RAHAF MOHAMMED WELCOMED BY MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS CHRYSTIA FREELAND ASSHE ARRIVES AT TORONTO PEARSON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.

(L-R) YUDHVIR JASWAL (GROUP EDITOR AND CEO -Y MEDIA GROUP), HON' DINESH BHATIA (CONSUL GENERALOF INDIA), HIS EXCELLENCY VIKAS SWARUP (HIGH COMMISSIONER OF INDIA TO CANADA), PRAMOD GOYAL(PRESIDENT - ICCC), PATRICK BROWN (MAYOR OF BRAMPTON) AT THE INDO CANADA CHAMBER OF COMMERCENEW YEAR MEET AND GREET.

CANADIAN PAKISTANI, TAHAWWUR RANA,IN US JAIL, MAY BE EXTRADITED TO INDIA

I CONTD. ON PAGE 13

I DETAILS ON PAGE 7

WASHINGTON: There is a "strong possibility" of Pakistani-CanadianTahawwur Hussain Rana's extradition to India before the completion of his14-year jail term in the US in 2021 for plotting the 2008 Mumbai terror attack,news agency Press Trust of India said quoting a source.Rana, 58, a resident of Chicago, was arrested in 2009 on the charges ofplotting the 26/11 terror attack. Some 166 people, including US nationals,were killed in the attack carried out by 10 Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba(LeT) terrorists in Mumbai.Nine of the attackers were killed by police while lone survivor Ajmal Kasabwas captured and hanged after handed down death sentence by an Indiancourt.In 2013, Rana was sentenced to 14 years of imprisonment. According to theUS officials, he is set to be released in December 2021. The Indian govern-ment, with "full co-operation" from the Trump administration, is currentlyworking on completing the necessary paperwork to ensure the extraditionbefore his current jail term ends in December 2021.India would not seek extradition of Rana on the charges for which he isalready serving his jail sentence, as officials pointed out that the "doublejeopardy" clause in the US justice system prohibits to punish a person twicefor the same crime.India is seeking extradition of Rana on the ground that he was actively in-

volved in planning an attack on the New Delhi-based National Defence Col-lege and Chabad Houses in several cities. There is also forgery case regis-tered against him in India. "There is a strong possibility of extradition of Ranato India on completion of his jail term here. We (US and India) are working onthis," a source told PTI.But the "challenge" is to complete the necessary paperwork during this pe-riod and overcome the cumbersome bureaucracy of the two countries andthe independent judiciary, the source said.

Y MEDIA PRESENTS

WHO WILL WIN ?INDIA DECIDES - ELECTIONS 2019

PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI SAYS HESTOPPED LOOT OF PUBLIC MONEY,

NOW CONSPIRACY TO DRIVE HIM OUTBALANGIR: Prime Minister Narendra Modisaid on Tuesday that there was a conspiracyto oust him because his government hadstopped the siphoning of Rs. 90,000 crorethrough bogus documents. "We have put anend to the loot of public money (which wasthe case) during the previousgovernments by middlemen.

UPSP-BSP ALLIANCE A MONUMENTAL LEAP OFFAITH BETWEEN TWO SWORN RIVALS

CONGRESS TO CONTEST ALL 80 SEATS INUTTAR PRADESH IN 2019 LOK SAHA POLLS

I DETAILS ON PAGE 11


AAP TO CONTEST ON ALL SEATS IN DELHI,PUNJAB , HARYANA AND GOA

ARVIND KEJRIWAL WILL NOT CONTEST INLOK SABHA ELECTIONS 2019

India TV along with CNX has conducted an opinion poll to gauge themood of Uttar Pradesh ahead of Lok Sabha elections 2019. Accordingto the survey, the Bharatiya Janata Par ty (BJP) seems to have suf -fered a loss in their number of seats after the formation of an alliancebetween Samajwadi Par ty and Bahujan Samaj Par ty (BSP).After pact between Akhilesh and Mayawati, NDA's 2014 tally of 73Lok Sabha seats out of 80 may drag down to just 29 in 2019. Thispoints to a major loss of at least 44 seats for the BJP.

MAJOR LOSS LIKELY FOR BJP IN UP ASITS LS SEATS MAY DRAG DOWN TO 29

AFTER SP-BSP ALLIANCE - OPINION POLL

HOW DID A SAUDI TEEN REACH CANADA ?


2 MidWeek MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019

MidWeek 3MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2012

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


PAGE 3‘I’LL BE DOING MYVERSION OF MODI’:PARESH RAWAL ONPLAYING NARENDRA MODIIN A DIFFERENT FILM

IN WHAT APPEARS TO BE ‘SELFIE OF THE YEAR’, CLICKED BY NONE OTHER THAN THE SELFIE KING RANVEER SINGH, ALL THE CELEBS, INCLUDING NARENDRA MODI, CAN BE SEEN GRINNING,INDICATING THAT IT WAS UNDOUBTEDLY A FUN MEETING.

A PROTECTIVE RANBIR KAPOOR GUARDS LADY LOVEALIA BHATT ON GETTING MOBBED BY FANS IN DELHI

A delegation of Bollywood actors and filmmakers including thelikes of Ranveer Singh, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan,Bhumi Pednekar, Rajkummar Rao, Ayushmann Khurrana, Vicky

Kaushal, Karan Johar, Rohit Shetty, Ashwini Iyer Tiwari and otherswent to Delhi to meet PM Narendra Modi. These celebs discussed theimpact of Indian cinema on the country's culture with the Prime Minis-ter. They also expressed their views on movies, the difficulties that theindustry faces and the kind of changes that they'd want to witness inthe future as well. The B-Town celebs were spotted at the Delhi airpor t

as they t ried to navigate their way out. It so happened that not just the paparazzibut also the crowd of fans that had gathered started mobbing the latest lovebirdsof the tinsel town - Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor.Phir kya tha? Being the caring boyfriend that he is, Ranbir quicklywrapped his hand around Alia, protecting her from the crowd thatmobbed them. He was also seen pretty aler t when a few of thefans tried to get a bit close to click selfies with them. Alia's GullyBoy co-star Ranveer too came to her rescue and escor ted hersafely to the car.

Rani Laxmibai was a fearless warrior who fought till herlast breath for her beloved Jhansi. Zee Studios and KamalJain’s magnum opus Manikarnika — The Queen Of Jhansiwill showcase her life on the big screen when it opens incinemas on January 25. Its first song Vijayi Bhava releasestoday. The track, composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy withlyrics by Prasoon Joshi, encapsulates Rani Laxmibai’sheroism.Shankar Mahadevan, who has rendered it, says, “In anymusician’s career, a film like Manikarnika becomes a land-mark. It is challenging and musically enriching. We’ve beenlucky enough to be offered projects like these that are mile-stones in our careers. Even after 50 years, we can lookback and say that we were proud to create music for thiskind of a historical epic. The songs have musical depth,melody and patriotic flavour. It’s indeed a proud moment forShankar-Ehsaan-Loy.”Kangana Ranaut, who plays the title role, exclaims, “VijayiBhava was recorded first. It’s a song about war preparationthat has been shot on a massive scale. I’ve never donesomething of this nature before. It has a high tempo that willbe celebrated.” Shariq Patel, CEO Zee Studios, states, “VijayiBhava celebrates the undying spirit of Rani Laxmibai.Shankar’s voice and Prasoon’s words will stay with theaudiences for a long time.” Producer Kamal Jain sums up,“It celebrates the fighting spirit within us. It will make youstand up for your country and take pride in it.”

HUSBAND-WIFE DUO, ABHISHEK BACHCHAN ANDAISHWARYA RAI BACHCHAN, WAS SUPPOSED TO REUNITEON SCREEN FOR GULAB JAMUN EIGHT YEARS AFTERRAAVAN. HOWEVER, IT’S BEING SAID THAT THEY’RE NOLONGER PART OF THE PROJECT. APPARENTLY, THE TWO AC-TORS WANTED SOME CHANGES IN THE SCRIPT, FOLLOWINGWHICH THEY REPORTEDLY DECIDED TO OPT OUT. THE FILMWAS TO GO ON FLOORS LATER THIS MONTH AND IN ANEARLIER INTERVIEW, ASH HAD SAID THAT IT WAS A BEAUTI-FUL SCRIPT AND THEY FIT THE NARRATIVE PERFECTLY.

FOR THE LONGEST TIME, SPECULATIONS HAVE BEEN RIFETHAT PARESH RAWAL WOULD ESSAY THE ROLE OF PRIMEMINISTER NARENDRA MODI IN THE LATTER’S BIOPIC. HOW-EVER, NOW VIVEK ANAND OBEROI WILL BE SEEN AS NAMO INOMUNG KUMAR’S UPCOMING FILM. ASK PARESH IF HE STILL PLANSTO GO AHEAD WITH HIS MOVIE BASED ON THE PM’S LIFE AND HEREPLIES, “YES, I WILL BE DOING MY VERSION. I HAVE HEARDSOME SERIES IS BEING MADE AS WELL. IN FACT, IT’S AHEALTHY SIGN. HIS CHARACTER IS SUCH THAT YOU WILLFIND A LOT OF MASALA.” PROD HIM IF WE WILL SEE HIM ASMODI ON SCREEN AND HE SAYS, “YES, I WILL PLAY HIM.”

NOT SURPRISING THEN, THAT HER SCINTILLATING MOVESHAVE ALSO IMPRESSED B-TOWN FILMMAKERS ENOUGH TOCAST HER. THRILLED ABOUT HER NEWEST ASSIGNMENT,NORA ENTHUSES, “I’M VERY EXCITED TO BE A PART OF THISPROJECT. REMO SIR IS EXTREMELY TALENTED AND I LOOKFORWARD TO LEARNING A LOT FROM HIM. I’M EQUALLYTHRILLED TO WORK WITH VARUN AND SHRADDHA, THETRIO HAS DONE AN AMAZING JOB IN THEIR LAST VENTURE(ABCD 2) AND I CAN’T WAIT TO JOIN THE SQUAD. THIS ISGOING TO BE AN EPIC EXPERIENCE.”


TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019s p e c i a l r e p o r t

KAMAL KHERA HOSTS NEW YEAR'S LEVEE BRINGING TOGETHER THE DIVERSE COMMUNITIES OF BRAMPTON WEST.

KAMAL KHERA HOSTS NEW YEAR'S LEVEE BRINGING TOGETHERTHE DIVERSE COMMUNITIES OF BRAMPTON WEST

BRAMPTON, ON - Kamal Khera, Member of Parliament for Brampton West hosted a New Year's Levee ather Brampton West office on Sunday, January 6th, 2018. The event brought together residents of BramptonWest who shared their thoughts and concerns with Ms. Khera while welcoming the new year. The suc-cessful event was not only accompanied by great food and music but also demonstrated a true represen-tation of Brampton West's cultural make-up. Ms. Kheraspoke to the crowd about upcoming initiatives for

2019 as well as reminded them of the services available at her constituency office.About 400 people dropped in at 35 Van Kirk Drive, Unit 10 over the course of the Sunday af ternoon,taking time to talk to MP Kamal Khera. Attendees had their photos taken with the MP and enjoyed arefreshment as par t of the experience.QUOTE"It was humbling to see my friends, suppor ters and constituents taking out time on the first Sundayafternoon of this new year and spend it at my office with me. Residents of Brampton West constantlyremind me of the work that needs to be done in Brampton and renew my commitment to Brampton West.Events such as these give me the oppor tunity to interact with residents first-hand and indulge in dialoguewhich in turn dictates the positive change our government has been working towards since 2015."

THAI PONGAL AND TAMILHERITAGE MONTH

CELEBRATIONS IN MARKHAMTODAY WITH PM

@JUSTINTRUDEAU ANDSTUDENTS FROM BILL

HOGATHER HIGH SCHOOL. I AMPROUD TO CALL CANADA HOME

- A COUNTRY THAT NOT ONLYACCEPTS OUR CULTURAL

DIFFERENCES BUT WHERE ALLCANADIANS COME TOGETHER

TO CELEBRATE THEM - MP RUBYSAHOTA SHARED ON HER

TWITTER.

HAD A GREAT MEETING WITH @TOYOTACANADA TO DISCUSS HOW OUR GOVERNMENT IS HELPINGMANUFACTURERS GROW AND SUCCEED IN ONTARIO. BY CUTTING RED TAPE AND UNNECESSARYREGULATIONS THAT ARE OFTEN DUPLICATED FEDERALLY, WE'VE MADE IT EASIER TO INVEST AND CREATEGOOD JOBS IN ONTARIO - PREMIER FORD SHARED ON HIS TWITTER



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019 s p e c i a l r e p o r t

PRAVASI BHARTIYA DIVAS CELEBRATED AT THE INDIAN CONSULATEORGANISED BY CONSULATE GENERAL OF INDIA HON' DINESH BHATIA

MAYOR PATRICK BROWN AND MEMBERS OF COUNCIL2019 NEW YEAR’S LEVEE - A GREAT SUCCESS

Mayor Brown thanked everyone through social media who attended the eventThank you to everyone that joined my Mayors New Year’s Levee atBrampton City Hall and Gage Park. It was a great afternoon!We had a great turnout from City Council with almost everyone inattendance.Thanks to MP Ruby Sahota, MP Sonia Sidhu, MPP Amarjot Sandhu,MPP Sara Singh and MPP Kevin Yarde for joining us this afternoon.We are proud to work with our partners from provincial and federalgovernments to serve the City of Brampton.It was also great see former Mayor Peter Rober tson. I appreciate thathe continues to maintain an active presence in our City and alwaysoffers to help out.Let’s make it a terrific 2019!



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019 c o m m u n i t y

CIF PROMOTES TRADE WITH INDIA Peel Art Gallery, Museum andArchives names Sam Cronk asits new Senior Curator of History

BRAMPTON, ON: Peel Ar t Gallery, Museum and Archives(PAMA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Sam Cronk to theposition of Senior Curator of History. Sam joins PAMA's leadership teamwith responsibility for the initiation, development and presentation ofPAMA's dynamic curatorial vision. Sam's interdisciplinary backgroundincludes previous roles as: curator, digital curator, digital editor, managerof exhibitions and interpretation, scholar and lecturer. His wide-rangingexpertise includes: teaching cultural history, ethnomusicology and me-dia studies at universities in Canada and the United States. His careerpath has included positions at the Canadian Museum of Civilization,Scripps/Claremont Colleges, and National Music Centre. "With his di-verse background and specialization in digital media, Sam's contribu-tions to our community and to PAMA will be well worth watching", saidMar ty Brent, Manager. For Cronk, the role of a Curator is complex,challenging and a profoundly creative responsibility. "As PAMA's SeniorCurator of History, I look forward to building connections between ob-jects, images, and visitors' lives, sharing collective voices and experi-ence, and being part of this new conversation."

FRAUDULENT IPHONESALES - PEEL POLICEREGION OF PEEL - Peel Regional Police would like to makethe public aware of a current scam that is occurring in Mississaugaand Brampton. Several incidents have been reported to investigatorswhere an individual is selling what appears to be an authentic iPhone Xon several online classified websites. The transactions typically includea fraudulent bill of sale for the iPhone X.Potential purchasers examine the phone and due to similar characteris-tics to iPhone X, they believe the item to be authentic. It is only after thetransaction is complete and the purchaser attempts to use the phone thatthey discover it to be fake. Investigators are aware of individuals thathave not reported these types of transactions due to embarrassment.Peel Regional Police would like to encourage the community to reportincidents such as these so that investigators can locate the person(s)responsible.When purchasing items through online classified websites, considerthe following:1. Always ask yourself if this is too good to be true?2. Do not make online purchases from unverified and unknown sources.3. Use buy and and sell exchange zones provided by Peel RegionalPolice located at, 11, 12 and 22 Division.For more tips about how to protect yourself from frauds please visit ourwebsite at peelpolice.caAnyone with information is asked to call investigators at the 22Division Criminal Investigation Bureau at (905) 453-2121,ext. 2233. Information may also be left anonymously bycalling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or by visit-ing peelcrimestoppers.ca.

