Smriti Mandhana’s fifty helps to India wins against Pakistan in CWG 2022

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July 31, 2022

An aggressive half-century from opener Smriti Mandhana powered India to an eight-wicket win over Pakistan in their second T20I match at the ongoing cricket tournament in Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham on Sunday.

With this victory, India is on the way and in the hunt to claim another medal in CWG 2022. They crushed the Pakistan bowling lineup with amazing spells from Sneh Rana (2/15) and Radha Yadav (2/18) and bundled them out for just 99. India finished off the match easily with Mandhana leading from the front with her fifty.

Chasing 100 runs, the opening duo of Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma put India to an explosive start. Pakistan bowlers had no answers for this duo, which only deals in boundaries.

They brought up their 50-run stand in just 29 balls. Spinner Tuba Hassan gave Pakistan the breakthrough they wanted, dismissing Verma for 16 off 9 balls after she was caught by Muneeba Ali while playing a late cut.

Sabbhineni Meghana was the next batter on the crease. Mandhana was on a roll. She struck the ball well and brought up her fifty in just 31 balls. The duo of Meghana and Mandhana kept going before the former was dismissed for 14 off six balls by Omaima Sohail. Jemimah Rodrigues was next up on the crease.

India won the match, finishing at 102/2 in 11.4 overs with Mandhana (63*) and Rodrigues (2*). Sohail and Hassan took a wicket each for Pakistan.

Earlier, Sneh Rana’s fiery spell and tight bowling performance by the Indian team helped them bundle out Pakistan for 99 in the 18 overs of the rain-curtailed match of the ongoing Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham on Sunday.

For India, Sneh Rana and Radha Yadav bagged two wickets each. For Pakistan, Muneeba Ali (32) was the top scorer for them. Opting to bat first, Pakistan’s women’s team got off to the bad start as they lost their opener Iram Javed who was dismissed by Meghna Singh after scoring zero runs.

Captain Bismah Maroof then came out to bat and started smashing Indian bowlers all around the ground but her stint was cut short by Sneh Rana, scoring just 17 runs in 19 runs. Rana who was in red-hot form gave another blow to the Pakistan team as she dismissed opener, Muneeba Ali. In the 10 over of the innings, Pakistan batters tried to open hands and play aggressive shots.

Women in Blue bind Pakistan batters in all ways and restricted them to play big shots. Omaima Sohail and Aliya Riaz played some good shots to keep the momentum going in the favour of their team.

In the 15th over of the innings, Women in Green lost another wicket as Omaima Sohail was sent back to the pavilion after scoring 10 runs in 13 balls. Sohail’s wicket invited Fatima Sana to the crease. Aliya Riaz played some attacking shots and smashed two fours in the over of Deepti Sharma.

Riaz was later departed as she was run out by Meghna Singh after scoring 18 runs in 22 deliveries. In the last over Pakistani batters could only manage to score just 99 runs.

The all-around performance by Women in Blue bundled out Pakistan for 99 runs in 18 overs of the rain-curtailed match. Brief score: Pakistan 99 (Muneeba Ali 32, Aliya Riaz 18; Sneh Rana 2-15) vs India.

WB SSC scam accused the minister and Arpita were taken to ED office after medical checkup

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ANI

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July 31, 2022

West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC) scam accused Partha Chatterjee and Arpita Mukherjee were taken to the office of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after their medical check up at the ESI hospital in Kolkata.

Earlier in the day, Chatterjee had denied his involvement in the School Service Commission (SSC) scam and asserted that the “money does not belong to him.”

He was brought to ESI hospital for a medical examination on Sunday afternoon. “When the time comes, you will know…the money does not belong to me,” he said to media persons today upon being asked about who is behind this conspiracy.

Arrested Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee – who is now suspended from the Trinamool Congress – and his aide Arpita Mukherjee have separately been claiming that they are a “victim of a conspiracy.”

“Partha Chatterjee has been removed from TMC along with the post of General Secretary, National vice president and three other posts. He has been suspended till the investigation is underway,” Abhishek Banerjee said.

Trinamool Congress, which had been distancing itself from its arrested leader Partha Chatterjee, axed him as a minister on Thursday and suspended him from the party leaving it to him to defend himself in the Enforcement Directorate probe in the teacher recruitment scam in which crores of rupees have been seized from residences linked to his aide Arpita Mukherjee.

Trinamool Congress’ decision to part ways with one of its most senior leaders was announced by party leader Abhishek Banerjee at a press conference in which he said “if anyone commits something wrong then Trinamool Congress will not spare him” and ‘there will be zero tolerance for corruption”.

He said Partha Chatterjee will remain suspended till probe is underway. Partha Chatterjee was considered one of the most trusted lieutenants of the Chief Minister, a “go-to” man and was regarded third in party hierarchy after the chief Minister and her nephew Abhishek Banerjee.

