A policeman was killed after a suicide bomber blew himself up in Islamabad, Police in Pakistan’s capital said on Friday. At least six people including four policemen and two civilians were also injured in the incident that took place in Islamabad’s I-10 sector, Islamabad Police said in a statement.
In a tweet, the police said that they were conducting checking of vehicles and when they signalled a suspicious vehicle to stop. “A suicide bomber aboard the vehicle detonated himself soon after the car stopped near the officers,” Islamabad Police said.
In the tweet, the police further said that citing initial reports one policeman, identified as Head Constable Adeel Hussain, was killed in the incident. “Police officers have reached the spot along with a heavy contingent. More details will be communicated,” the police said in a statement.
Earlier, Dawn reported that television footage showed fiery wreckage of a vehicle — supposedly the source of the explosion — with a large number of police personnel at the scene was seen. The broadcaster said the vehicle went off as police flagged it for checking.
A day ago, Islamabad police issued a statement, saying its Eagle Squad had checked 2,024 suspicious persons, motorcycles, and vehicles as part of a security measure, especially in the aftermath of the new wave of terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
“It will be ensured that no incident of law and order or terrorism takes place in the city. Citizens are requested to cooperate with the police and inform about suspected people,” a police spokesperson had said.
India, Bangladesh, Taijul Islam, Cricket| Image: ANI
Taijul Islam struck thrice in the first session of the second day to reduce India to 86/3 at lunch in the second test here at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka. The left-arm spinner dismissed KL Rahul, Shubhman Gill, and Cheteshwar Pujara to hand the advantage to the hosts.
Resuming their innings at 19/0, Shubman Gill (14*) and KL Rahul (3*) were extremely conservative in the morning.
Both batters found run-scoring difficult as the Bangladeshi bowlers were brilliant with their lines and lengths on a difficult pitch that aided the bowlers.
The bowlers kept probing and finally got rid of stand-in captain KL Rahul in the 14th over.
Taijul found the right-hander in front of the wicket and ended the batter’s scratchy stay at the crease for just 10 runs. Gill also followed his captain to the pavilion, getting dismissed in a similar fashion for 20 runs.
Virat Kohli and Pujara then steadied the innings and were looking confident against the Bangladeshi bowlers.
But then Taijul struck for the third time to dismiss Pujara for 24 runs.
The wicket reduced India to 72/3.
The batter reached the tally of 7000 runs in test cricket overtaking Bradman’s 6996 run count en route to his 24-run knock.
Rishabh Pant played his shots from the moment he set foot on the crease while Virat made sure that India walked into lunch with no further hiccups.
The spinners produced some tidy overs in tandem and restrained scoring as Taijul emerged as the session’s top bowler by taking all three wickets.
Virat was unbeaten on 18 runs while Pant made 14 before the umpires called the lunch break, with India at 86/3.
Earlier, Ravichandran Ashwin and Umesh Yadav’s four-wicket hauls helped India bundle out Bangladesh at 227 on Day 1 of the ongoing second Test match at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka on Thursday.
Bangladesh were bowled out for 227 as Ashwin and Umesh starred for India with 4 wickets each and Unadkat got two wickets.
Bad light forced early stumps, India’s score at 19/0 with Shubman Gill (14*) and KL Rahul (3*) standing unbeaten at the crease.
Brief Scores: Bangladesh 184/5 (Mominul Haque 84, Mushfiqur Rahim 26; Umesh Yadav 4-25) vs India 86/3 (Cheteshwar Pujara 24, Shubhman Gill 20; Taijul Islam 3-24)
BJP MPs from Bihar on Friday held a protest in the Parliament complex demanding compensation for the families of those killed in the hooch tragedy in the state and the resignation of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
The Bihar government has confirmed 38 deaths in the Saran hooch tragedy. However, the figure has been contested by the BJP which has claimed that more than 100 people have died.
“We have been protesting to demand compensation for families of those killed in the hooch tragedy. It is the moral duty of the state government to give them compensation,” BJP leader Sushil Modi told reporters here.
Kumar has “failed” to implement the liquor ban in Bihar, the BJP leader said. “Liquor ban policy in Bihar has been a complete failure,” he said alleging that there is a nexus between the police and liquor mafia in the state.
Echoing similar sentiments, BJP MP Ram Kripal Yadav said, “Nitish Kumar should resign on moral grounds. He has failed as chief minister.”
BJP MPs Vivek Thakur, Radha Mohan Singh, Sushil Singh, Ashok Yadav and Gopalji Thakur were among those who took part in the protest in front of the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament complex.
Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara on Friday reached a monumental landmark as he went past legend Don Bradman’s tally of test runs while playing against Bangladesh in the first inning of the second test here at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka.
