There is a marked rise in notifications of new leprosy cases in Mumbai this year, a jump that appears to be caused by the normalizing of screening and health systems hit by the pandemic.
Worryingly, the proportion of advanced multibacillary leprosy has increased in the new detections.
Civic data shows that between April and August, the city has recorded 236 cases already, which is almost 70% of the total cases (335) detected in the entire 2021-2022.
A Varanasi Court on Monday dismissed a plea of Anjuman Islamia Masjid committee challenging the maintainability of the suit filed by five Hindu women seeking worshipping rights in the Gyanvapi mosque compound. District Judge AK Vishvesh delivered the verdict in the Gyanvapi Shrinagar Gauri dispute case and posted the matter to further hearing on September 22.
“The court rejected the Muslim side’s petition and said the suit is maintainable. The next hearing of the case is on September 22,” said Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, representing the Hindu side in the Gyanvapi mosque case.
“It’s a win for the Hindu community. The next hearing is on Sep 22. It’s a foundation stone for the Gyanvapi temple. Appeal to people to maintain peace,” said Sohan Lal Arya, petitioner in the Gyanvapi case. Earlier, the Hindu side had said that they will seek for Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey and carbon dating of ‘Shivling’ if the judgment comes in their favour.
Speaking to media, Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, representing the Hindu side said, “Today the court will deliver its judgment on the maintainability of the suit. 1991 Worship Act applies in our favour. If judgment comes in our favour, then we will seek for ASI survey, carbon dating of Shivling.”
Another lawyer, representing the Hindu side, Sohan Lal Arya said that the verdict will prove to be the first day of planting the foundation stone of Kashi Vishwanath.
“Moreover, this day is going to be a very happy day for the Hindu community of the world. Court will give its verdict from 2:00 pm and we have offered prayers for the ‘darshan’ of Lord Shiva in the morning. After the verdict, we will have ‘darshan’. After the verdict comes in our favour, the people of Kashi celebrate by ringing bells and clapping. The people of Kashi will work to awaken the Hindu society,” said Sohan Lal Arya.
The petition was filed by five women seeking permission for daily worship of Hindu deities whose idols are said to be located on an outer wall of the Gyanvapi mosque, which is located close to Kashi Vishwanath temple. Following this, a Varanasi court ordered the survey of the mosque complex. Following this, a local Varanasi court ordered a videography survey of the complex in May.
The survey work was completed on May 16 and the report was presented in the court on May 19. After the videography survey claims were made by the Hindu side that a structure, resembling a Shivling was found in the mosque complex but the Masjid committee contested that it was a fountain and not a Shivling.
“Several sculptures of gods and goddesses alongwith other structures related to Hindu belief were seen in the Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi,” said advocate Ajay Kumar Mishra, who was appointed commissioner by Varanasi court to survey the Gyanvapi-Gauri Shringar complex but was later removed for leaking the information.
The report by Mishra also mentioned that the three-four sculptures with Sindoor marks and ‘Choukhat’ like stone slab are believed to be ‘Sringar Gouri’. However, the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee has said the Gyanvapi mosque is a Waqf property and has questioned the maintainability of the plea.
Madan Mohan Yadav, a lawyer of the Hindu side, had claimed that the mosque was constructed after demolishing the temple. According to the petitioners, a self-styled Jyotirling of Lord Vishwanath in Kashi is in the mosque complex.
The petitioner also claimed that in 1669, Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb had destroyed a portion of the Kashi Vishwanath temple and had built the Gyanvapi Mosque.
The petitioner wants the court to declare that Muslims have no right to occupy the Gyanvapi mosque and their entry to be banned. Meanwhile, the defence lawyer said that there was no temple in the Gyanvapi complex and the mosque is standing on the site from the beginning.
Notably, the Supreme Court on July 21 said that it will await the Varanasi district judge’s decision on the Gyanvapi mosque committee’s application. The SC bench then posted the matter for further hearing in the first week of October after the outcome of the proceedings before the district judge.
The Supreme Court on May 20 transferred the case from a civil judge (senior division) to a district judge, saying considering the “complexities and sensitivity” of the issue, it is better if a senior judicial officer having an experience of over 25-30 years handles this case.
The bench also said that no manner of restriction should be imposed on Muslims entering the mosque to offer namaz or religious observances. The top court had made the observation that the process to ascertain the religious character of a place of worship is not barred under the Places of Worship Act of 1991.
SC judgement came after the commission appointed by a district court to conduct a video surgery of the Gyanvapi Mosque complex submitted its report on May 19.