Peel Police Arrest Woman inStolen Vehicle InvestigationREGION OF PEEL - Investigators from 22 Division CriminalInvestigation Bureau have charged a 27 year-old woman inrelation to a stolen vehicle investigation in the City ofMississauga.On Friday, January 11, 2019 at approximately 1:00 p.m. police wereinvestigating a stolen Jeep Wrangler in a parking lot in the area ofTomken Road and Eglinton Avenue in the City of Mississauga. Thevehicle was being operated by Michelle Garcia-Arguello, a 27 year oldwoman from Toronto.In an attempt to evade police Michelle Garcia-Arguello drove through theparking lot where she collided with two police vehicles, one of theinvestigating officers and a white cube truck before being taken intocustody. Significant damage was caused to the vehicles in-volved however only minor injuries were suffered.

COURTESY OF PEEL ART GALLERY, MUSEUM ANDARCHIVES (PAMA).

Canada India Foundation to lead a trade and academic mission to IndiaToronto: Canada India Foundation is leading a delegation of Canadiansmall business owners and academicians to India between 16 and 19January 2019. The delegation will be in New Delhi on 16 and 17January and in Gandhinagar on 18 and 19 January.In New Delhi, CIF is collaborating with Seneca College and PHD Cham-ber of Commerce and Industry to organise two seminars. The topicsof the seminars are:" Education and Skills DevelopmentThe impact of technological innovation has transformed educationfrom its pure theoretical underpinnings to an application-based ac-quisition of knowledge and skills. Educational institutions are beingrequired to provides skills enhancement programs to students thatneed to be fitted into a new industrial and service industry environ-ment that lays more emphasis on skills.The panel is moderated by David Agnew, President of Seneca Collegeand the panelists include representatives of Indian par tners of Sen-eca College." Innovation and EnterpriseInnovation and enterprise have emerged as two interrelated phenom-ena that are comprehensively changing the knowledge industry. Thisinterconnectivity has transformed educational sector in the way edu-cation is impar ted, with emphasis on digital learning environment.The panelists include representatives of educational institutions andis being moderated by Nivedita Das Kundu of Asian Research Centreat York University.In Gandhinagar, CIF delegates will be par ticipating in the VibrantGujarat Global Summit 2019. CIF is a par tner organisation of the Sum-mit.CIF is collaborating with the Depar tment of Education, Government ofGujarat and the Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University to organisean International Universities Conclave on 18 January 2019.Bhupendrasinh Chudasma, Gujarat's Education Minister, will inaugu-rate this conclave that will witness participation from 12 internationaluniversities including Seneca College and York University.Seneca College will be signing a MoU at the conclave with the Gov-ernment of Gujarat's Department of Education and renew its MoU withPandit Deendayal Petroleum UniversityThe Mayor of Ahmedabad Her Worship Bijal Patel is holding a dinner

reception for the CIF delegates.On 19 January, CIF will be par ticipating in the Global Conclave ofInternational and National Chambers being organised as par t of Vi-brant Gujarat 2019 summit by the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce andIndustry, where it will also sign a MoU with the Gujarat Chamber.For the upcoming trade and academic mission, CIF has par tneredwith Seneca College, PHD Chamber of Commerce, Depar tment ofEducation, Government of Gujarat, and Pandit Deendayal PetroleumUniversity.Canada India Foundation (CIF) is a Canadian not-for-profit, nonparti-san, non-governmental organization established in 2007. CIF mem-bers are among Canada's top industrialists, entrepreneurs, corporateexecutives, and professionals. Together, CIF members provide em-ployment to a few thousand Canadians, and they are key influencersof Canadian public policy enjoying tremendous pelf and prestige inCanada.Canada India Foundation's objectives are:" Foster bilateral relations between Canada and India" Create opportunities for qualified Indo-Canadians in the public sphere" Create a better understanding of the new India among Cana-dians & protect Canada's interests in India" Annually recognize & honour a prominent global Indianachiever who has championed the transformation of India into a glo-bal economy and enhanced India's presence and prestige on the worldstage" Organize sectoral forums that enable a better understandingof the expanding economic relations between Canada and India" Position the need for a strategic par tnership between Canadaand India as critical to Canada's future.

REGION OF PEEL CONTINUES TO BALANCE INFRASTRUCTURENEEDS WITH TAXPAYER AFFORDABILITY

BRAMPTON, ON. The Region of Peel has released its 2018 Infrastruc-ture Status and Outlook Repor t, highlighting that the Region's infra-structure has achieved the target of 'Good'. A score of 'Good' allowsthe Region to balance investing enough in the infrastructure to sup-por t efficient and reliable services while maintaining affordable taxand utility rates for the community."We are proud to meet our target of 'Good' and remain committed toresponsible stewardship of this infrastructure through proactive, long-term planning," said Stephen VanOfwegen, Commissioner of Financeand Chief Financial Officer. "Over the next 10 years, the Region willcontinue to invest appropriately in our assets to ensure they suppor tthe high-quality services the Region provides, contributing to a Com-munity for Life in Peel."The 'Good' rating means most of the Region's assets are achievingtheir Council approved targets due to several positive factors, includ-ing:" The implementation of a comprehensive Asset ManagementPolicy and Strategy for proactive, long-term, strategic planning

" Steady and prudent levels of reinvestments to maintain state-of-good repair" A strong capital program of new and rehabilitated infrastruc-ture, that has added and replaced many outdated and poor assetswith new, modernized infrastructure" Council's priority to maintain Peel's assets in a state of goodrepair without incurring long-term debt

The Region owns and operates roads, bridges, buildings, pipes, fleetand equipment, with a replacement value of approximately $27.8 Bil-lion.The Region of Peel works with residents and par tners to create ahealthy, safe and connected community for life for more than 1.4million people and approximately 163,000 businesses in the cities ofBrampton and Mississauga and the Town of Caledon. Peel's servicestouch the lives of residents every day. For more information about theRegion of Peel, explore peelregion.ca and follow us on Twitter at@regionofpeel.

I, Adevjit Kaur Khokhar, daughter of Baldev Singh Khokharand Amarjit Kaur Khokhar, holder of Indian Passpor t No.J3075209, issued at Chandigarh, on 24/09/2010, permanentresident of # 57-B, Madhuban Enclave, Barewal Road,Ludhiana, 141012, Punjab, India, and presently residing at52 Calm Waters Crescent Brampton, Ontario, L6V4S1,Canada, do hereby change my name from Adevjit KaurKhokhar to Roop Khokhar, with immediate effect.

C H A N G E O F N A M E

The Saudi teenager who fled her family and was granted asylumin Canada said Tuesday that she was for tunate to haveescaped.But many other young women in Saudi Arabia like herare not able to get away and take control of their lives, RahafMohammed, 18, said at a press conference Tuesday."I am one of the lucky ones. I know there are unlucky womenwho disappeared after trying to escape, or who could not doanything to change their reality," she said."I was exposed to physical violence, persecution, oppression,threats to be killed. I was locked in for six months," she said, inArabic, describing what happened after she cut her hair.When she turned 18 she felt able to try to escape, she said,because she would be treated as an adult around the world, andthat she would be able to make her own decisions.She knew a family vacation to Kuwait in early January was her chance."From a while ago I was trying to convince my parents to go to Kuwaitbecause as long as I'm in Saudi Arabia, I cannot leave. But once I'm inanother country I can travel and it's allowed," she said.Mohammed said she waited until her family went to sleep earlyone night, the very last day of their trip, and then bought her ticketto Thailand and left the hotel room at 7 a.m.But she was stopped at the airport in Bangkok. Mohammed wasdenied entry and had her passpor t seized. With the threat of be-ing sent back to her family, she bar ricaded herself in a hotelroom and used Twitter to plea for help."I wrote it and I sent it to my female friends, should I disappearthey would publish it to the whole world."

Her tweets and her case drew international attention, and Thaiofficials eventually agreed to let her stay in Bangkok under theprotection of United Nations officials.Mohammed said when the UN officials showed up at her hotel, shedidn't believe at first that it was true, that her pleas had been heard.She feared the Thai and Kuwaiti authorities "would lie and pose asthe UN, so I wanted some sor t of proof that they are actually theUN.So they showed me the proof. After that, I opened the door andI welcomed them.

HOW DID A SAUDI TEEN REACH CANADA ?

Helping People to Find Good, Affordable HousingONTARIO GOVERNMENT TO PROTECT RENT CONTROL FOR EXISTING TENANTS IN MISSISSAUGA-STREETSVILLEMISSISSAUGA, ON - Ontario's Government for the People is taking steps to expand the supply of homes and rental proper ties, whileprotecting rent control for existing tenants.As par t of the new Housing Supply Action Plan, our government is developing a new strategy to help increase housing supply quicklyand responsibly so people can find quality, affordable homes.We want to hear the best ideas out there - including from the public - about how to build more housing and reduce costs for everyone.People can share their ideas online atOntario.ca/HousingSupply or come to our local consultation:Friday, January 25th 2019 - 7:00pmProgram Room 1, Meadowvale Community Centre6655 Glen Erin Dr, Mississauga, ON L5N 3L4For details and to RSVP: ninatangri.ca


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IT IS MAKE OR BREAK TIME FOR THE CONGRESS

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For four years and a bit, every time there has been a majorstate election, the dominant narrative is to call it a “test” forPrime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah. The truth is,barring defeats in Bihar and Delhi in 2015, and a ‘stolen’mandate in Goa in 2017, the BJP leadership has successfullypassed almost every election test ( in Punjab, it was the BJPally, the Akali Dal, which was the big loser). The time,therefore, has now come to reverse the storyline: the 2018winter elections are, above all else, a stern examination ofRahul Gandhi and the Congress president’s credentials to leadan anti-Modi front in 2019. In the past 12 months, Mr Gandhihas got away by claiming to have scored a ‘moral victory’ inGujarat by bringing the BJP down to double digits and thenscraped through with a post-poll jugaad in Karnataka. Now, heand the Congress par ty are faced with a prospect of a battle infive states where there can be no more excuses for failure.This isn’t just about ‘momentum’ before the big generalelections. Remember, the BJP won in Rajasthan, MadhyaPradesh and Chhattisgarh in the winter of 2003 and yet lostthe 2004 general elections. You need momentum at times inspor ts to succeed; in politics, you need it to stay relevant. Thenext round of elections is a challenge for the Congress toavoid being pushed into near irrelevance, where victory intwo, if not three of the five states is critical to re-emerge as apotential magnet for new alignments.Four months ago, in the afterglow of its post-poll alliance inKarnataka, the Congress seemed poised to craft a maha-gathbandhan or grand alliance against the BJP. That alliance isnow rapidly coming apar t because of a mix of regionalcontradictions and national aspirations. The decision of theBahujan Samaj Par ty’s Mayawati not to align with the Con-gress in the state elections is, unarguably, the biggest blow toopposition unity. Not only is she a key player in Uttar Pradesh,where her potentially game-changing alliance with theSamajwadi Par ty still seems on track, but she has a single

digit, significant vote share in half a dozen other states,including MP and Chhattisgarh. In a bipolar fight in thesestates between the BJP and the Congress, she could haveadded a crucial incremental vote to the latter, apart fromraising the intriguing possibility of a pan-India Dalit consoli-dation around the Opposition.But for Mayawati, the key to power – her mentor Kanshi Ramcalled it the master key or guru killi — has always revolvedaround staying unpredictable and making shor t-term deals.Whether her choices are occasioned by the pressure of thenumerous cases she and her family members face, or aconscious strategy to keep her options open till the LokSabha elections, the fact is, Mayawati has sent out a firmmessage: the Congress today isn’t a bankable deposit thatcan guarantee fixed returns.It is precisely that perception of being a par ty in terminaldecline that the Congress needs to erase in the next twomonths to offer a realistic nationwide challenge to the Modi-led BJP in 2019. In each of the three BJP-ruled states of MP,Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, there is ample evidence,anecdotal and psephological, of a creeping local anti-incumbency to varying degrees. In Telangana, too, KCR’sdecision to go in for a snap poll reflects a measure ofanxiety. In Mizoram, the Congress remains the principalnational player despite the BJP pushing for a strategicalliance of regional forces. In effect, the Congress for once,

actually, has half a chance in each of the five state contesta-tions.And yet, the overwhelming impression is that the Congresscould end up squandering the oppor tunity because of afrayed election machine that appears like a rickety second-hand car when compared with the resourceful BJP FormulaOne model. The BJP does have the hefty advantage of beingfinancially well-endowed but money power is not always adecisive factor. The Congress must look within too and askwhy its deeply factionalised state units have struggled to gettheir act together.Most crucially, there is the ultimate Kaun Banega Crorepatiquestion: can Rahul Gandhi deliver a major state to the par tyas its chief campaigner? In recent months, the Congressleader has shown some spunk in taking the fight into theModi camp. The rhetoric may have got him the headlines butit hasn’t yet got him voter endorsement. In that sense,November-December 2018 could be make or break for theCongress leadership.Post-script: At a recent media conclave in Kolkata, aCongress spokesperson insisted that the maha-gathbandhanwas a media creation and the par ty was only pushing forstate-wise alliances. The Trinamool Congress leader on thepanel retor ted, “In Bengal, we don’t need any allies.” TheBJP representative on the debate just smiled. As tur f battlesintensify, who will have the last laugh?

RAJDEEP SARDESAI

Now, he and the Congress party are faced with a prospect of a battle in five states where there can be nomore excuses for failure. This isn’t just about ‘momentum’ before the big general elections. Remember, the

BJP won in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh in the winter of 2003 and yet lost the 2004general elections. You need momentum at times in sports to succeed; in politics, you need it to stay relevant.The next round of elections is a challenge for the Congress to avoid being pushed into near irrelevance, wherevictory in two, if not three of the five states is critical to re-emerge as a potential magnet for new alignments.