After his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate, in connection with the School Service Commission (SSC) scam in West Bengal, Chatterjee had reportedly called Mamata Banerjee four times, which she allegedly did not pick.

Abhishek Banerjee has told the media that Chatterjee has been removed from TMC along with the post of general secretary, national vice president and three other posts. “He has been suspended till the investigation is underway.

He can come back if proven not guilty. CM took the decision and the (Partha Chatterjee) minister was removed.

The probe into the matter is underway. If anyone commits something wrong then TMC won’t spare him,” he said adding that the investigating agency must complete the probe in a time-bound manner. “There will be zero tolerance for corruption.

Investigating agency must complete the probe within the time limit. Even in Sarada case nothing happened, it’s just lingering.

There should be a time-bound investigation,” he said. “The one (Arpita Mukherjee) from whose house sums of money were recovered isn’t from TMC. We want stringent action against those who are linked to this matter. I am saying this in a hypothetical way that if Partha Chatterjee goes to BJP after two months then he will become a saint. Since he is in TMC, all of these things are happening,” he added.

The arrest of Partha Chatterjee followed Rs 21 crore in cash and jewellery worth above Rs 1 crore being recovered from the Kolkata residence of Arpita Mukherjee, a close aide of the former education minister.

The ED unearthed many disproportionate assets allegedly of Partha Chatterjee since his arrest, of which were three flats in West Bengal’s Diamond City.

The ED raided Arpita Mukherjee’s house in connection with an alleged teacher recruitment scam in West Bengal. “The said amount is suspected to be proceeds of crime of the said SSC scam,” the probe agency had said in a statement.

A five-time MLA, Chatterjee was appointed as the minister-in-charge of higher education and school education in 2014 and he held the portfolio till 2021.

CWG 2022: Nikhat Zareen into the QF in womens boxing light flyweight category

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ANI

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July 31, 2022

Reigning world champion Nikhat Zareen advanced into the quarter-finals of the women’s light flyweight 50kg category at the ongoing Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham on Sunday.

In her bout at the CWG, the in-form Nikhat Zareen, who won the world championships and Strandja memorial gold earlier this year, outclassed Mozambique’s Helena Ismael Bagao at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Solihull to prevail by RSC (referee stops contest).

Nikhat Zareen will face Welsh boxer Helen Jones in the Birmingham 2022 boxing quarter-finals. With Bagao trying to catch Nikhat Zareen out early, the Indian capitalised on the openings and gave a flurry of right hooks on her opponent. Swift footwork also allowed the Indian boxer to stay out of the Bagao’s reach.

Zareen completed the first round with a series of 1-2 punches and appeared firmly in possession of her bout. It was a matter of match management for the Indians in the third and final round and Zareen steered through with comfort.

Such was the Indian’s sovereignty that the referee stopped the bout with 40 seconds left and handed Zareen a triumph.

Won’t bow down, will get arrested: Sena MP Sanjay Raut outside ED office

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PTI

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July 31, 2022

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday said he won’t bow down and quit the party, shortly before being herded into the south Mumbai office of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) whose team conducted a search at his residence in connection with a money laundering case.

“They (ED) are going to arrest me. I am going to be arrested,” Raut told reporters outside the ED office after he was brought there from his Bhandup residence here.

“Zukega nahi (won’t bow down,” Raut said, putting up a brave front. The ED action follows multiple summons issued by the agency against Raut, the latest being on July 27. Raut was summoned for questioning by the ED in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the re-development of a Mumbai ‘chawl’ and related transactions involving his wife and ‘associates’.

Sanjay Raut also stated in a tweet stated “I wont be leaving ShivSena and mostly it is false allegations and investigation which is taken place”.

खोटी कारवाई..
खोटे पुरावे
मी शिवसेना सोडणार नाही..
मरेन पण शरण जाणार नाही
जय महाराष्ट्र
— Sanjay Raut (@rautsanjay61) July 31, 2022

At 7 am on Sunday, ED officials, accompanied by CRPF personnel, reached Raut’s residence and began the searches. Shortly after 5 pm, he was brought to the ED office. The Rajya Sabha MP, who is in the Uddhav Thackeray camp, had denied any wrongdoing and alleged that he was being targeted due to political vendetta.

कोणत्याही घोटाळ्याशी माझा काडीमात्र संबंध नाही.
शिवसेना प्रमुख बाळासाहेब ठाकरे यांची शपथ घेऊन मी हे सांगत आहे..बाळासाहेबांनी आम्हाला लढायला शिकवलंय..
मी शिवसेनेसाठी लढत राहीन.
— Sanjay Raut (@rautsanjay61) July 31, 2022

“I swear by late Balasabheb Thackeray that I have nothing to do with any scam,” Raut tweeted shortly after the ED action. “I will die but won’t leave Shiv Sena,” Raut added.