The top court had ordered that its interim order passed on May 17 — to protect the area where the Shivling was found and access to Muslims for namaz — shall continue in operation till the maintainability of the suit is decided and thereafter for eight weeks to enable parties to pursue legal remedies.
It had said that District Judge should decide the maintainability of the civil suit in the Gyanvapi-Kashi Vishwanath on priority as sought by Committee of Management Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Varanasi.
The matter had reached the Supreme Court on a petition filed by the Mosque Management Committee, which challenged the civil judge’s order of filming inside the mosque.
The order permitted inspection, survey, and videography of the mosque’s complex to collect evidence about the alleged existence of idols of Hindu deities inside the mosque, which is adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple.
The petitioners said the filming goes against the Places of Worship Act of 1991, which maintains the religious status of any place of worship as of August 15, 1947.
However, after the survey, the lawyers representing the Hindu side claimed that a shivling was found at the mosque premises.
They filed an application for the protection of the shivling, whereupon the civil judge directed the district magistrate, Varanasi, to seal the area where the shivling was sighted. It also directed the deployment of the CRPF to protect the sealed area and prohibited people from entering it.
Simmering tensions between the Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde factions came to the fore on the final day of the Ganesh festival.
As loyalists of the two parties participated in different processions, taking idols for immersion, they ran into each other on the road and began shouting slogans against each other.
The presence of a strong police force ensured the matter did not get out of hand.
Superstar Rajinikanth’s younger daughter Soundarya Rajinikanth and her husband Vishagan Vanangamudi have been blessed with a baby boy. On Sunday, Soundarya announced on social media. Taking to her Twitter handle, Soundarya Rajinikanth shared the news along with pictures.
Sharing the series of pictures, she wrote “With gods abundant grace and our parents blessings. Vishagan,Ved and I are thrilled to welcome Ved’s little brother. VEER RAJINIKANTH VANANGAMUDI today 11/9/22 #Veer #Blessed. thank you to our amazing doctors @sumana_manohar Dr.Srividya Seshadri @SeshadriSuresh3.”
With gods abundant grace and our parents blessings ???Vishagan,Ved and I are thrilled to welcome Ved’s little brother ??? VEER RAJINIKANTH VANANGAMUDI today 11/9/22 #Veer #Blessed ??thank you to our amazing doctors @sumana_manohar Dr.Srividya Seshadri @SeshadriSuresh3 ?? pic.twitter.com/a8tXbqmTxf
— soundarya rajnikanth (@soundaryaarajni) September 11, 2022
Rajinikanth’s daughter Soundarya, her husband Vishagan Vanangamudi welcome baby boy
This is Soundarya and Vishagan’s second marriage.
Rajinikanth’s younger daughter was earlier married to businessman R Ashwin, with whom she has a son Ved. On the work front, the ‘Lingaa’ actor has teamed up with filmmaker Nelson Dilipkumar for this project.
The upcoming movie also includes stars like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Ramya Krishnan, Priyanka Arul Mohan, and Shiva Rajkumar. Meanwhile, Rajinikanth was last seen in ‘Annaatthe’, directed by Siva, which was released to mixed reviews for Diwali in 2021
Actor Olivia Colman, who played Queen Elizabeth II for two seasons of Netflix’s hit royal series ‘The Crown,’ is still processing the death and legacy of the British monarch.
On Thursday, the day before the Toronto International Film Festival opened, the queen’s passing was announced.
“I wouldn’t know where to begin with that,” she told Variety at the Variety Studio presented by King’s Hawaiian at the Toronto International Film Festival. “She made a promise as a young woman and she absolutely kept it with such dignity. We’re all incredibly impressed by what she did.”
According to Variety, Colman, who was in Canada to promote Sam Mendes’ romance film ‘Empire of Light,’ also lauded the monarch’s inaugural speech in which he praised his mother and promised to serve with “loyalty, respect, and love”.
“From a British point of view, he did it so beautifully,” Colman said, in reference to the King’s televised address to the nation. “He did it about love, tolerance and gentleness, and that is what she always wanted and she’s done.” She continued, “From the outside world looking at Great Britain, at the moment, we’ve got some comedy going on at one side — politics — and something so dignified. I felt proud to be British. I think he’s going to do a good job.” Colman is anxious to hand the sceptre to Imelda Staunton, another great British actress. Did she give the “Vera Drake” actress any advice? “No! Who gives Imelda Staunton advice? She will be incredible,” Colman said with a laugh. “I can’t wait to watch her.” ‘The Crown’ production is paused briefly after Queen Elizabeth’s death.