Four months ago, in the afterglow of its post-poll alliance in Karnataka, the Congress seemed poised to crafta maha-gathbandhan or grand alliance against the BJP. That alliance is now rapidly coming apar t

because of a mix of regional contradictions and national aspirations. The decision of the BahujanSamaj Par ty’s Mayawati not to align with the Congress in the state elections is, unarguably, thebiggest blow to opposition unity. Not only is she a key player in Uttar Pradesh, where her poten-

tially game-changing alliance with the Samajwadi Party still seems on track, but she has a singledigit, significant vote share in half a dozen other states, including MP and Chhattisgarh.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019 c a n a d a

General Accounting & Bookkeeping

The "Oscars" of Immigrant Success: Nominations arenow openfor the RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Awards

CITY OF BRAMPTON HOSTING ITSFIRST EVER AGE-FRIENDLY FORUM

Residents of all ages invited to discuss how to make Brampton a better place to liveBRAMPTON, ON - As par t of the City of Brampton's ongoing work todevelop an age-friendly strategy, residents are invited to join the conversation onhow to make Brampton a better place to live at all stages of life.The City, with suppor t from Sheridan College, is holding its first Age-Friendly Forum on Saturday,January 19 from 9:30 am to 2 pm. The event will take place at theFlower City Seniors Centre (8870 McLaughlin Road South).This free event is open to residents of all ages. Highlights include:" Keynote speech by Gil Penalosa, founder of internationally recog-nized non-profit organization 8 80 Cities. The organization was cre-ated based on a simple but power ful philosophy: "if you create a greatcity for an eight-year-old and an 80-year-old, you will create a suc-cessful city for all people"." Presentations, activities and information booths" Door prizes and giveaways

" Morning coffee and light lunchThe City's age-friendly strategy will help ensure residents have theservices and suppor t they need to stay healthy and enjoy a high qual-ity of life at every age. It focuses on key areas used by the WorldHealth Organization to define age-friendly communities, includingpublic transpor tation, housing, public buildings and outdoor spaces,employment, social inclusion and community services.Space at the forum is limited and registration is required. To register,visit www.brampton.ca/agefriendly or call 905.874.2054.Quote"Brampton is one of Canada's youngest cities, but we also have arapidly growing population of people over the age of 50. When we'retalking about how to make Brampton an even better place to live, it'simpor tant for people of all ages to be par t of the conversation."- Mayor Patrick Brown

TORONTO: With more than one mil l ion newcomers coming toCanada within the next three years*, sharing and celebrating posi-tive stories of immigrants in an increasingly diverse Canada ismore impor tant than ever.For the last decade, the RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Awardsprogram has been doing just that - highlightinginspiring stories ofimmigrants who have made incredible contributionsto Canada,and honouring them with the most esteemed national award cel-ebrating immigrant success.Since the RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Awards programlaunched in 2009, we have received thousands of nominations,shor tl isted 750 nominees and awarded 250 remarkable immi-grants.It's Time to Nominate for the 2019 Awards!Is there an inspiring immigrant deserving recognition that youknow? Do they have a story that should be heard and honouredacross Canada? Canadian Immigrant and the title sponsor, RoyalBank of Canada,are now calling on all Canadians to nominatethese extraordinary immigrants at www.canadianimmigrant.ca/rbctop25."Our goal at Canadian Immigrant is to suppor t newcomers inte-g ra t ion and success in Canada . Through the RBC Top 25Awardsprogram, we celebrate immigrants who have achievedgreat things and, in turn, serve as inspiring role models," saidMargaret Jetelina, Editor of Canadian Immigrant, a national multi-media platform and producer of the awards. "Canada has alwayshas been known as a welcoming country to immigrants, and theseawards are a shining example of that humanitarian hospitality."Immigrants who have been honoured with this prestigious na-tional award in the past include well-known Canadians like res-taurateur/TV host Vikram Vij, acclaimed ballerina Chan Hon Gohand former Governor General of Canada Adrienne Clarkson, aswell as other immigrants who demonstrated incredible contribu-tions and achievements in their communities and for the country."RBC is committed to suppor ting newcomers in Canada and ishonoured to be able to celebrate their significant contributionsand successes that positively effect change in our country," saidIvy Chiu, Senior Director, Newcomer Strategy, and RBC. "Theseawards not only showcase the richness and diversity that new-comers add to the fabric of our communities but also the impor-tant role they play in making Canada the success it is today andwill continue to in the future."

EligibilityA nominee can be anyone who has immigrated to Canada and has sincecontributed to the success and uplifting of this country and its people.Achievements can be either professional or personal. Nominees must beaged 15 or older, hold landed immigrant (permanent resident) or citizenstatus in Canada, and reside in Canada.Entrepreneur AwardThis will be the fif thconsecutive year that one of the Top 25 winners willalso be selected for the additional Entrepreneur Award, honouring one ofthe Top 25 who has demonstrated entrepreneurial excellence inbusiness.No additional application is required to apply for this award.Youth AwardFor the thirdconsecutive year, the Top 25 will include the Youth Award,which recognizesyoung immigrants between the ages of 15 and 30whoare making a difference through achievement and/or service, andwho exhibit great potential as long-term contributors to Canada.Noadditional application is required to apply for this award.Settlement Agency AwardCanadian Immigrant and RBC are also happy to announce thereturn of the Settlement Agency Award. For the second consecu-tive year, this award recognizes the amazing work immigrantsettlement agencies are doing to help newcomers integrate andsucceed in Canada. Concur rent with the RBC Top 25 Awards, weare now accepting nominations for the top immigrant settlementagencies in your community at www.canadianimmigrant .ca/rbctop25.One agency will be selected to receive the Settlement AgencyAward for 2019 after an online voting process. Last year's inaugu-ral winner was Vancouver-based ISSofBC, oone of the oldest im-migrant-serving agencies in Canada.Nomination ProcessNomina t ions can be madea twww.canad ian immig ran t .ca /rbctop25until Februar y 22, 2019, 11:59 p.m. EST. A distinguishedpanel of judges made up of past winners will review all nomineesand present a list of 75 finalists who will be announced in March,after which all Canadians can vote for their favourite nominees.The 25 winners will be announced on June 2019 in Canadian Im-migrant and online at canadianimmigrant.ca. Winners will receivea commemorative plaque and a $500 donation to a charity of theirchoice provided by RBC. Media par tners include Toronto Star,Metro and Sing Tao.*Source: Federal immigration levels plan 2019-2021

MP Sonia Sidhu raisesconcern about passengercongestion on GO Trains toand from BramptonBRAMPTON, ON - MPSonia Sidhu, Member ofParliament for BramptonSouth, has echoedconcerns of herconstituents commut-ing to and from Torontotaking the KitchenerLine GO Train. MPSidhu has raised theseconcerns in her letter to the Ontario Transpor tationMinister Honourable Jeff Yurek. MP Sidhuemphasised recent Federal Government invest-ments to purchase of new bilevel rail cars to servethe GTA GO Train network."I do recognize that we have a track record ofworking hand in hand with the Government ofOntario and City of Brampton in suppor tingBramptonians, many of whom take GO Train everyday. Specifically, I would like to recognize therecent contribution of the Federal Government in theamount of $93 million towards purchasing bilevelcoaches for the entire GTA network, including trains forthe Kitchener Line" said MP Sidhu in her letter to theMinister. With a many of her constituents beingconcerned about the situation, she urged theMinister to add more coaches to the line to helpalleviate congestion for riders in Brampton. MPSidhu is hopeful Bramptonians will see a speedyresolution to the problem.

CANADA RANKS 6TH ONNEW DEMOCRACY INDEXFROM THE EIUAccording to The Economist Intelligence Unit's Democ-racy Index for 2018, which provides a snapshot of thestate of democracy worldwide, the deterioration of de-mocracy worldwide has paused: for the first time inthree years, the Democracy Index did not worsen in2018. Deep disillusionment with the functioning of gov-ernment has knocked confidence in political institutions.But even so, political participation, one of five key com-ponents of our broad measure of democracy, increased.Far from being apathetic or disengaged from politics,the population has turned anger into action, and turnedout to vote, and to protest.What happens as a result of this increased engagementwill depend on how political par ticipation influencesthe quality of democracy. There are big questions overfuture progress, particularly as increased engagementhas come amid deep political polarisation and has of-ten been in the name of anti-establishment movementsthat could shake up political systems. According to FionaMackie, Editor of the repor t, "increased engagement isencouraging for democracy, but it comes amid deeppolitical polarisation and the rise of "strongman" poli-tics around the world. Bearing all this in mind, it seemstoo soon to say that the "democracy recession" hasbottomed out."Trends in the US demonstrate the risks: there was afur ther decline in the US's ranking in 2018, from 21st to25th, as its score for political culture declined.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019c a n a d a

CHINA SENTENCES CANADIAN MAN TO DEATHFOR DRUG SMUGGLING AMID HUAWEI ROW

A Canadian man, serving a jail sentence for smuggling drugs,has been sentenced to death by a Chinese cour t on Mondayamid ongoing diplomatic tension between the two countries.The Dalian Intermediate People’s Cour t in nor theast Chinaordered Robert Lloyd Schellenberg to be executed, setting asidean earlier verdict that found him guilty of smuggling 200 gm ofmethamphetamine and had put him behind bars for 15 years.The earlier verdict was found to be lenient by the cour t, repor tssaid Monday.A Reuters repor t, quoting a cour t statement from its websitesaid Schellenberg was told in cour t that he has the right toappeal to Liaoning High Cour t within 10 days on receiving theruling.The Canadian was involved in organised international drugcrimes, the cour t said. The verdict comes in the backdrop of adiplomatic row between China and Canada after the Canadianpolice arrested Meng Wanzhou, a top official at the Chinesetelecom giant Huawei, on a request from the US. She wasgranted bail in December.Meng, 46, is the daughter of Huawei’s founder and her detentionangered China and soured its relations with both Canada andthe US.Earlier in the day, the foreign ministry said that Canada’scriticism of China detaining two Canadian citizens is ground-less, noting one of them had no “diplomatic immunity”.“Chinese foreign ministry confirmed earlier that coercivemeasures have been taken against two Canadians suspected ofjeopardising China’s national security,” a state media repor tsaid.

Noting that Chinese authorities handled the case according tolaw, foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said that nomatter which point of view you take, the former Canadiandiplomat Michael Kovrig does not enjoy diplomatic immunitystipulated in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.Hua said: “Kovrig currently is not a diplomat, and he came toChina with an ordinary passpor t and business visa. The Chineseside took coercive measures against him because he wassuspected of engaging in activities that endanger China’snational security”.“I would like to suggest that Canada’s relevant people shouldfirst study and seriously research the Vienna Convention onDiplomatic Relations and the International Law before theyexpress their views, instead of being plausible and exposingthemselves to ridicule,” said Hua.

Premier Ford's Statement on the OC Transpo Bus CrashToday, Premier Doug Ford issued the following statement on the fatal crash of the westbound 269 OC Transpo bus:"Like Ontarians from across the province, I was shocked and saddened to hear of the terrible tragedy at Westboro station in Ottawa. Thisis a difficult day for our nation's capital, and my heart goes out to the victims and their loved ones. I know that the people of Ontario havethem in their hearts tonight.I also want to applaud the heroic efforts of our first responders, our emergency room nurses and doctors, and everyone who answeredthe call today. You have demonstrated, once again, that our province is for tunate to have the very best on the front lines, working to savelives, every day.To the people of Ottawa, know that the rest of Ontario shares in your sorrow tonight. We grieve with you, and we stand with you."

PM TRUDEAU SHUFFLES CABINETThe Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today announced changes to theMinistry and welcomed new members to Cabinet:" Jane Philpott, currently Minister of Indigenous Services andVice-Chair of the Treasury Board, becomes President of the TreasuryBoard and Minister of Digital Government." Seamus O'Regan, currently Minister of Veterans Affairs andAssociate Minister of National Defence, becomes Minister of Indig-enous Services." Jody Wilson-Raybould, currently Minister of Justice and At-torney General of Canada, becomes Minister of Veterans Affairs andAssociate Minister of National Defence." David Lametti, currently Parliamentary Secretary to the Min-ister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, be-comes Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada." Bernadette Jordan, currently Parliamentary Secre-tary to the Minister of Democratic Institutions, becomes Min-ister of Rural Economic Development.Rural economies drive our success as a country. As Minis-ter of Rural Economic Development, Minister Jordan wil loversee the creation of a rural development strategy to spureconomic growth and create good, middle class jobs in ruralCanada. She will also take action to bring high-speed internetto more rural households and businesses, and work withmunicipalities, provinces, territories, and Indigenous par tnersto meet the unique and diverse infrastructure needs of rural com-munities.Effective immediately, the Honourable Scott Brison has resignedfrom his position as President of the Treasury Board and Minis-ter of Digital Government. The Prime Minister thanked Mr. Brisonfor his outstanding contributions as a member of Cabinet, andfor his decades of service to Nova Scotians and all Canadians.

BY-ELECTIONS CALLED BY PMTRUDEAU IN BURNABY SOUTH,BRITISH COLUMBIA, OUTREMONT,QUEBEC, YORK-SIMCOE, ONTARIO WILLBE HELD ON FEBRUARY 25, 2019

NDP LEADER JAGMEET SINGHCONTESTING FROM BURNABY SOUTH



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019 i n d i a

NEW DELHI : It is exactly something that the BJP had a sense of forebod-ing about. The alliance between the SP & BSP in UP is a monumental leapof faith between two sworn rivals.There is every possibility that this alliance may now extend to otherstates as well. Predicated on playing the caste calculus right, the firstsuch experiment was in Bihar during the 2015 assembly poll. Now in UPas in Bihar, the two parties don't even have minimum representationeither in the assembly or in the LS so it was vital for their political suste-nance and survival.The joint vote share of these two par ties was 41.80 which is even lowerthan that of the BJP in the 2014 LS poll. The consolidation of the Hinduvote twice in the LS and assembly polls behind Modi has left a politicalvoid in terms of bipolarity. The politics of polarisation will meet the poli-tics of appeasement head on now.It is clear as daylight that a united opposition will be the best bet to stopModi and the BJP in UP. Whether the Congress wants to ally with SP-BSPremains in the realm of conjecture, but given the communal cleave de-veloping in the state with cow vigilantism and other Hindu nationalismtheatrics, it would be advisable for a joint collaborative effor t to stop arampant BJP.By poll results of Gorakhpur, Kairana and Phulpur showed what a com-bined opposition can do and this extended to Noorpur assembly constitu-ency where again the BJP lost. The social and caste engineering of theSP and BSP and perhaps Congress if it joins in has to be skewed towardsbreaking the Hindu vote which has twice aggregated behind Modi.Backwards have been unhappy because Keshav Maurya was overlookedfor UP state CMship where Yogi Adityanath got the nod. Mayawati hadmastered the social universe and that is how she came to power in 2007.By bringing their innate experience and exper tise in realpolitik, both Buaand Bhartiya will offer the BJP more than a fight in what will most un-doubtedly become a communal cauldron as we get closer to the polldates.Not only does the construct of the alliance have negatives for the BJP butsome positives also accrue. Now that the alliance has been stitched, thepolitical atmosphere will change completely and the buzz will remainamong voters about the newly forged alliance besides the winning possi-bilities. The biggest strength of the alliance is that it will bring the Dalit-Muslim-Yadav axis to the fore in the state. At its very kernel is this math.Obviously keeping a communal BJP at bay is a given. This alliance willnow enlarge the scope of the anti incumbency vote against BJP and Modi,which is actually a double incumbency of sor ts since BJP won in 2014and then again in 2017 assembly polls. With the BJP unfurling the Hinduchauvinistic flag on Friday and ar ticulating that they expect the Hinduvote to aggregate behind Hindu Hriday Samrat Narendra Modi, the path toDelhi will be via the Saryu River. The conjoined issues of Hindu ma-chismo and Ram Mandir will be the BJP's clear cut strategy in UP.SP and BSP came together in the 1993 assembly poll in the aftermath ofDecember 1992 Ayodhya issue. Then between these two par ties the SP con-tested 256 seats while the BSP sought the mandate on 164 Seats. The SP won 109seats while the BSP registered a win on 67 seats. In that election the alliance ofthese two par ties won 176 seats while the BJP also won 177 seats. The Congressbrought up the rear with 28 seats. The BJP may also recall the 1993 politicalscenario to the voters for political benefit. At that time the SP was a new partystruggling to completely capture the space of the Janata Dal through the instrumen-tality of the newly formed Samajwadi party under the leadership of MulayamSingh Yadav.The non-inclusion of the Congress in the alliance may pose some kind of challengefor the BJP. The INC has a traditional 20-25,000 voters across all the LS seatsmainly from the forward and Muslim communities. These are traditional voterswho are voting for the Congress par ty since generations. In case the Congressgoes solo, then the voters may vote for the INC which would cost the BJP dearly.During the 2017 assembly poll such voters have voted for the BJP as the INC wasthe ally of the SP. The anti-incumbency of the SP added to the woes of the INCtraditional voters. If the INC had forged an alliance with the BSP in the 2017assembly poll then perhaps the result may well have been different at least interms of seats tally. In another manoeuvre Apna Dal Krishna Patel faction hasjoined hands with AAP in UP and in cer tain segments, it will cut into the vote.The role of the INC will also be crucial not in terms of winning but inputting up candidates. In 2009 LS poll in Bihar the then INC allies RJD &LJP forged an alliance and voluntarily gave 3 seats to the INC by dividing25 and 12 seats respectively. The INC put up candidates par ticularlyrebels from these two par ties on most of the seats and the INC perfor-mance cost the RJD-LJP alliance dearly. As per estimates, it cost theRJD-LJP alliance 20 LS seats in Bihar in 2009 due to INC candidates.The NDA (BJP-JDU) was the default winner, courtesy the INC candidatesin Bihar in 2009. The victory of the then NDA in Bihar was much beyondits expectation and in the prevailing political circumstances. The INC cantry to emulate the 2009 experience in UP in 2019 if they feel they have not