The reliable batter reached the tally of 7000 runs in test cricket overtaking Bradman’s 6996 run count while batting on Day 2 of the ongoing second test against Bangladesh.
Pujara swept Shakib Al Hasan in the 19th over of the day for three runs and reached the milestone of 7000 test runs.
The right-handed batsman became the eighth Indian to reach the 7000-run mark in test cricket.
Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sunil Gavaskar, VVS Laxman, Virat Kohli, Sourav Ganguly and Virender Sehwag are the other batters who have achieved this milestone.
He had scored a century(102*) in the second inning of the first test match, helping India set a massive target for the hosts.
Sachin Tendulkar is the leading run scorer in test cricket with 15921 runs from 329 innings.
Earlier, Ravichandran Ashwin and Umesh Yadav’s four-wicket hauls helped India bundle out Bangladesh at 227 and get the upper hand on Day 1 of the ongoing second Test match at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka on Thursday.
Bangladesh were bowled out for 227 as Ashwin and Umesh starred for India with 4 wickets each and Unadkat yielded two wickets. Bad light forced early stumps, India’s score at 19/0 with Shubman Gill (14*) and KL Rahul (3*) standing unbeaten at the crease.
The visitors are trailing by 208 runs at the end of the first day. Before Stumps, Bangladesh was bowled out for 227. Trailing by 227, India’s Shubman Gill and KL Rahul opened the innings for the Men in Blue, playing with a good mix of aggression coupled with caution.
In the eighth over of India’s first innings, KL Rahul took a sigh of relief as he survived an LBW appeal made against him. Shakib Al Hasan’s delivery struck him on the pads, to which the on-field umpire signalled out. However, the decision got overturned after the DRS review.
The Bombay High Court on Friday granted bail to suspended Assistant Police Inspector Riyazuddin Kazi who is currently lodged in jail in connection with the Antilia bomb scare case and businessman Mansukh Hiran’s death case in 2021.
Sacked policeman Riyazuddin filed a petition for bail in the Bombay High Court, on which the court has given its decision today, granting him bail for rupees 25,000. Kazi has to surrender his passport as part of the bail condition.
Riyazuddin Kazi was arrested for his alleged role in the discovery of explosives in a vehicle near the residence of industrialist Mukesh Ambani and the destruction of evidence in connivance with Sachin Waze in the murder of Mansukh Hiren.
Kazi, like other accused policemen in the case, was dismissed from service after the NIA arrested him.
However, like the other accused, he is not charged under the stringent UAPA, but under Section 120b (Conspiracy) 201 (Causing disappearance of evidence).
India logged 163 new coronavirus infections, while the active cases declined to 3,380, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Friday.
The Covid case tally was recorded at 4.46 crore (4,46,76,678). The death toll stands at 5,30,690 with nine fatalities.
While six deaths were reconciled by Kerala, two deaths were reported from Maharashtra and one from Delhi in the last 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am stated.
The active cases comprise 0.01 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has increased to 98.80 per cent, the ministry said.
A decrease of 22 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,41,42,608, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent.
According to the ministry’s website, 220.03 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive. India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.
It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.
The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year. It had crossed the four-crore mark on January 25 this year.
Bridegroom Morcha, Solapur,Maharashtra | Image: ANI
About 50 bachelors, wearing ‘Sehras’ (wedding crowns), took out a procession with drums and horses to the Collector’s office in Solapur, demanding implementation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act. The procession was taken out by a local social group named ‘Jyoti Kranti Parishad’ on Wednesday.
The bachelors took out the 2-km procession to the Solapur collector office on horseback to drumbeats. The president of Jyoti Kranti Parishad, Ramesh Baraskar, said the procession was named ‘Bridegroom Morcha’ to highlight the sex ratio imbalance in Maharashtra.
“The present situation of eligible bachelors not getting brides is also because of the skewed male-female ratio. Had there been a proper implementation of the PCPNDT Act, the situation would have been better,” Banakar said.
He also urged the government to take steps to improve the situation.
“The situation is so bad that many parents and bachelors are going into depression for being unable to find suitable brides. So, to highlight this issue, we took out this procession. We want the government to take some steps towards balancing the sex ratio,” he added.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said in the Assembly the Opposition has “fallen flat on its face” in the Nagpur land allotment case after the Bombay High Court observed it had taken view of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde withdrawing a 2021 regularisation order linked to the episode, and closed the issue.
Fadnavis, who also holds the Home portfolio, maintained there was no “scam” in the land allotment matter as alleged by the Opposition, which has been demanding Shinde’s resignation.