‘Don’t Worry Darling’ star Harry Styles was soft-spoken while accepting an award for one of his first major movie roles at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival.
According to Variety, Styles, a man of relatively few words, and the cast of ‘My Policeman’ received the ensemble award at the festival’s Tribute Awards on Sunday night. “Thank you so much to everyone here, on behalf of all of us, for this wonderful, wonderful award,” said Styles, who stars in the romantic drama as a closeted police officer. “We all loved working on this film so much. And we hope you enjoy it.” Styles then hastily exited the Fairmont Royal York, where the annual gala is held while carrying the train of his co-star Emma Corin’s long, black dress.
However, there were enough other A-listers to make the three-hour party lively. Even though the festival is still going on, Toronto conducted its fourth annual tribute awards, honouring stars including Michelle Yeoh, Sam Mendes, Brendan Fraser, and Oscar-winning composer Hildur Gunadottir of ‘Joker,’ ‘Women Talking,’ and ‘Tar.’ Buffy Sainte-Marie, an Oscar-winning composer who received another award that evening, remarked about the need of casting Indigenous people in Indigenous roles. Sainte-Marie declared, “It’s more significant than just fooling white people.” “These individuals will see your movies with their complete civilizations present. Could “The Sopranos” have been cast without Italians?
Fraser then reconnected with Yeoh, his co-star from ‘The Mummy 3,’ while Colman and Mendes presided over a table near the front of the room as fans approached them to express their admiration for their work.
With the passing away of Queen Elizabeth II, people across the world have expressed grief. Many political leaders, diplomats, actors, and famous personalities have mourned the loss of the longest-serving UK Monarch.
Many celebrities had the opportunity to meet the Queen on various occasions at the Palace or during public gatherings.
But did you know that the Queen had once visited the sets of an Indian film? South Megastar Kamal Haasan recently spoke to ANI and revealed that the Queen had attended the launch of the ‘Marudhanaygam’ film at MGR Film City on October 16, 1997.
He added that the Queen had spent 20 minutes on the ‘Marudhanaygam’ film set during which the then Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi had also joined her. He said, “I was pained to learn of the demise of Queen Elizabeth II, who had been Queen of England for seventy years. She was someone who had earned the love of not just the English people but people from all over the world. Queen Elizabeth 2 came to our film Marudhanayagam set to show that no colonialism is still there. In fact, the ‘Marudhanayagam’ film which I shot and the dialogues were against them (British).”
He continued, “Twenty-five years ago, she accepted our invitation to attend the inaugural function of the ‘Marudhanayagam’ film. She graced the occasion and felicitated us.”
Kamal Haasan also revealed that he met the Queen again during a cultural event in London.
A 58-year-old self-styled godman was arrested on Sunday for allegedly raping a woman from the time she was a minor, a Mumbai police official said.
The family of the victim had come in contact with Suresh Kumar Ravindra Narayan Awasthi after being told about his “divine” powers by some acquaintances, the Versova police station official said.
“On the pretext of rituals, he raped the victim several times since 2019 (when she was a minor), clicked objectionable photographs of her and continued to sexually attack her by threatening to upload these pictures on the internet,” he said.
After she recently told her parents about her ordeal, the family approached police. he said. Awasthi, an information technology professional, was arrested on Sunday for rape and other offences under Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act provisions, the official said.
More than 5,000 teachers from government schools across Maharashtra gathered in Aurangabad on Sunday to protest against the state government for giving them many non-academic tasks to complete.
Navnath Gend, who heads the primary teachers’ wing of the Shikshak Bharati, a state-wide teachers’ organisation that played an instrumental role in the protest said “We should be focusing on helping children cope with pandemic-induced academic loss instead of non-academic responsibilities forced on to us by the government. Our leaders — MLCs from teachers’ constituencies — are going to present our issues to the Chief Minister and the education minister. Along with our concerns and suggestions, our request to focus on academic tasks will be conveyed to the government. But if this does not resolve the issue, we will continue protests across Maharashtra,” he added.
Six girls escaped from the Government Girls Hostel located in the Govandi area of Mumbai by breaking the window and grill of the toilet.
Shockingly, before fleeing, these girls locked the gate of the constable’s room from the outside so that the constable could not follow them.
All these six girls are minors. The police have been able to identify all the girls. Local Police are investigating further in this matter.
Further information on the matter is awaited.