SP-BSP ALLIANCE A MONUMENTAL LEAPOF FAITH BETWEEN TWO SWORN RIVALS

been accommodated respectfully. In 2009, the Congress surprisinglybagged 21 seats and it was believed that this would pave the way forRahul Gandhi's coronation, but that didn't happen.If the Congress stays away from the SP-BSP alliance, it would be fool-hardy, but in the eventuality it goes alone, it would try and replicate itsSterling show of 2009. The INC will put forward that per formance tocheckmate the SP-BSP to solicit more seats. Equally, the INC per for-mance of 2017 cannot be considered solely as there is change in votingpattern for LS & assembly polls.As far as RLD is concerned its performance was highly painful in 2014. Ajit Singhwas the poor third on his traditional Baghpat LS seat behind the BJP and the SP. Evenon Ajit Singh and of Jayant Chaudhary's LS Seats of Baghpat and Mathura, the RLDwas unable to establish a lead on any of the assembly seats. The party's per for-mance was abysmally poor.By contesting eight LS seats, the party garnered only 689,409 votes and managedto save its deposit on only two seats of Baghpat and Mathura. Like the first familiesof the INC and the SP, only the family of the RLD was able to per form well (saveits deposit in case of the RLD first family) . The first families of these twoparties won on their seats while the RLD first family saved its deposit ontheir seats.On RLD's Jayant ChaudharyMathura seat, there were two HemaMalinis, one from the BJP while theother was an Independent. The In-dependent Hema Malini actuallygot 10,158 votes. If we analyse theassembly segment-wise per for-mance of the Baghpat LS seat thenin Siwalkhas, the RLD was on thirdspot much behind the BJP & SP,while in Baghpat, the RLD was inthe third spot, much behind the BJP& SP and in Modinagar, the RLDwas on 4th spot behind the BJP, SP& the BSP.On Baghpat LS Seat Satyapal Singhwas the BJP candidate, GhulamMohammed was the SP & PrashantChaudhari was the BSP candidate.So the RLD per formance was pooreven in Ajit Singh's traditional seatof Baghpat. So the stakes of theRLD in the for thcoming LS poll arelimited despite Ajit Singh's bra-vado. However for Sp and BSP, thisis a lit must test and for the rejuve-nated Rahul Gandhi equally anattritional war.In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, BJP wonon 337 assembly seats translatinginto 71 LS seats, while in 2017 as-sembly polls it actually captured325 seats, an unprecedented man-date in UP's history, only on theback of Hindu consolidation cuttingacross caste fault lines.UP 2014 Lok Sabha elections:BJP 71, Apna Dal 2, Congess 2, SP5UP 2014 AssemblyBJP 328, Apna Dal 9, Congress 15,SP 42, BSP 9BJP: 39.67% Increase 24.7% 312Increase 265BSP) 32.23% Decrease3.7% 19Decrease 61SP) 21.82% Decrease7.7% 47 De-crease 177INC) 6.25% Decrease5.4% 7 De-crease 21RLD 1.78% Decrease0.5% 1 De-crease 8Apna Dal .98% Increase1.0% 9 In-crease 9SBSP) 0.7% Increase0.7% 4 In-crease 4PECP) 0.3% Decrease2.0% 0 De-crease4

‘KNOW YOUR BUDGET’ BETTERWITH FINANCE MINISTRY’STWITTER SERIESSeeking to educate general public about the budgetaryprocess, the finance ministry Tuesday star ted a serieson Twitter providing definitions of various terms used inthe budget. The ‘Know Your Budget’ series, which ex-plains the impor tance of Union Budget and its making,would continue for about a for tnight. The government onFebruary 1 would unveil the interim Budget for 2019-20as the general elections are due in the next couple ofmonths. The final Budget for the next fiscal would bepresented by the new government.The series which began on the ministry’s Twitter handleon Tuesday explained what is Union Budget and Vote onAccount. The Budget, the ministry explains, “is the mostcomprehensive repor t of the government’s finances inwhich revenues from all sources and outlays for all ac-tivities are consolidated.

‘PREVENT BLACK DAY’: EX-HCJUDGE WRITES TO PRESIDENTOVER SC COLLEGIUM PICKSFormer judge of the Delhi high cour t justice KailashGambhir on Tuesday wrote to the President of India term-ing the recent decision of the Supreme Cour t collegiumrecommending elevation of Karnataka high court ChiefJustice Dinesh Maheswari and Delhi high cour t judgeSanjeev Khanna as judges to the Supreme Cour t, a “blackday” for the Indian judiciary and requested the Presidentto review the recommendations and not “let another his-torical blunder be committed.”In his letter, the retired judge wrote: “The news has sentshockwaves to the entire legal and judicial fraternity. This is appall-ing and outrageous that such a earth-shattering decision has beentaken to supersede as many as 32 judges which include manychief justices, casting aspersion on their intellect, merit and integ-rity.”On January 10, the top court collegium of five judges passed aresolution recommending names of justice Maheshwari and jus-tice Khanna saying: “The Collegium is of the consideredview that at present the following persons are more de-serving and suitable in all respects than other Chief Jus-tices and senior puisne Judges of High Cour ts, for beingappointed as Judges of the Supreme Cour t”.The recommendations created a flutter in the legal fra-ternity as the name of justice Dinesh Maheshwari wasoverlooked recently for elevation and justice SanjeevKhanna is junior to many sitting Chief Justices and puisnejudges of the high cour ts.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019i n d i a

CONGRESS TO CONTEST ALL 80 SEATS INUTTAR PRADESH IN 2019 LOK SAHA POLLS

‘Congress general secretary in-charge ofUttar Pradesh Ghulam Nabi Azad saidhis party was ready to take on boardany secular force that was capable ofchallenging the ruling BharatiyaJanata Party (BJP). He said theCongress president will hold at least 13election campaign rallies in the state.

THE CONGRESS ON SUNDAY ANNOUNCED ITS DECISION TO CONTEST ALL 80 UTTAR PRADESH SEATS IN THE UPCOMING LOKSABHA ELECTIONS (AP FILE PHOTO).

The Congress on Sunday announced its decision to contest all 80Uttar Pradesh seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and said itwas willing to accommodate secular forces, a day after the SamajwadiPar ty (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Par ty (BSP) said they were tyingup in the state without the Rahul Gandhi-led party in the fold.SP president Akhilesh Yadav and BSP chief Mayawati on Saturdaydeclared an alliance for the general elections, in which each willcontest 38 seats in Uttar Pradesh, leaving two for smaller allies, andstaying away from the Gandhi family bastions of Amethi and RaeBareli. Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh GhulamNabi Azad said his par ty was ready to take on board any secular forcethat was capable of challenging the ruling Bharatiya Janata Par ty(BJP). He said the Congress president will hold at least 13 electioncampaign rallies in the state.“We wanted the Congress to be a par t of the grand alliance [againstthe BJP] in Uttar Pradesh. But if someone does not want to walk along,nothing can be done,” Azad told repor ters af ter a meeting of Congressleaders to discuss the par ty’s strategy following the SP-BSP combine’sannouncement.“The Congress will contest on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in UttarPradesh and defeat the BJP,” he said. “If any par ty is willing to ac-company the Congress and the Congress feels that it can fight the BJP,then it will definitely be accommodated,” Azad added.In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the SP won five seats, while the BSPfailed to win any. The Bharatiya Janata Par ty (BJP) got 71 seats andits ally Apna Dal two seats out of the total 80.The Congress won Rae Bareli and Amethi — held by United Progres-sive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. In the2017 assembly polls, SP and BSP got 22% votes each while the BJPgot 42.6% votes, winning 312 of the total 403 seats.The SP and BSP chose not to include the Congress in their battleagainst the BJP, saying that there is no real gain in aligning with thepar ty. “Congress par ty rule hasn’t benefitted anyone. There’s no realvote transfer from Congress and hence no real gain from aligning withCongress. We won’t ally with any par ty which will hurt our politicalambitions,” Mayawati said.A day after his joint news conference with Mayawati, Yadav said thealliance has unnerved the BJP so much that the par ty’s demoralised

and desperate leaders and workers now want to join the SP and BSP.Responding to questions over being left out of the SP-BSP alliance,Azad said: “The Congress workers are not at all disappointed on be-ing left out of the alliance. On the contrary, they are saying the par tywould have had to contest on 25 seats, but now it would be contestingon all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state.”Azad accused the BJP of dividing the country for power and said thatthe saffron par ty failed to fulfil its poll promises. “The coming LokSabha election is a battle to unite India and safeguard the democraticvalues,” he said.Reacting to the Congress’s announcement, UP BJP spokespersonChandramohan said: “The fear of the BJP and Modiji is making theopposition nervous. Be it Congress or the rest, they are really worriedand we understand their desperation.”Shor tly after the Congress press conference in Lucknow, Shivpal SinghYadav said his Pragatisheel Samajwadi Par ty-Lohia (PSPL) was readyto form an alliance with the Congress in Uttar Pradesh. Shivpal Yadavhas par ted ways with the Akhilesh Yadav-led SP, forming his ownpolitical outfit.“No alliance can defeat the BJP without suppor t from the PSPL, theBahujan Mukti Par ty and our other allies. We are ready to form analliance with other secular par ties to defeat the BJP in the Lok Sabhaelections and oust it from power at the Centre,” Yadav told ANI.SK Dwivedi, a former professor at Lucknow University, said: “SP, BSP andCongress should have come together for larger impact of alliance. As the SP-BSPalliance and Congress will contest the poll separately, the non-BJPvotes will be divided and may not have the desired impact.”

PM MODI ATTACKSCONGRESS ON KARTARPUR

SAHIB, 1984 RIOTS

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday attacked the pre-vious Congress government for its inability to bringKar tarpur Sabib under India during par tition.Releasing a commemorative coin as part of the 350th bir thanniversary celebrations of 10th Sikh guru Guru GobindSingh, Modi also came down on the Congress for the 1984riots that took place following the assassination of the thenPrime Minister Indira Gandhi.Referring to the Kartapur Sahib cor ridor, he said now devo-tees do not have to look at the shrine in Pakistan usingbinoculars and they could visit the place without visa usingthe cor ridor."A mistake took place in August, 1947. It (the corridor) is anatonement of the mistake. An impor tant place of our guruwas only a few kilometers away. But it could not be madepart (of India during par tition) ... the corridor is an effor t toreduce the damage," he said in a veiled attack on the thenCongress government.Guru Nanak passed away in Kar tarpur on September 22, 1539.Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, former chief jus-tice of India J S Khehar and several Sikh leaders werepresent at the Prime Minister's residence to participate inthe event.Modi said be it Guru Nanak or Guru Gobind Singh, theyhave taught us to be on the side of justice.Following the path shown by them, the central governmentis trying to get justice for the people who suffered during the1984 anti-Sikh riots, Modi said.

HONEY-TRAPPED ON SOCIALMEDIA, JAWAN LEAKS

SECRET ARMY INFO TO ISI

A Border Security Force (BSF) jawan, alleged to have been“honey-trapped” by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence(ISI) over Facebook, has been arrested from Noida oncharges of spying by Uttar Pradesh’s anti-terror squad (ATS),state director general of police (DGP) OP Singh said Wednes-day. Achyutanand Mishra, posted at the composite hospitalof BSF in Delhi, befriended a person, believed to be awoman, who was using a fake Facebook ID and who hadposed as a defence reporter working since January 2016.Her mobile number, registered in Pakistan, was saved onhis phone as ‘Pakistani dost’ (Pakistan-based friend), Singhsaid. Singh told the media that preliminary investigationsrevealed Mishra shared crucial information about the armedforces and the movement of troops with the ‘woman’. Healso used to chat with her over WhatsApp.

KERALA GOVT’S STAND ON SABARIMALA TEMPLE ROW ONE OFMOST SHAMEFUL, SAYS PM NARENDRA MODIPrime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday launched a scathing attack on Kerala’s Left Democratic Front government on its handlingof the Sabarimala controversy, saying the Communists didn’t respect India’s culture and spiritual traditions. He also slammed theCongress for taking multiple stands on the issue.Hitting out at the LDF led by the Communist Par ty of India (Marxist) and the Opposition spearheaded by the Congress-led UnitedDemocratic Front (UDF) in the state, Modi said both the fronts were two sides of the same coin. “We know that the Communists do notrespect India’s culture, history, and spirituality,” Modi said at a public meeting in Kollam.Turning to the Congress, he said: “They say one thing in Parliament and another in Pathanamthitta [where the Lord Ayyappa shrine islocated].” He added that “they are only different in name but are similar when it comes to corruption, casteism, communalism and indamaging the cultural fabric of Kerala.” The Supreme Cour t in September last threw open the doors of the Sabarimala shrine to womenof all ages, over turning a traditional ban on women of childbearing age from entering the temple.Female devotees aged between 10 and 50 had for decades been barred from the shrine on grounds that the presiding deity is acelibate, and the cour t ruling enraged traditionalists in Kerala. The LDF government of chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said it wasdetermined to uphold the cour t verdict. On January 2, two women in their 40s became the first to worship at the shrine on Wednesday,breaking the taboo and triggering unrest in many parts of Kerala. At a public rally — his first in south India with barely three monthsleft for the crucial general election — organised by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Modi said the state government’s conducton Sabarimala will go down in the history as one of the most shameful.

FOR CONNECTIVITY IN COMBAT, FRANCE ORDERS UPGRADEFOR RAFALE JETSFrance’s Dassault Aviation said on Monday it had received a contract from the French government to upgrade the Rafale fighter jet.The so-called F4 version of the multi-role Rafale, which is being developed for a repor ted investment of €2 billion, will include greaterconnectivity to allow “networked combat,” Dassault said in a statement.The company added that the validation of the F4 standard isplanned for 2024 and that some features will be available from 2022.The French government inked the contract with the aircraft maker on January 14.However, news of the order, and the fact that Dassault will deliver Rafale aircraf t to the French government under an older orderresulted in some confusion with some websites repor ting that the 28 aircraf t were being bought by France for €2 billion. The Congresswas quick to react.“India is paying €7.8 billion for 36 Rafale aircraft. France is paying €2 billion for 28 upgraded Rafale aircraft. Can the person with EntirePolitical Science degree do the math? #ChowkidarChorHai,” the Congress tweeted from its twitter handle.The government and the Congress have been trading charges over the controversial ?59,000-crore purchase.Top defence ministry officials said a deal to buy aircraf t could not be compared with another to just develop a new model.Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government had already given out all details on the Rafale deal and it was a closedchapter now. Defence ministry officials rued the fact that every new development related to Rafale in any par t of the world sparks afresh debate in India.