On December 14, the Nagpur bench of the High Court ordered status quo on a decision taken by Shinde, when he was a minister in the previous Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, allotting land meant for slum-dwellers to private persons.
On Tuesday (December 20), Shinde said as the urban development minister in 2021, he had passed an order in which he did not recommend reducing or decreasing the rate of land in question, but noted that charges should be applied for the plot as per government rules.
The CM had said when it was brought to his notice that the land allotment matter was pending in the court, he cancelled his earlier order, dated April 20, 2021, on December 16, 2022. Chief Minister Shinde holds the urban development portfolio now also.
“Considering the fact that now the order of regularisation has been withdrawn by the Chief Minister as per his order dated 16-12-2022, we are of the view that the purpose of the order dated 14-12-2022 passed by this Court has been served and now this issue is close,” the HC observed on Thursday.
The court also observed that as regards to the issue of regularisation, the state government would be at liberty to decide the same in accordance with law depending upon the final outcome of the petition (related to the Nagpur land allotment case).
In the Assembly, with Shinde by his side Fadnavis welcomed the observations of the High Court and said “castles were being built in air” by the Opposition that there is a scam in the case.
“Yesterday, the Leader of the Opposition had raised an objection against the Chief Minister in this house (Assembly). However, the HC has issued an order today. The Opposition has fallen flat and all the allegations levelled by them have turned out to be false and the High Court has also accepted the Chief Minister’s decision,” the deputy CM said.
The court’s order to maintain status quo on December 14 had given ammunition to the Opposition, particularly the Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena, which was seeking Shinde’s resignation and dubbing the allotment as a “scam”.
The court, in its order passed on December 14, noted that the court since 2004 has been monitoring land allotments made by the Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT), which comes under the urban development department, to politicians and other influential individuals. This was after a petition was filed alleging the NIT gave away land to politicians and others at meagre rates.
On December 14, the bench was informed by amicus curie (appointed by court to assist) advocate Anand Parchure that Shinde, during his tenure as the urban development minister, directed the NIT to give away land acquired for housing slum-dwellers to 16 private persons.
“If any such order as claimed is really passed then we would direct the authorities to maintain status quo till the next date,” the court had said.
Senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Jayant Patil was suspended from the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on Thursday for the rest of the winter session for his alleged derogatory remark against Speaker Rahul Narvekar.
Patil made the remark against Narvekar that triggered uproar in the House.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandrakant Patil moved the suspension motion against Jayant Patil, who is the NCP’s state unit chief. The motion was passed by a voice vote.
Jayant Patil has been a member of the House for over three decades.
The session of the state legislature, which began on Monday, will continue till December 30.
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Thursday came down heavily on Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray faction) leader Sanjay Raut and called him a traitor.
The Chief Minister’s outburst was against Raut’s statement that he will enter Karnataka like China entered India.
He also warned legal action against Raut for his provocative statement.
Amid the simmering border dispute between Maharashtra and Karnataka, Raut on Wednesday stoked a controversy, saying they will enter the neighbouring southern state the way China has “invaded” Indian territory.
“The way China has invaded (Indian territory), we will do the same in Karnataka. We do not need anyone’s permission to do so,” Raut told reporters in Delhi.
“I will call him China Agent. Sanjay Raut is a China agent. He is a traitor. Sanjay Raut is a Desha Drohi. In this federal system if someone says he will illegally enter another state means this is an attempt to destroy the federal system, unity and integrity of this country,” Bommai said in the Karnataka Assembly as he moved a resolution condemning the border dispute.
The resolution was passed unanimously with a voice-vote.
“What to call that person other than traitor? Talking so cheap may be his way but we will not entertain him. He does not have even a value of a ‘Kaudi’ (Kaudi of Cowri is a sea shell money, which existed in the ancient India and even during pre-independence era. It was way less than a Paisa). If he keeps talking like this then we will initiate legal action against him,” Bommai said.
The Chief Minister said, “If you come like China then we will retaliate like Indian soldiers.”
Earlier, speaking to reporters, Bommai said everyone knows what importance should be given to Raut, who is known for giving provocative statements.
To a query on some opposition members statement in Maharashtra regarding the sharing of water to the state, the Chief Minister said India is a federal country and water does not belong to one state alone when it flows into three to four states.
There are interstate water dispute Act, water tribunals and Supreme Court judgements, he added.
“I am telling them to restrain from such statements,” Bommai cautioned.
“These kind of arrogant statements will not serve any purpose. They have given them for political gain. None of them could ever be implemented. There are always relations between one state and another. Already the border dispute is in the Supreme Court. If they have strength, let them fight there,” the Chief Minister said.
Bommai expressed confidence in winning the case in the Supreme Court as the state’s case is very strong constitutionally.