CWG22 : Weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga captures gold for India with record

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ANI

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July 31, 2022

Indian weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga created history by capturing a gold medal with a record-breaking combined lift of 300 kg in men’s 67 kg final at the ongoing Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham on Sunday.

With this, he won the country its fifth medal at CWG 2022 and second gold medal at the event. He had achieved a record-breaking 140 kg lift in the snatch category and 160 kg in the Clean and Jerk category, which combined to give him a lift of 300 kg, a record at the Commonwealth Games.

Jeremy Lalrinnunga successfully lifted 136 kg in his first Snatch attempt to move to the top of the leaderboard. Edidiong Joseph Umoafia was at second with 130 kg and Samoa’s Vaipava Ioane at third with 127 kg at the time of his first attempt.

Lalrinnunga set up a new Commonwealth Games record by lifting 140 kg in his second Snatch attempt. He tried to better this record by going for 143 kg in his final attempt but failed to do so. He finished the Snatch category with 140 kg, at the top of the table. Edidiong Joseph Umoafia was at second with 130 kg and Samoa’s Vaipava Ioane at third with 127 kg at the end of the Snatch event.

With the Indian at the lead position, proceedings moved to the Clean and Jerk category. Ditto Titus Ika of Nauru gained an initial lead in the Clean and Jerk category and overall competition with a 135 kg C&J lift and combined lift of 240 kg. Ruben Katoatau of Kiribati took the lead further with combined lift of 250 kg, with 114 kg in Snatch and 136 kg in Clean and Jerk.

The lead crossed 250-plus mark when England’s Jaswant Singh Shergill lifted 140 kg, taking his combined lift to 254 kg. Nigeria’s Umoafia lifted 150 kg in the first attempt to take his combined lift to 280 kg. Jeremy now had to lift 154 kg in his first attempt to match the Nigerian, which he did successfully.

With this, he set a new CWG record and brought himself to the lead in the overall competition with a combined lift of 294 kg. In his second C&J attempt, Jeremy lifted 160 kg to take the lead with a combined lift of 300 kg. By lifting 300 kg combined, he had set another new CWG record. In his final C&J attempt, Jeremy decided to lift 165 kg but he failed. Nonetheless, his combined lift stayed at 300 kg and was not matched by any other opponent.

Jeremy ended up adding the fifth medal to India’s tally by capturing a gold medal. It was India’s second at 2022 CWG after Mirabai Chanu’s gold in weightlifting women’s 49 kg category. Vaipava Ioane of Samoa gained the silver medal with a combined lift of 293 kg, consisting of 127 kg in Snatch and 166 kg in C&J. Bronze medal went to Nigeria’s Edidiong Joseph Umoafia, who had the combined lift of 290 kg. He had lifted 130 in the Snatch category while he attained a best of 160 kg in C&J.

Admit that you revolted to save yourself from probe agencies, stop maligning Hindutva: Raut to Sena rebels

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PTI

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July 31, 2022

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday said the rebel lawmakers should honestly admit that they revolted against the party leadership to protect themselves from the central probe agencies.

In his weekly column ‘Rokhthok’ published in party mouthpiece ‘Saamana’, he said, “The rebel group should stop saying that they switched sides because Shiv Sena gave up Hindutva. Why malign Hindutva unnecessarily? Show honesty in saying that all ran away to protect themselves for Enforcement Directorate (ED).” Raut claimed Shiv Sena leader Arjun Khotkar honestly admitted that he was under pressure and that was the reason he was joining the rebel camp.

The ED arrested Raees Khan, an aide of rebel Sena MP Bhavana Gawali. But once Gawali revolted against the Sena, Khan was released and her seized property was also released, he said.

Raut said Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kirit Somaiya had gone to Gawali’s constituency and protested against her. The Sena leader demanded that the BJP publish details of the allegations it made against political leaders and what happened to the probe once they joined the BJP.

An investigation by the Income Tax department and the ED is going on against several rebel Sena MLAs and Somaiya had made preparations to send them to jail. Now all cases are in cold box. This is real corruption, Raut said.

Uddhav names late Anand Dighe’s nephew as Thane district Shiv Sena chief

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PTI

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July 31, 2022

Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday appointed Kedar Dighe, nephew of Sena stalwart the late Anand Dighe, as the party’s Thane district chief.

Thane is the home turf of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde who heads the rebel camp of Sena MLAs.

Anand Dighe was believed to be the mentor of Shinde, who rose through the Shiv Sena rank in his political career.

Earlier, the post of Thane district Shiv Sena president fell vacant after Naresh Mhaske resigned in support of Shinde.