CONTD. FROM PAGE 1We have busted more than six crore fake ration cards,LPG connections and bogus pensions," PM Modi said ata BJP rally in Odisha."Money was being siphoned in the name of people whodid not exist," the Prime Minister said, after he inaugu-rated projects wor th over Rs. 1,550 crore at anofficial function.Since the Centre has put the illegal interests ofsome people in jeopardy, they are now joining handsto remove the country's "chowkidar" (watchman) bylevelling false allegations against him, PM Modisaid.Hinting at the coming together of opposition par tiesagainst the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, PMModi said conspiracies are being hatched fromvarious quar ters and now some of the conspiratorsare coming together. "I want to tell these peoplefrom the land of Lord Jagannath that this chowkidarwill rest only after completely halting loot of publicmoney.Asserting that the BJP-led NDA government has beenworking with determination for the development of thecountry, PM Modi said the Centre is focusing on fivestreams -- education, earnings for the youth, medicinefor the elderly, ir rigation for farmers and listening to themasses -- to ensure overall and balanced progress

PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODISAYS HE STOPPED LOOT OF PUBLICMONEY, NOW CONSPIRACY TODRIVE HIM OUT



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019 i n d i a

Kejriwal to not contest LS elections fromVaranasi, party to field another candidate

LUCKNOW: The Aam Aadmi Par ty Sunday said its convenor and DelhiChief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will not be contesting from Varanasi inthe coming Lok Sabha elections, but the par ty will field a strongcandidate for the seat. "Kejriwal will not contest the Lok Sabha polls,as he wants to give special focus to his state. The AAP will contest onall the Lok Sabha seats in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Goa. The par tywill contest on some seats in UP, and final modalities will be workedout by February. Apar t from Varanai, the par ty will contest from seatsin eastern and western UP, where the organisation is strong," AAPspokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh told PTI on phone.Singh said in Delhi his par ty is working on education, health, farm-

ers, power and providing drinking water. "If we foray into nationalpolitics, then our issues will be education for all, free education toeconomically weaker sections of the society, ending unemploymentand implementing the recommendations of the Swaminathan Com-mission," Singh said.On a recent statement made by Kejriwal to not vote for the Congressin the coming Lok Sabha elections, Singh said, "Kejriwal was quotedout of context. He had said that in a meeting in the national capital thatif you want to defeat the BJP, then do not waste your vote by casting itin favour of the Congress. His statement was in the context of Delhi,from where the AAP is contesting on all the seats."

CANADIAN PAKISTANI, TAHAWWUR RANA, IN USJAIL, MAY BE EXTRADITED TO INDIA

RAHUL GANDHI’S UAE VISITREINFORCED HIS IMAGE AS AMASS LEADER: CONGRESSCongress president Rahul Gandhi’s recent visit to theUnited Arab Emirates (UAE) has reinforced his image asa mass leader whose message finds resonance withIndians all over the world, the par ty said in a press state-ment on Monday. During the trip last week, Gandhi receivedan enthusiastic response and held meetings with severalgroups, including construction labourers, students, business lead-ers and the media. He also held closed-door meetings with seniormembers of the UAE government, the party said. It said the showpieceevent of the Congress president’s UAE tour was a massive publicmeeting at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, where over 30,000Indians from across the UAE and the Middle East were inattendance.During his tour, Gandhi addressed the issues of “un-employment and the agrarian crisis”, and spoke againstdivisiveness. He interacted with students and business lead-ers, and visited the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in AbuDhabi. Gandhi also discussed the alliance between theSamajwadi Par ty and the Bahujan Samaj Par ty, the contro-versy over women’s entry into Kerala’s Sabarimala templeand the Rafale fighter jet deal.

MASS CONVERSIONS WOULD BEA MATTER OF CONCERN IN ANYCOUNTRY, SAYS RAJNATH SINGH“Whether we win or lose... we will not discriminate amongpeople,” home minister Rajnath Singh said Tuesday at afunction organised by a Christian body during which he alsomade it clear that mass conversions need to be checkedacross the country. Singh said he suppor ts freedom to fol-low any religion but was of the opinion that a debate isneeded as mass conversion is a matter of concern for anycountry. He said as far as the government is concernedthere will not be discrimination with anybody.“I have never discriminated on the basis of caste, creedand religion in my life. Whether or not we get votes. Whetheror not we form the government, whether we win or lose. Butwe will never discriminate among people. This is what ourprime minister feels,” he said at the function organised byRashtriya Isai Mahasangh.Singh said one cannot be in power and rule without love.“One can only rule with love. There is no other way,” headded. “I would also say one thing on the Christian commu-nity. We do not want to level allegations against anybody.You may have also heard. If somebody wants to accept areligion, he should do that. There should not be any objec-tion to it. But if mass conversion star ts happening, largenumber of people star t changing their religion, then it couldbe a matter of concern for any country,” Singh said.

CONTD. FROM PAGE 1India's Ministry of ExternalAffairs, Ministry of Home Affairsand Ministry of Law and Justiceand the US' State Depar tment andthe Department of Justice, eachof them has their own extraditionprocedure in place. They areunwilling to cutdown or speed uptheir own process when it comesto extradition, the source added.Following a recent visit to the USby India's National InvestigationAgency (NIA) team, officials fromboth sides have agreed to cutdown on the bureaucraticprocedures so that all thenecessary paperwork is readybefore the current jail term ofRana ends in December 2021.The NIA is expected to havedirect communication with theirUS counterparts to cut shor t thetimeframe and bureaucraticformalities. In case, the USgovernment in co-operation with

the Indian government is unableto complete the necessarypaperwork before that, officialshere said it would become verytough to ensure a smoothextradition of Rana once he isreleased from the jail in Chicago,where he is currently serving hissentence.As per the existing US law, Rana,a Pakistan-born Canadian national,would most probably be deported toCanada if India and the US are unableto complete the cumbersomeextradition process before his release.However, people familiar with thematter told PTI that there is a "desire"so there is an assurance from thehighest level in the Tr umpadministration that all necessarysteps would be taken in timelymanner to ensure extradition ofRana before his release.According to the US officials, theextradition of Rana would help incementing the relationship

between the two countries, boostup the counter-terrorism co-operation and enhance America'simage among Indians.On the 10th anniversary of theMumbai terror attack, in Novem-ber 2018, the Trump administra-tion had reiterated its resolve tobring to justice those involved init. Vice President Mike Pence hadraised this issue during hismeeting with Prime MinisterNarendra Modi in November.During their recent visit, the NIAteam also received guidancefrom their US counterpar ts on thepaperwork which India needs tocomplete to meet the require-ments of the American judiciarysystem and their standards.Citing the partial governmentshutdown, the State Depar tmentand the Depar tment of Justiceexpressed their inability torespond to the questions relatedto the extradition of Rana.

CONGRESS AN ‘OLD ALLY’, TEJASHWI YADAV REJECTSCLAIMS OF SNUBBING COALITION PARTNERRJD leader Tejashwi Yadav Tuesday clarified Congress was as an “old ally” and a major politicalpar ty with nationwide presence, rubbishing claims that he had snubbed his coalition par tner bycoming out in suppor t of the SP-BSP alliance in neighbouring Uttar P radesh.The RJD heir apparent also remarked that during his Lucknow visit on Monday, “the media therekept prying as to whether I had come to UP holding a brief for the Congress”.“It seems the media in Bihar and UP is clueless about my feelings for the Congress. My support to the SP-BSP alliancehas evoked diametrically opposite views in the two states,” he told reporters on the sideline of a ‘dahi chura’ (curd andflattened rice) feast organised at Sadaqat Ashram, the Bihar Congress headquarters.The feast, organised to celebrate the festival of Makar Sankranti, was also attended by other leaders of the oppositionGrand alliance like RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha and Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP) founder Mukesh Sahni.Presenting a picture of bonhomie, Tejashwi, Kushwaha and state Congress president Madan Mohan Jha fed eachother ‘tilkut’ - a sweet dish made of jaggery and sesame - consumption of which is considered auspicious onSankranti.The NDA had on Monday wondered whether Tejashwi’s UP trip was part of “strong arm tactics” against theCongress, its ally in the ‘Mahagathbandhan’.The NDA’s reaction was based on Tejashwi greeting Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav for forging analliance sans Congress. The RJD leader had asser ted that the SP-BSP alliance was another step inthe direction of opposition unity which was envisaged by his father and par ty supremo LaluPrasad”. “I chose to go to Lucknow myself and pay cour tesy visits to Mayawati and AkhileshYadav since I am younger to them. I wonder why it has become such a big issue.“Congress-RJD ties date back to the excellent rapport that my father and Madam Sonia Gandhishared. Rahul Gandhi and I are also on very good terms. Congress is a major political par ty witha nationwide presence....an old and valuable ally,” he asser ted. Tejashwi, however, distancedhimself from BSP supremo Mayawati’s asser tion that the Congress was inconsequential in UttarPradesh and hence, kept out of the pre-poll alliance.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019w o r l d

Donald Trump sends letter to Kim Jong-unamid talks of a second summit: Report

‘The letter delivered over the weekendcomes after President Trump saidearly this month that he hadreceived a “great letter” from Kimand was looking forward to meet theNorth Korean leader for a secondtime in the “not-too-distant future”.

Donald Tr ump has sent a letter to Kim Jong-un, a media report saidTuesday, days after the US President said he received a “great letter”from the reclusive Nor th Korean leader, amid talks about a secondsummit between them on denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.Kim and Tr ump held a historic meeting in Singapore on June 12 lastyear where they issued a vague goal for the “completedenuclearisation” of the Korean Peninsula without describing whenand how it would occur.The letter delivered over the weekend comes after President Trumpsaid early this month that he had received a “great letter” from Kimand was looking forward to meet the North Korean leader for a sec-ond time in the “not-too-distant future”.The letter comes as the two sides negotiate details of a second meet-ing between the two leaders. It was flown to Pyongyang and deliveredby hand, the CNN repor ted, quoting a source familiar with the ongoingtalks between Washington and Pyongyang on denuclearisation of theKorean Peninsula.Nor th Korea’s former spy chief Kim Yong Chol - one of Pyongyang’stop negotiators - could visit Washington as soon as this week tofinalise details of the upcoming summit, it said.The CNN previously repor ted that US scouting teams had visitedBangkok, Hanoi and Hawaii as they search for a location for the sec-ond summit.Last week, South Korean President Moon Jae-in threw his suppor tbehind another Tr ump-Kim meeting, saying it - along with a visit byKim to Seoul - would be a turning point “that will firmly solidify peaceon the Korean Peninsula”, the repor t said.

“We will not loosen our guard until the promise to denuclearise thePeninsula is kept, and peace is fully institutionalised,” Moon said.Trump’s announcement of receiving a letter from Kim had come af terthe North Korean leader warned that Pyongyang may change its ap-proach to nuclear talks if Washington persists with sanctions.Earlier, the US president expressed satisfaction over the progress intalks with the Nor th Koreans, saying he is in no rush for thedenuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.“We’re getting along fine. I’m not in any rush. I don’t have to rush. AllI know is there’s no rockets, there’s no testing,” he said.Trump said his administration was not getting any credit for this peaceinitiative which has aver ted the world from a major war.After years of isolation, Kim held a number of diplomatic summits in2018, meeting with Moon, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.Last week, he made a surprise visit to Beijing to meet again with Xi,a meeting which indicated that China remains a major player in anyfuture action to denuclearise the Korean Peninsula.

Ivanka Trump to help selectcandidate to lead World

Bank: White House official

Ivanka Tr ump wi l l help manage the Tr umpadministration’s selection of a US candidate for theposition of World Bank Group president, a White Houseofficial said on Monday.The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity be-cause the process is not public, dismissed a repor t inthe Financial Times that floated Ivanka’s name as apossible candidate and was repeated by several othermedia outlets over the weekend.Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White HouseChief of Staff Mick Mulvaney “have asked IvankaTr ump to help manage the US nomination process asshe’s worked closely with the World Bank’s leader-ship for the past two years,” the official said.“Reports that she is under consideration are false.”AUS Treasury spokeswoman could not immediatelybe reached for comment.Ivanka Tr ump has worked with the World Bank anddepar ting President Jim Yong Kim over the past twoyears, jointly launching a $1.6 billion women’s entre-preneurship fund with 13 other donor countries to raisecapital for female entrepreneurs in developing coun-tries. The United States, which has a controlling vot-ing interest in the World Bank, has traditionally cho-sen the institution’s leader since it began operationsin 1946. Kim announced his surprise Feb. 1 depar turelast week to join private equity fund Global Infrastruc-ture Par tners, more than three years before his termends in 2022, amid differences with the Trump admin-istration over climate change and the need for moredevelopment resources.. The World Bank has said itsexecutive board will begin accepting nominationsstar ting on Feb. 7. It said candidates should be com-mitted to implementing the bank’s 2030 developmentobjectives and reforms under the 2018 capital plan.

PAKISTAN SC UPHOLDS HIGH COURT’S SUSPENSION OF JAILSENTENCE OF NAWAZ SHARIF, DAUGHTERPakistan’s Supreme Cour t on Monday upheld an Islamabad High Cour t (IHC) verdict that had ordered the suspension of prisonsentences awarded to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz in the Avenfield corruption reference,bringing relief for the Sharif family, both of whose leaders — Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif — are cur rently incarcerated.A five-member bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar, dismissed the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB)plea against the high cour t’s decision. In its ruling, the court said that NAB has failed to provide the “ground for cancellation of bail” andthat the IHC had not exceeded its authority in granting bail to the convicts of the Avenfield reference.The chief justice told NAB prosecutor Akram Qureshi to “convince [the bench] why the high cour t’s ruling should be suspended” andto delineate the grounds on which the apex cour t can suspend the granting of bail. “Also tell us if the high cour t had the authority tosuspend the sentence,” he added. Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, who is set to succeed Justice Nisar as the top judge, said that NAB’sargument was not “solid” and rejected the claim that the high cour t had exceeded its authority. In July 2018, an accountability cour t hadhanded Sharif 10 years as jail time for owning assets beyond known income and 1 year for not cooperating with NAB.His daughter Maryam was given seven years for abetment after she was found “instrumental in concealment of the proper ties of herfather” and one year for non-cooperation with the bureau. Meanwhile, Nawaz’s son-in-law retired Captain Safdar has been given oneyear jail time — for not cooperating with NAB, and aiding and abeting Nawaz and Maryam.In Sept 2018, the IHC had accepted the convicts’ petitions and suspended the trio’s respective prison sentences — a decision that thecor ruption watchdog had subsequently challenged in the Supreme Cour t.

Saudi man survived 13 days stranded indesert by eating two of his four wivesA Saudi man and two of his four wives have miraculously survivedafter a tragic car crash left them stranded in the scorching heat of theSaudi deser t for 13 days repor ts the Riyadh Herald.Mustafa Ali Hamad, 41, and his four wives were traveling to a familygreeting near Ash Shalfa when they took a wrong turn during a sandstorm and crashed their vehicle, which killed one of Hamad’s wife onthe spot.For three days, they were left in the hot scorching sun with barely anywater and no food until Hamad decided to send two of his wives insearch of help, himself not being able to do so because of his medicalcondition.Both women roamed the deser t during a gruesome ten days beforefinding help in a small village. Rescuers were shocked to find onlythe husband alive and his two other wives dead, of which he had fedupon to survive during his ordeal.Hamad also said that he fears authorities will punish him for hisactions but that he has put his faith in Allah’s hands and that he isready to confront whatever judgment will befall upon him.Although it is not allowed to kill a human being under Islamic law withthe specific intention of eating him, most Muslim scholars agree can-nibalism is permitted, but only under special circumstances.“It is also not permitted to per form sexual acts upon the dead person’sbody unless it is the body of an Infidel,” Ibn Al-Araby also commented

in his fundamental writing The doctrine of per fect man (Al-Insan al-Kamil).Hamad is presently under intensive medical care as doctors fear hisoverweight condition and diabetes may have put an enormous strainon his hear t and vital organs.Doctors were also surprised to learn that Hamad had lost absolutelyno weight during his excruciating 13-day ordeal but had gained ahealthy four pounds.

15 dead in Islamist attack onKenya hotel complex, say cops

An Islamist attack on an upmarket hotel and officecomplex in the Kenyan capital has left 15 people dead,according to two police sources at the scene wherefighting was still ongoing. “We have 15 people deadas of now and that includes foreigners. You will begiven more details on all this and even the nationali-ties by our seniors,” a police source told AFP on con-dition of anonymity. A second source confirmed thetoll but warned “there are areas not yet accessed butthat’s what we know so far.”



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


I had 10 kisses in my debut andone in Why Cheat India, that’s

progress: Emraan Hashmi

VIRAT KOHLI'S CENTURY LEADS INDIA TO WIN THE 2ND ODIAGAINST AUSTRALIA

A LEADING BRAND SUSPENDS HARDIKPANDYA'S CONTRACT WORTH RS 2 CRORE

POST THE CONTROVERSIAL EPISODE

FARHAN AKHTAR SHARESPOOL PIC WITH GIRL-

FRIEND SHIBANIDANDEKAR, SAYS ‘SHINE

ON BEAUTIFUL STAR’

SALMAN KHAN UPSET WITHARJUN KAPOOR AND MALAIKAARORA MARRIAGE RUMOURS!

Ranveer Singh reveals if he ever hadthoughts of losing Deepika Padukone

Bollywood actor Salman Khan is really upset withthe marriage rumors of Arjun Kapoor and MalaikaArora's marriage. He is really pissed. Arjun Kapoorand Malaika Arora have been making headlines fortheir rumoured relationship for quite some time.Both have been spotted together on various occa-sion. Watch the video to know more. I DETAILS ON PAGE 20

GULLY BOY SONG APNA TIME AAYEGA:RANVEER SINGH RAPS LIKE A PRO,

ROMANCES ALIA BHATT

Ranveer Singh has shared the first song fromhis upcoming film, Gully Boy. Apna TimeAayega is a rage anthem that provided thehook in the recently released trailer for thefilm, based in part on the lives of Mumbairappers Divine and Naezy.

Emraan Hashmi is done with tags, he would rather have deeper dis-cussions now, and go where he has seldom ventured before. WhyCheat India, his first film as a co-producer, that puts the spotlight oncheating mafia in our anyway flawed education system, is a step in that direc-tion. The film stars him as a wheeler-dealer in starched shir ts and a tilak on hisforehead. When not looking like a ‘babu’ in a government office, Emraan’s RakeshSingh recruits doctors, engineers etc who sit for exams in lieu of students whowant degrees but without the hard work that entails. “We need to overhaul oureducation system,” says the actor as he sits down for an interview with co-starShreya Dhanwanthary. “While cheating is one aspect, our education system isfundamentally flawed and defunct. After my school and college, I later realized inlife how little I have learnt I terms of real-life applications. It needs tobe overhauled – everything from rote learning , disinterested andunqualified teachers, the lack of university seats is wrong with oursystem. I found out about cheating mafia in all our states only while Iwas doing this film and how undeserving students benefit from it.”

While for six years of their dat-ing, they never openly acceptedbeing together, but af ter their wed-ding, Deepika Padukone andRanveer Singh are opening upabout their relationship in mediainteractions. In an interview withFilmfare, Ranveer was asked atricky question.When asked if there was any mo-ment he felt l ike he wil l loseDeepika, Ranveer said, "No, Inever had such a thought, ofcourse there are ups and downs,but I had made up my mind thatshe was the one, she is the onlyone whom I wanted to marry, so Iwas prepared to go through any-thing."When he was asked what was thecraziest thing he did for Deepika,Ranveer said that he once trav-elled abroad just to spend a fewminutes with her.


BADLA: Amitabh Bachchan's first look will remind you of his role in 'Kaante'A teaser of Amitabh Bachchan's upcoming film was shared on Twitter. The picture shows the superstar walking a bridge with a briefcasein his hand while showing his back to the camera. The photo portrays the megastar in a corporate look wearing a black suit. It willactually take you back in time, when Amitabh Bachchan did movies like Kaante and Aankhen.Interestingly, the Sujoy Ghosh directorial is the remake of the 2016 Spanish thriller 'Contratiempo.' The film starring Amitabh Bachchan andTaapsee Pannu is produced by Red Chillies Enter tainment in association with Azure Entertainment and is slated for release on March 8.

Little did cricketers Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul know that their ‘ca-sual’ statements on Koffee With Karan would land them in the soup. While theBoard of Control for Cricket in India has put the two players under provisionalsuspension on grounds of misconduct, there’s more trouble brewing for them.Says a source, “A leading men’s personal grooming brand has suspended itscontract with Hardik after the controversial episode. Its loss has cost the all-rounder approximately Rs 2 crore.”The same source adds, “His brand value hastaken a huge hit with most of the other com-panies, who were queuing up to sign him up,disappearing in quick succession. He is cur-rently the face for six other brands and many ofthem are contemplating similar action.”Rahul’s story is no different. “He had signed athree-year contract with a spor ts brand and thecompany is already considering a replace-ment for him,” claimed a source.Meanwhile, the channel has taken downthe episode from all platforms and thelatest episode of KWK (featuring ShahidKapoor and Ishaan Khatter) had a dis-claimer, apologising for the crick-eters’ comments.

BOX OFFICE: RANVEERSINGH'S 'SIMMBA' CONTINUES

TO ROAR, CROSES RS 350CRORE MARK WORLDWIDE!

Ranveer Singh-starrer Simmba has collected over Rs 350 crores at theglobal box office within 16 days of its release. According to the makers, the film ison a record-breaking spree and now ranks among the top 10 Bollywood domesticbox office hits of all time. The film is presented by Reliance Enter tainment inassociation with Dharma Productions and Rohit Shetty Picturez. Directed by RohitShetty, Ranveer plays a corrupt cop, Sangram 'Simmba' Bhalerao in the film, whochooses the righteous path after a life-changing event. With Simmba, Shetty hasbecome the first director to have eight consecutive films enter the Rs 100 crore netdomestic box office club. He is the second director in India with three films toenter the Rs 200 crore club, according to the makers.

‘PAKISTAN INAUSTRALIA & SOUTHAFRICA SINCE 19999TESTS: 23,WON: 1, LOST 220-3, AUS, 1999/000-2, SA, 2002/030-3, AUS, 2004/051-2, SA, 2006/070-3, AUS, 2009/100-3, SA, 2012/130-3, AUS, 2016/170-3, SA, 2018/19



RUNNINGSUCCESSFULLY

b o l l y w o o d

JOHN ABRAHAM AVOIDS CLASH WITH AJAY DEVGN BUT WILLBATTLE IT OUT WITH AKSHAY KUMAR AT THE BOX OFFICE

Last year, it was announced that John Abraham-starrer RAW — Romeo Akbar Walter will hitscreens on March 15, 2019. The news came rightafter Ajay Devgn moved De De Pyaar De from itsprevious date to the same window. A clashbetween the two action stars was expected butnow good sense has prevailed. Also, one hearsthat with Total Dhamaal releasing on February 22,the makers of De De Pyaar De were repor tedlythinking in terms of moving their romcom to amore suitable date in May.If they came in March, there would be just athree-week release window between two majorDevgn starrers.MEANWHILE...Another clash remains!Although, the Satyameva Jayate actor hasavoided the clash with the Raid star, this Indepen-dence Day, he will go head to head with his goodfriend Akshay Kumar once again, when his BatlaHouse and Akki’s Mission Mangal open incinemas on the same Friday.

Ranveer Singhintroduces wife

DeepikaPadukone as hisnew 'cheerleader'

Deepika Padukone, who has alwaystaken the internet by storm with herperformances, is here to steal thelimelight again by cheering for hus-band Ranveer Singh. Taking to hisInstagram, Ranveer shared a videoof his 'cheerleader' wife.Donning a white shirt with a glass ofwine, Deepika can be seen cheeringfor his recent release, Simmba asshe recites a popular line from thefilm, 'Ae Aaya Police.' He captionedthe video writing, "My Cheerleader@deepikapadukone."The video comes after Simmba,which also stars Sara Ali Khan,roared at the box office as it enteredthe 200 crore club in just 12 days.Apar t from Ranveer and Sara, themovie's cast also includes SonuSood - who por trays the role of theantagonist in the action flick - andAjay Devgn - who has a cameo.The flick is a remake of the 2015Telugu blockbuster 'Temper' starringN.T. Rama Rao Jr. Deepika and Ranveertied the knot in two traditional, dreamyceremonies in November last year, sixyears after their first film 'Goliyon KiRasleela Ram-Leela.'

Shraddha Kapoorhas already started

prep for RemoD'Souza's dancefilm even as sheshoots for Saaho

Recently, Shraddha Kapoor flewdown to Hyderabad to shoot her ac-tion sequence for her next big budgetfilm titled Saaho where she'll be seenopposite Prabhas. This timeShraddha has a travel companionalong with her. It's a choreographerwho is traveling with her on theSaaho shoot in Hyderabad.Recently it was announced thatShraddha will be reunited with theABCD team for the next dance film inthe franchise. Ever since ShraddhaKapoor stepped into Remo D'Souza'sdance film, she has star ted preppingfor it from day one. To keep the prepa-ration on, Shraddha has taken adancer along with her so that she canpractice before the shoot and afterthe pack-up of Saaho's shoot.

SAIF ALI KHAN TORETURN TO RACE

FRANCHISE?Saif Ali Khan is undoubtedly one ofthe most talented and suave actorsin Bollywood. The actor was a par t ofthe Race franchise twice, but for thethird par t, producer Ramesh Tauraniannounced that he will be roping inSalman Khan. However, doing so,didn’t turn out to be one of the bestdecisions as the viewers didn’t likethe movie at all. Now, going by a re-port, Ramesh Taurani is trying hardto get Saif Ali Khan back on board forRace. Race and Race 2 worked wellat the box office, as well as was ap-preciated by the audience. While pro-moting Race 3, Salman had con-firmed that his team and he are plan-ning a sequel, Race 4. Now, if Saifhas been approached for it, then wecould guess that Salman won’t be apar t of the film anymore. On the workfront, Saif is also all set to be seen ina rugged avatar in his for thcomingfilm titled Hunter.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019 b o l l y w o o d

hollywood

THE CALCULATION WENT WRONG

CAST: AMRIT MANN, KARAMJIT ANMOL, SARDAR

SOHI, ISHA RIKHI, RANA RANBIR, HARBY SANGHA,

NIRMAL RISHI, MALKEET RAUNI, RUPINDER RUPI

DIRECTOR: HARRY BHATTI

RATING:

M O V I E R E V I E W

CHRIS PRATT ANNOUNCESENGAGEMENT TO ARNOLDSHWARZENEGGER’SDAUGHTER KATHERINE

Although there is no success mantra for a hit film, a goodscript, direction and acting together can give a film the desiredshape. Even if one depar tment falters, the entire projectshakes up. This holds true for this week’s release Do DooniPanch, a good concept crumbles because of weak directionand overacting.A satire on the education system, Do Dooni Panch, directed byHarr y Bhatti can also be seen as a cour troom drama, weakand uninteresting.Director Harr y Bhatti has taken too many liber ties, many thatdo not fall into the realm of creative license. You have a judgeholding a cour t, with media and people watching, in his floralshir t and Bermudas. Not only this, instead of presiding fromhis chair, he is seen squatting on his table. When have judgesstar ted doing this in a make-shif t cour t! Two, a teacher(Rupinder Rupi) is knitting to eternity. When her character isintroduced, she is knitting and throughout the film, her knit isnot complete. Another character, a Hindi subject teacher,makes you cringe with overacting and misplaced Hindi.While introducing a number of characters, the director prob-ably forgot to tell them that he was casting them for a film, andnot street theatre. The characters of Do Dooni Panch do notact, they overact, every single one of them.

Most of the scenes in the film could have been trimmed on theediting table (especially the scene in the bus where a passen-ger is laughing uselessly), and if this was to happen it wouldnot be a feature film, but a shor t film! One time when AmritMann approaches an advocate to fight a case against all histeachers, you feel now this is going to be interesting. But as thefilm moves into the cour t, you realise that you’ve been fooled inbelieving that something interesting was about to happen. Thedialogues of the film are flat and about the climax....well, itactually says...to be continued. The end is so abrupt that youare left zapped.The ar tistes in the film are overacting from take one, except forAmrit Mann who doesn’t overact, because for that he has to actfirst! Isha Rikhi, the pretty face, you see in the first half, andthen forget all about her. And when you have forgotten about her,she appears from nowhere.And then there is Nirmal Rishi, Sardar Sohi, Harby Sangha,Malkit Rauni, Rupinder Rupi and Nisha Bano screeching ontheir top of their voices... They weren’t told they were par t of af i lm!The only good thing about the film is the concept, rest whetherDo dooni can be panch is what you need to figure, or you’d belost in calculation.

Hollywood star Chris Pratt has announced his engage-ment to actor Arnold Shwazenegger ’s daughter ,Katherine. He posted a picture on Instagram to sharetheir news with his fans.“Sweet Katherine, so happy you said yes! I’m thrilled tobe marrying you. Proud to live boldly in faith with you.Here we go,” he captioned a picture that showed himkissing her. Katherine’s large diamond engagement ringcan also be seen in the picture.Chris (39) and Katherine (29) began dating last year andwere first spotted out together in June. They were spot-ted on a picnic in a park in California. They were thenseen on several dates and even shared pictures witheach others’ families on social media.