Anita Birje, a close associate of the late Dighe and who headed the women’s wing of Sena, has been appointed as “Deputy Leader”. Pradip Shinde has been appointed as Thane city Shiv Sena president, Chintamani Kharkhanis as the spokesperson of Thane Shiv Sena, party secretary Vinayak Raut said in a statement.

Andorra Foreign Minister Maria Ubach arrives in India

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ANI

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July 31, 2022

endorras foreign minister — Image: Twitter

Andorra foreign affairs minister maria ubach has arrived in delhi today on a three-day visit to strengthen the bilateral ties between the two nations.

This is the first time a minister is visiting from Andorra to India to add momentum to the bilateral ties.

Taking to twitter, MEA spokesperson, arindam bagchi said, “warm and cordial welcome to fm @mubachfont of the principality of Andorra on her arrival in new delhi.”

This is the 1st ministerial visit from Andorra to India, an opportunity to add momentum to our bilateral ties, he said.

On monday, the foreign minister is slated to hold talks with eam jaishankar in delhi and it is the first such visit from andorra to india.

Notably, andorra is the world’s 16th-smallest country by land and 11th-smallest by population. india and andorra established ties in 1994, a year after andorra proclaimed its constitution.

In 2018, the first-ever visit of an indian minister, the then mos steel vishnu deo visited the country. the then mos steel handed over an invitation by the then eam sushma swaraj for fm font to visit india. as per the media reports, the trade between the 2 countries stands strong at 4.31 million.

Why does ED want to investigate Sanjay Raut repeatedly, asks Ajit Pawar

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PTI

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July 31, 2022

Ajit Pawar, politics, ncp — Image: Agencies

Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, Ajit Pawar, on Sunday wondered why the Enforcement Directorate (ED) repeatedly wants to investigate Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut.

Congress spokesman Sachin Sawant said the ED conducting a search at Raut’s residence in Mumbai depicts a “sorry picture” of democracy and alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wants to “silence” all the Opposition parties.

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Supriya Sule this issue will be raised in Parliament. “Many people got notices from the Income Tax, ED, and the Central Bureau of Investigation. Only Raut will be able to tell why the probe agency (ED) wants to investigate him repeatedly,” Pawar touring flood-affected areas in Maharashtra told reporters. Sule expressed confidence there will be no injustice and that Raut will cooperate with the probe agency.

At 7 am on Sunday, ED officials, accompanied by Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, reached Raut’s ‘Maitri’ bungalow located in suburban Bhandup, and began the search. The Rajya Sabha member, who is in the Uddhav Thackeray camp of the Shiv Sena, had denied any wrongdoing and alleged that he was being targeted due to political vendetta.

JMM leader Supriyo Bhattacharya claiming that the ‘script drafted’ two years ago against Cong. MLAs

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ANI

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July 31, 2022

After Jharkhand Congress MLAs were held with a huge amount of cash in West Bengal on Saturday, senior JMM leader Supriyo Bhattacharya took a dig at the BJP claiming that the ‘script for the episode’ was ‘drafted’ two years ago.

“The script for the episode which unfolded yesterday was being drafted for the last two years. This is BJP’s tactics to destabilise a government by hook or crook.

Further speaking on BJP trying to destabilize the JMM-Cong coalition government in Jharkhand.’’ he said, “After 20 years, a pre-poll coalition was formed. In such a situation, if attempts are made to topple the government, it is like weakening democracy.”

“BJP’s motto is that they will form the government where they win the elections, and they will definitely form the government where they did not win the elections,” he added.

Exuding confidence that the JMM-Congress coalition government will again come back to power in 2024, the JMM leader said, “JMM is very confident that its MLAs are intact, and the coalition will form government in 2024 too.”

Three Congress MLAs from Jharkhand — Irfan Ansari, Rajesh Kachhap and Naman Bixal Kongari– were detained in West Bengal’s Howrah district on Saturday evening after a huge amount of cash was found in their vehicle.

The Congress party on Sunday suspended three MLAs, who were held with a huge amount of cash in West Bengal on Saturday, with immediate effect.

Addressing a press conference today, the general secretary and party in-charge of Jharkhand Congress, Avinash Pande said, “The three MLAs, who were held with a mountain of cash yesterday, have been suspended from the party with immediate effect.”

Right after this political blame game started. Congress, in clear words, termed it as BJP’s conspiracy to topple the Jharkhand government.

Meanwhile, BJP slammed the Congress for their allegations.

Talking to our agencies, BJP spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo said, “Whenever Congress or leaders from the Jharkhand government land up in any difficulty they immediately start using the word ‘destabilization’ like Pakistan’s government use Kashmir word. But they cannot escape by blaming BJP.”

Notably, JMM (Jharkhand Mukti Morcha)-Congress alliance is in power in Jharkhand and BJP is in Opposition.