LADY GAGA FANS THREATENTO RIOT, CALL GOLDENGLOBES A JOKE AFTER ASTAR IS BORN SNUBA Star is Born fans are slamming the 2019 Golden Globes, forsnubbing stars Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, widely consideredto be the favourites heading into the awards. In the end, GlennClose beat Gaga for her performance in The Wife, and BohemianRhapsody star Rami Malek won the best actor award over hotfavourite Bradley Cooper. Although not the front-runner, Cooperalso lost in the best director category to Roma’s Alfonso Cuaron.Several people on Twitter immediately reacted by calling the Globes‘a joke’. For Bohemian Rhapsody to be favoured over the likes ofBlack Panther, BlackKklansman, If Beale Street Could Talk, inaddition to A Star is Born, was seen as a unexpected turn of events.Bohemian Rhapsody, a biopic on Queen and its lead singer FreddieMercury that wasn’t all that well received by critics, hasbeen directed by Bryan Singer, who has been accused sev-eral times of sexually harassing young boys. Singer was firedmidway through production for absenteeism, and was replaced byDexter Fletcher, who brought the film home, all the way toa global haul of over $700 million.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019b o l l y w o o d

Nothing accidental about the motive

CAST: ANUPAM KHER, AKSHAYE

KHANNA, ARJUN MATHUR, AAHANA

KAMRA, SUZANNE BERNERT

DIRECTOR: VIJAY GUTTE

RATING:

M O V I E R E V I E W

First time director Vijay Gutte’s attempt to adapt Sanjaya Baru’sThe Accidental Prime Minister appears far more malicious thaninformative. Baru (played here by Akshaye Khanna), as we readfrom his memoir, had issues with the Advisory Council led by SoniaGandhi, and the members of the PMO and his angst appears to be aby-product of that disgruntlement.Gutte’s film goes one step fur ther and lampoons the Gandhi familyin unfair caricature while making out politicos like Ahmed Patel(Vipin Sharma) and Prithviraj Chouhan (Ramesh Bhatkar) look likesneaky players. Neither Baru nor Gutte manage to substantiate theirimpressions with fact.They merely pander to gossip and idle chatter while connectingdots that don’t exactly add up to what is being suggested.The allegation that Manmohan Singh was merely warming thethrone for PM in waiting, Rahul Gandhi, for 10 years on-the-trot, isso fallacious that it puts into question the entire electoral system,intelligence of the Indian people, as well as conjures up a Congresspar ty as a behemoth with all-pervasive power over the masses.That obviously can’t be true given the turn of events.The film also lays the blame for corruption on Sonia and Rahul’s

doorstep when it was in fact the UPA allies who were actuallycaught in the crosshairs of notional loss-making by CAG. It was afaux narrative carried forward by the Anna gang, Kejriwal, IAC andthe BJP in opposition and resulted in Narendra Modi gettingelevated to power.The truth as we know it today is way different from what we werepersuaded to believe then. Gutte’s film basically panders to an anti-Gandhi family narrative while por traying Sonia (Suzanne Bernett),Rahul (Arjun Mathur) and Manmohan Singh (Anupam Kher) inderogatory light.The performances by the actors resembling the three maincharacters is so undermining that it seems intentional and thereforeunpardonable. Anupam Kher is unforgivably toonish, SuzanneBernett struggles with her Sonia Gandhi impersonation while ArjunMathur doesn’t even manage a favourable look. None of the castmakes an impression here.The writing is perverse while the narrative fails to find cohesiveentreaty. Gutte’s selective use of stock TV footage to buttress thenegative implications here makes for a terribly biased perspective.This is cer tainly not cinema, it’s propaganda of the worst kind!

GULLY BOY SONG APNA TIME AAYEGA: RANVEERSINGH RAPS LIKE A PRO, ROMANCES ALIA BHATTRanveer Singh has shared the first song from his upcoming film,Gully Boy. Apna Time Aayega is a rage anthem that provided thehook in the recently released trailer for the film, based in par t onthe lives of Mumbai rappers Divine and Naezy, and the city’sunderground hip-hop scene. The song is per formed by Ranveer,and composed by Divine and Dub Sharma, with lyrics by Divine& Ankur Tewari.Apna Time Aayega borrows a key lyric from Divine’s recent song,Teesri Manzil. The video shows Ranveer’s character, the titular‘Gully Boy’ performing on stage and leaving the crowd in raptureswith his rap skills. “Tu nanga his toh aaya hai, kya ghanta le karjaayega? (You were born with nothing, what the hell will you takewith yourself when you die),” he says, as the crowd goes nuts.The two-and-a-half minute video also offers new glimpses fromthe film, notably of Alia Bhatt’s feisty character, who is apparentlya romantic interest to Ranveer ’s rapper. We also see quick shots

of Ranveer practising his rapping with a mentor-like figure, whowarns him at the beginning of the video of the many traps he mustavoid as a rapper.New details about Ranveer ’s character, such as his job as a driver- remember, his father is also a driver, according to the trailer -and his attraction to a life of crime, are seen. It is also implied thathe is lured by money and attention when Kalki Koechlin’s charac-ter enters his life.Speaking at the recent trailer launch event for the film in Mumbai,Ranveer said, “When somebody told me about the script of GullyBoy, I told them that it is my film. If any other actor would havebeen a par t of this film instead of me then I would have got burntwith jealousy. I was born to do Gully Boy and I knew only I can pulloff this character.”Gully Boy is directed by Zoya Akhtar, and has been scheduled fora February 14 release.

Farhan Akhtar and AnnuKapoor’s The Fakir of Venice

to release on February 1

Farhan Akhtar and Annu Kapoor-starrer The Fakir of Venicewill release in February instead of January 18 to avoid abox office clash with films such as Why Cheat India andFraud Saiyyan. The release date of The Fakir of Venice,which was made about a decade ago and was to launchFarhan as an actor in Bollywood, has been shifted quitea few times. “The Fakir of Venice is getting a strongresponse from all the multiplexes. There is a huge flowof films on January 18 and 25,” Punit Desai, producer ofThe Fakir of Venice, told IANS.“Also, Uri: The Surgical Strike, The Accidental PrimeMinister and S immba have occupied most screens, so ourmultiplex par tners have suggested that the film be moved to Febru-ary 1 for a justifiable release for this Farhan Akhtar , AnnuKapoor and A.R. Rahman enterprise,” he added. The Anand Surapurdirectorial has a song by Grammy and Academy Award-winningmusician A.R. Rahman. The Fakir of Venice revolves around thetwo faces of every human being which primarily come out due tosituations, needs, goals and wants and Farhan plays the role of aconman along with Annu Kapoor who are out to cheat visitors to amuseum in Spain with their ‘Fakir’ act.

Emraan Hashmi reveals his son,Ayaan, is now cancer free

Actor Emraan Hashmi on Monday revealed his son Ayaanhas been declared cancer free. Ayaan was diagnosedwith a rare case of kidney cancer in 2014 at the age ofthree. "Today, 5 years af ter his diagnosis Ayaan has beendeclared cancer free. It has been quite a journey. Thankyou for all your prayers and wishes. Love and prayersfor all the cancer fighters out there, hope and belief goesa long way. You can WIN this battle!" Emraan posted onTwitter alongside three pictures of him and his son.The actor had also co-written a book titled The Kiss ofLife: How A Superhero and My Son Defeated Canceralong with Bilal Siddiqi. “We thought it (the tumor) wasputting on weight and I think the first thing we felt was afeeling of guilt. He was 3 years 10 months then andwe’ve made the choices for this kid and where did we gowrong?” Emraan had said in an earlier statement abouthis son’s diagnosis.The book chronicled his son's struggle with the dreadeddisease. The 39-year-old actor will be next seen in WhyCheat India. The film releases F riday.

Deepika Padukone says no sur-name change for her, husbandRanveer Singh: We have workedhard to create our identitySurely, it has been one of her most challenging par ts tilldate. And Deepika Padukone gleefully sunk her teethinto the feisty role of queen Padmavati, in Sanjay LeelaBhansali’s Padmaavat (2018). Despite the fact that herper formance as well as the film earned a lot of praise —besides box office moolah — she zeroed in on a newfilm (Chhapaak that’s based on the life of acid attacksurvivor, Laxmi Agarwal) only towards the end of 2018.Ask Deepika if such heavy-duty par ts take a toll on her,and she says: “Absolutely! I think that’s why even thoughthere was so much to celebrate post the release ofPadmaavat, I think somewhere, as human being, I felt Ihad to recharge emotionally (smiles). I needed to livelife a bit. And that’s exactly what I did last year — so Ijust sor t of replenished, touched base with normal thingsand went about things in an organic manner.”Ever since her wedding to Ranveer Singh, there has beentalk about you changing your surname. The buzz hasalso been that Ranveer will alter his surname, whichDeepika also jokingly refer red to in an interview. “It’snot true. In fact, after that interview I realised that it’s aconversation Ranveer and I’ve never even had. So, wehaven’t been like, ‘oh, do you think you should changeyour surname?’ That [chat about it in an interview] was,of course, a candid joke of sor ts. It has never crossedeither of our minds. When I was asked about it, I waslike, ‘oh, we haven’t even thought about it’. Maybe be-cause it’s not impor tant. Also, I’ve worked extremelyhard to create my own identity and so has he. So, myquestion is, ‘why would he have to do that?’

FARHAN AKHTAR SHARES POOL PIC WITH GIRLFRIEND SHIBANIDANDEKAR, SAYS ‘SHINE ON BEAUTIFUL STAR’Actor and filmmaker Farhan Akhtar shared a photo withgirlfriend, television host and singer Shibani Dandekar, onSunday. The two are seen enjoying a relaxed day in the pool asFarhan wrote with the photo, “As long as I have you, As long asyou are, I’ll never be lost, Shine on beautiful star@shibanidandekar love you loads.”Farhan and Shibani have been in a relationship for almost ayear now. On Far han’s 45th bir thday earlier this month,Shibani has posted a picture with him. “Because he has thecoolest tattoo in the world and because it’s his bday! Happybir thday my sweet grumps love you loads @faroutakhtar,”she captioned the photo.Shibani is also said to have gifted Farhan with tickets for atrip to Europe. “They are planning to go somewhere magicalin Europe and spend quality time,” Bollywood Life quoted a

source as saying. Farhan was married to hairstylist AdhunaBhabani for 16 years and they have two daughters together,Shakya and Akira. They divorced in 2016 and issued a jointstatement at the time of their separation. “This is to an-nounce that we, Adhuna and Farhan, have mutually andamicably decided to separate. Our children remain ourpriority and it is immensely impor tant to us, as responsibleparents, that they be protected from unwarranted speculationand public glare. We sincerely request that we are given theprivacy that is required at this time to move forward in adignified manner.”On the work front, Farhan will soon be seen with Annu Kapoor inThe Fakir of Venice and with Priyanka Chopra in The Sky Is Pink.She is also a co-producer of Gully Boy that stars Alia Bhatt andRanveer Singh, and has been directed by Zoya Akhtar.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


10songsTERE BIN SIMMBA

MERE NAAM TU ZERO

ASLI HIP HOP GULLY BOY

PROPER PATOLA NAMASTE ENGLAND

ISSAQBAAZI ZERO

CHOGADA LOVERATRI

URVASHI URVASHI

KAMARIYA MITRON

MORNI BANKE BADHAAI HO

DILBAR SATYAMEVA JAYATE

top

SONG

MIDWEEK HIT OR FLOPURI 35.73 CR

THE ACCIDENTAL PRIME MINISTER 15.50 CR

BUMBLEBEE 7.00 CR

ZERO 59.7 CR

KGF 9.2 CR

MIDWEEK BOX OFFICEZERO FLOP

KGF(HINDI) HIT

KGF(ALL LANGUAGES) HIT

KEDARNATH AVERAGE

AQUAMAN HIT

b o l l y w o o d

FILM

1 AANKH MAREYSIMMBA

TOTAL DHAMAAL FIRST LOOKAJAY DEVGN AND A HOLLYWOOD STAR NAMED CRYSTAL

AMITABH BACHCHANDISCUSSES CONTENT AND

CINEMA WITH RANBIRKAPOOR, AYAN MUKERJI

‘The makers of Total Dhamaal havereleased the first look of actor AjayDevgn and his co-star Crystal, themonkey. The latter has already starredin quite a few popular Hollywood films.

Actor Ajay Devgn is all set to return to comedy with his upcomingfilm, Total Dhamaal. Amid the countdown to the film’s trailer, the

makers have released the first look of the actor along with his co-star– a monkey who had earlier starred in Hangover 2. The first look hasAjay with the monkey dressed in shir t and trousers. The makersannounced the Bollywood debut of the monkey, Crystal, who hasGeorge of the Jungle and Night at the Museum in its filmographyalong with Hangover 2.Just a few days ago, Shah Rukh Khan had also released a poster ofhis film Zero featuring a chimpanzee. Talking about Total Dhamaal,the film is a multi-starrer that brings back the superhit pairing of AnilKapoor and Madhuri Dixit after a gap of 18 years. They were last seenin Pukar.Actor Esha Gupta plays the second female lead in the film. The starcastalso includes Riteish Deshmukh, Arshad Warsi, Javed Jaffrey, BomanIrani, Sanjay Mishra, Mahesh Manjrekar and Johny Lever.Actor Sonakshi Sinha has also performed a special dance number‘Mugda’ for the film. The song was originally picturised on Helen inthe 1971 film Inkar. Sonakshi had earlier told Mumbai Mirror aboutthe song, “It has the potential of becoming a char tbuster again. Themakers are shooting it on a lavish scale, making everything largerthan life. I am super excited about it.”The film is a sequel to the 2011 film Double Dhamaal and is the thirdinstalment in the successful Dhamaal series. Directed by Indra Kumar,it is set to hit the theatres on February 22.

‘If I had a daughter she wouldhave been like Kangana’: Rekha

Several Bollywood actors includingKangana Ranaut, Sara Ali Khan,Rekha, Asha Parekh, WaheedaRahman, Zeenat Aman attended theMarathi Taraka event.

Veteran actor Rekha shares a great bond with Kangana Ranaut andtheir love for each other was visible at the recently held MarathiTaraka event. While Rekha was her usual gorgeous self in a goldenKanjeevaram paired with ethnic jewellery, Kangana too arrived in asari gif ted to her by the senior actor. Kangana is of ten spotted in sarisoff the screen and looked beautiful in the black and gold numbercomplete with a gajra in her hair. The two ladies greeted each otherwith a warm hug.Kangana also presented a special award to Rekha, who was all praisefor the Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi actor. Expressing her fond-ness for her, the veteran actor said, “If I had a daughter she wouldhave been like Kangana” and even called her a real life Jhansi KiRani.Another actor who stole the spotlight at the event was Simmba actorSara Ali Khan. The actor was decked up in a peach silk kur ta-salwarand shared the stage with other industry stalwar ts including Asha

Parekh, Bindu, Jaya Prada, Waheeda Rahman, Helen and choreogra-pher Saroj Khan. Sara made good use of the oppor tunity and mingledwith the senior actors at the event. She also shook a leg with Saroj onstage.Rekha also bonded with Saroj as the two were seen chatting at theevent. Kangana also greeted the choreographer on the occasion. Se-nior actor Zeenat Aman was also present at the do. Have a look atsome more pictures from the night.

Amitabh Bachchan recently took to his blog to update fans thathe had a discussion on cinema and content with his directorand his co-star from Brahmastra. The megastar spoke with RanbirKapoor and Ayan Mukerji on Sunday at his Mumbai home.Big B shared the details from their meeting on his official blog andwrote, “Time spent with Ayan and Ranbir to talk about Brahmastraand to discuss film, content and cinema. The young have some veryspecial gifts and thoughts.”He further added, “..it is always a delight to be in their company .. tolisten to drift in their modern outlooks and to be able to put across thepoint of 50 years in the Industry, its time changes and its developmentinto the most powerful tools of influence...” Brahmastra, a three-partfantasy series, will see Amitabh Bachchan and Ranbir Kapoor along-side Alia Bhatt and Mouni Roy. Big B also said, “so much to learn somuch to accomplish so much to observe so much to self educate ..and the paucity of that ever timeless time machine.” This will be thefirst time Amitabh Bachchan will be sharing screen space with Ranbirand Alia together. The film is a fantasy-fiction produced byKaran Johar and par ts of the film were shot in Bulgaria. Thefilm is slated to release on December 20.

Richa Chadha says she isexcited to play a lawyer for the

first time in Section 375Actor Richa Chadha, who will be seen sharing screen spacewith actor Akshaye Khanna in the upcoming cour troom dramaSection 375, says she is excited to play a lawyer on screen forthe first time.“I am excited to play a lawyer on screen for the first time.Everyone I am working with on this project, I have been a fanof,” Richa said in a statement.The actress star ted shooting for Section 375 on Monday here.The first leg of the schedule will be shot here.Talking about herco-star Akshaye, she said: “I love Akshaye Khanna as an actorand his last few outings have been amazing. I am happy tocollaborate with director Ajay Behl too. I loved how nuancedBA Pass was... This is a great star t to 2019 and I feel blessedto take on this firebrand character”. The film Section 375 high-lights how a critical law meant for the safety of women can bemisused. Richa reached out to fans via Instagram, urging themto wish her luck for the new film’s beginning. She thanked thefilm’s team for the warm welcome and for “being so cool andsuppor tive”. As the title suggests, the film will speak about thepar ticular section as defined in the Indian Penal Code. Theproject is backed by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, KumarMangat and Abhishek Pathak.

Actor Dia Mirza has reacted to the allegations of sexual assaultmade against film director Rajkumar Hirani. She has worked withhim in films like Lage Raho Munna Bhai and Sanju.Speaking to Pinkvilla, Dia said, “I am deeply distressed by thisnews. As someone who has known and respect Raju Sir for 15years, I can only hope that a due official enquiry is conducted. He isone of the most decent human beings I have ever worked with andI think it would be grossly unjust on my part to speak on this as I donot know the details.”Hirani has been accused by a woman who worked with him on his2018 film Sanju. He has denied the allegations, terming them “false”and “malicious” and aimed at destroying his reputation.In an ar ticle published by HuffPost India, the woman alleged thatHirani sexually abused her more than once between March and September 2018. She detailed her allegations in an email datedNovember 3, 2018, to Hirani’s frequent collaborator and Sanju co-producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Film critic and Vidhu’s wife AnupamaChopra has confirmed that the woman had shared an account with her, and that Vinod Chopra Films (VCF) has since set up a committeeto address complaints of sexual harassment.After the ar ticle went viral on internet, the filmmaker released a statement in which he said he was “shocked” when the claims werebrought to his notice two months ago. He said he suggested the case be referred to a “committee or a legal body” but the complainantchose to go the media instead. “I was completely shocked when these allegations were brought to my notice about two months back.I had suggested immediately that it is essential to take this matter to any committee or any legal body.

DIA MIRZA REACTS TO SEXUAL ASSAULT ALLEGATIONSAGAINST RAJKUMAR HIRANI: I AM DEEPLY DISTRESSED

‘

3rd Test: South Africa thrash Pakistan by

107 runs, seal series sweep

ROHIT SHARMA BARGES INTO THE STUMPS WHILE COMPLETING A SINGLE.

Duanne Olivier sparked a Pakistan collapse as South Africa completed aseries clean sweep with a 107-run win on the fourth day of the third and finalTest at the Wanderers Stadium on Monday.Star ting the day on 153 for three, Pakistan lost their remaining seven wicketsfor 120 runs to be bowled out for 273.Olivier effectively ended Pakistan’s hopes when he took two wickets offsuccessive balls in the third over of the morning.Babar Azam received a fast, lifting ball angled in towards his throat, which hegloved to wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock. Azam (22) had helped Asad Shafiqadd 58 for the four th wicket.Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed was bowled first ball. Seemingly expectinganother short-pitched delivery from Olivier, he was deep in his crease whenhe had his off stump knocked back by a fast, full delivery.With Vernon Philander gaining unpredictable bounce from a good length justoutside off stump, Shafiq advanced down the pitch and was caught at secondslip off a ball which seamed away from him.Shafiq had taken his overnight score of 48 to 65, made off 71 balls with 11fours. Faheem Ashraf and Mohammad Amir were both caught by Aiden

Markram at gully off Kagiso Rabada. Shadab Khan batted well to make 47 notout and received suppor t from Hasan Ali, who made a quick 22, andMohammad Abbas until Abbas was run out after a mix-up.

PAKISTAN'S BATSMAN SARFRAZ AHMED, SECOND RIGHT, BOWLED OUT FOR 0 BY SOUTH AFRICA'S BOWLERDUANNE OLIVIER, RIGHT, ON DAY FOUR OF THE THIRD CRICKET TEST MATCH BETWEEN SOUTH AFRICA ANDPAKISTAN AT WANDERERS STADIUM IN JOHANNESBURG.(AP)

Bhuvneshwar Kumar looksto perfect yorkers in Jasprit

Bumrah’s absence

Jasprit Bumrah is India’s resident yorker specialist butin his absence, the team management has entrusted thetask of firing in the toe-crushers on his new-ball partnerBhuvneshwar Kumar.Bhuvneshwar was seen bowling in the nets keeping ashoe at the base of the stumps in order to per fect hisyorker ahead of the second ODI against Australia hereTuesday. The UP seamer, who rarely bowls yorkers likeBumrah, is trying to add the delivery in his reper toire inorder to avoid getting hit in the slog overs. “The skills(required to bowl yorkers) are also different. I was prac-tising bowling yorkers at the shoes, and I was practis-ing for the end (slog) overs to take wickets or blocksome runs,” Bhuvneshwar told media persons here.“This (keeping shoes on the pitch) is something that Ihave been doing for some time,” he added. The seamersaid that he wasn’t practising yorkers as he wasn’t play-ing Test matches and also because the delivery is rarelyused in longest format.“I didn’t practice that for almost a month now because inTests, we hardly needed that. And I didn’t play a match.Going into an ODI or T20I series, you need that (yorker)thing. So I was practising that,” he said.The yorker becomes all the more necessary in the deathas blockhole deliveries or slower ones work with oldballs (two new balls being used in ODIs).

BCCI official questionsHarmanpreet in fake degree row

amidst Pandya-Rahul controversyA Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) official hashit out at the board’s double standards and said thatHardik Pandya and KL Rahul were suspended for mis-conduct but Harmanpreet Kaur continues to lead the In-dian women’s T20 team despite being involved in a fakedegree row.Earlier, in July last year, the graduation degree ofHarmanpreet was allegedly found to be fake in a vigi-lance inquiry conducted by the Chaudhary Charan SinghUniversity (CCSU), Meerut. The issue came to light whenan officer from Punjab Police contacted university au-thorities for verifying Harmanpreet’s testimonials.Pandya and Rahul were sent home from Australia pend-ing investigation, after they were caught in the eye of acontroversy following their appearance in popular TVshow Koffee With Karan. The BCCI official said that if theduo were stopped from playing for the country while aninquiry was going on, Harmanpreet continues to don theblue of India despite being investigated in the fake de-gree row. “If Pandya and Rahul have to serve a suspen-sion pending inquiry, then what about Harmanpreet Kaur?She is the captain of the Indian team at a time when sheis being investigated for possessing a fake graduationdegree. Someone wants to conveniently protect her butban these two cricketers for a year,“ a BCCI official wasquoted as saying by Times of India.“There is a legal process on, right? Then how is she thecaptain of the Indian (T20) team. She lost her DSP rankand is still fighting the case. Has the BCCI even triedfollowing up on what happened,” he added.

‘PAKISTAN IN AUSTRALIA &SOUTH AFRICA SINCE 19999TESTS: 23, WON: 1, LOST 22

0-3, AUS, 1999/000-2, SA, 2002/030-3, AUS, 2004/051-2, SA, 2006/070-3, AUS, 2009/100-3, SA, 2012/130-3, AUS, 2016/170-3, SA, 2018/19



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019 s p o r t s

Rishabh Pant is a 'champion player in themaking', says Indian Chief Selector MSK Prasad

Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul offerapology, BCCI members call

for SGM as CoA stands divided

Indian Chief Selector MSK Prasad has said that Rishabh Pant is achampion player in the making in Indian cricket. Pant who was apar tof the victorious Indian Test team who scripted history by winningtheir first ever Test series down under. Now, he has been rested fromthe T20I series against Australia and New Zealand. However, manyare seeing this as him being dropped from the Indian team in place ofMS Dhoni. Prasad has put all doubts to rest saying that Pant is verymuch in plans for World Cup 2019.In an interaction with PTI regarding Pant's case the Indian Cheif se-lector said that youngsters like Rishabh Pant should be utilized tact-fully ahead of the world cup and the left-hander having played a T20Isand Tests in Australia now needs some rest."Rishabh Pant played three T20s and four Test matches in Australiaand that had an impact on his body. He needed complete rest for twoweeks and then we will take a call on how many matches he will playagainst England Lions. Let me put it straight, he is very much in ourWorld Cup plans. He is a champion player in the making and even heis not fully aware the kind of potential he has,"Prasad is happy with the fact that Pant is handling himself well as acricketer and is understanding what the coach and the captain wantsfrom him."Ravi and Virat had advised him to put his head down and respect thematch situation and he did exactly that. He proved that he can switchgears seamlessly. When we picked him for Tests, exper ts were scep-

tical about his keeping but 11 catches in a Test in England, recorddismissals in Australia series proves that selection committee isvindicated" Prasad fur ther added.Meanwhile, the Indian team who are playing an ODI series againstAustralia in their last leg of the tour are trailing the series 0-1 afterlosing the first ODI in Sydney. The next two ODIs will be played onJanuary 15 and 18 in Adelaide and Melbourne respectively.

ICC TEST RANKINGS: INDIA REMAIN TOP,SOUTH AFRICA CLIMB TO 2ND SPOT

India have retained their number one spot in the updated ICCTest team rankings, released on Monday. South Africa haveleapfrogged England and New Zealand to claim the second spotin the latest ICC ranking for Test teams. On Monday, SouthAfrica defeated Pakistan in the Johannesburg Test by 107 runsto complete a 3-0 series whitewash.On the other hand, Pakistan have dropped a spot and are nowranked seventh behind Sri Lanka at sixth.The Proteas gained four points to reach 110 points – two more

than England who have slipped to third position. New Zealand,with 107 points are at the four th spot in the list led by India whoachieved a historic 2-1 Test series win in Australia earlier thismonth.Pakistan began the series with 92 points but are now on 88points, three points less than Sri Lanka.Just a single point separates England from New Zealand whichmeans they will have to beat West Indies in the upcomingWisden Trophy to remain ahead of the Black Caps.

Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul, suspended for their contro-versial comments during a TV chat show, tendered "un-conditional" apologies on Monday. Both cricketers are indanger of getting long bans or suspensions as BCCI istrying to decide how the inquiry into the latest contro-versy should be conducted.Dspite the apologies tendered by the duo, 10 BCCI unitsdemanded a Special General Meeting to appoint an om-budsman for carrying out an inquiry.The call came after an evident difference of opinion in theCommittee of Administrators (CoA) with regards to theaction to be taken in the inquiry against suspended Indiaplayers Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul. While CoA chiefVinod Rai has instructed the CEO to conduct an inquiry,Diana Edulji wants an inquiry done by CoA and the BCCIoffice-bearers.Brought back midway from the tour of Australia, Pandyaand Rahul's immediate fate hangs in balance with theWorld Cup less than four months away. Rai, in an e-mailto Edulji, said that the "BCCI is not in the business ofending young careers".Rai justified Johri initiating the probe, citing the BCCI con-stitution. Edulji feels Johri, because of past allegations ofsexual harassment against him, should not be entrustedwith the task.If the inquiry takes too long then they miss out on playingin IPL 2019 and even 2019 World Cup. BCCI has chargedboth players for misconduct and indiscipline and giventhem seven days to explain.Hardik Pandya has been heavily criticised on social me-dia for remarks that have been widely condemned assexist and inappropriate made on the show where heappeared with Rahul. Pandya had boasted about hookingup with multiple women and being open about it with hisparents during the interview. Rahul was, however, a shademore restrained in his responses. The comments sparkeda massive social media outrage with calling the remark'crass' and 'sexist'. It prompted the Indian cricket board toissue show cause notice to the duo.

Australian Open: Roger Federeraces first round with dominant

win against Denis IstominDefending champion Roger Federer served straightthrough Denis Istomin to win their first-round encounterat the Australian Open, securing a 6-3 6-4 6-4 victory onMonday evening.Istomin, of Uzbekistan, has twice reached the four th roundof a Grand Slam and proved to be a worthy combatantfrom the back-of-the-cour t, equipped by a heavy, aggres-sive baseline game.But the Swiss' mountainous serve proved too big an ob-stacle for his opponent to climb, which meant the titlecontender was rarely challenged on his own servicegames. Federer will now play British qualifier Dan Evans,ranked 189 in the world, in the second round.

WINNING ODI SERIES WILLMEAN A LOT, SAYS AUSSIEVICE-CAPTAIN ALEX CAREY

Australia vice-captain Alex Carey on Monday said that anODI series win against a top team like India "will mean a lot"considering the hosts' struggles over the last 12 months.The home took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series with a34-run win in Sydney, and the second ODI will be played inAdelaide on Tuesday.Pakistan were the last side to lose an ODI series to Austra-lia, 4-1 in January 2017, and thereafter after a tumultuous2018, wherein they won only 2 out of 18 ODIs, the hostshave started 2019 on a winning note."It would mean a lot, it has been a while. I want to seeAustralia win and being par t of it means so much to us everygame we play. But to continue to get better every game isprobably our biggest process at the moment leading intothat World Cup," said Carey."Against India, they're a really good side so they're going tolook to bounce back pretty quickly, so it's going to be a greatoppor tunity to stand up tomorrow night, to puff our chestsout again and hopefully put another really good per for-mance," he said.Carey insisted that Australia are not seeing the ongoing con-test as a revenge series after the loss in Tests against India."I think the performance the other night is a really good stepin the right direction. If you take a look at our batting perfor-mance, we all played well, we all played our role, and then withthe ball having them three down early was pretty early."But having to break that big partnership between MS Dhoni andRohit Sharma and get over the line was, as a player, was a reallyamazing feeling out there." Carey also talked about rollingthings into the World Cup and continuing the winning form.

Monstrous’ Messi scores 400th La Liga goal, sends Barcelona five points clearLionel Messi scored his 400th La Liga goal, a total his coach Ernesto Valverde called “monstrous”, as Barcelona terrorised Eibar toreclaim their five-point cushion at the top of the table.Messi drove the ball into the bottom corner after being teed up by Luis Suarez, who added two goals to his own tally either side of theArgentinian marking another historic record at the Camp Nou on Sunday.“It’s monstrous,” said Valverde, after the 3-0 victory. “It’s easy to say but you have to score them one af ter the other, it’s a long-termjob. “His numbers are stratospheric, incredible. He is from another galaxy.” Victory saw Valverde’s side restore their advantage overAtletico Madrid, who had briefly cut the gap to two points after beating Levante earlier in the day.“There is a lot of time lef t,” Valverde said. “It is a good cushion but nothing is done yet.” Real Madrid won too, beating Real Betis, toensure Spain’s big three all prevailed in the same round for only the four th time this season. Real remain 10 points adrift of Barcelona.Messi, meanwhile, extends his own hef ty lead as the division’s all-time top scorer, which currently stands at 89 goals, ahead ofCristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo, now at Juventus in Italy, owns a better goals-to-game ratio, with his 311 strikes coming in 292 matches.Messi’s quadruple century arrived in his 435th. In fact, it was one of Messi’s quieter nights in terms of per formance and in anotherteam it might have been Suarez or Philippe Coutinho picking up the plaudits.

AUSTRALIA'S PLAYERS GET TOGETHER TO CELEBRATE A WICKET.



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