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Rahul Gandhi’s first Iftar party after taking over as Congress president became a stage for the Opposition to show its strength as he was joined by a bouquet of leaders from his own party as well as several regional parties. But the centre of attention at the dinner in Taj Mahal Hotel was former President Pranab Mukherjee, who was in the eye of a storm and the butt of criticism from some Congress leaders for going to the RSS headquarters recently. This was the first meeting between the two since Mukherjee’s visit to Nagpur on June 7. Photos tweeted by the Congress showed that Mukherjee was seated next to Gandhi and the two were engaged in a deep conversation. But he left after a short while.
A massive fire broke out in a high-rise in south Mumbai’s upscale Worli area on Wednesday, the third in just the past one week. Though no casualties have been reported so far, this latest fire is another proof of rising number of fire incidents in the city. The fire broke out on the 33rd floor of a residential complex in Prabhadevi. Deepika Padukone is among one of the residents. In March this year, data obtained from BMC revealed that there were 295 fire incidents reported in the last 60 days alone. News18.com has chalked down Mumbai's history with major fire incidents in 2017 and 2018 among which many had ended up claiming lives and destroying property worth crores.
Several BJP leaders sat on a protest in the waiting room of Arvind Kejriwal's office on Wednesday to counter the sit-in protest by the Delhi Chief Minister and his ministers at Lt. Governor Anil Baijal's residence that is now into its third day. "He is betraying the people of Delhi. He betrayed them in 2014, then in 2015 and now again he is betraying them on all the promises he made to the people of the city," Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari told reporters, while leading the march of his party leaders from ITO in central Delhi to the Chief Minister's Office in the secretariat.
Indian chess star Soumya Swaminathan has withdrawn herself from a tournament in Iran, opposing the country's rule which makes it mandatory for female athletes to wear a headscarf. Swaminathan took to Facebook and wrote, "I do not wish to be forced to wear a Headscarf or Burkha. I find the Iranian law of compulsory Headscarf to be in direct violation of my basic Human Rights including my right to freedom of expression, and right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion."She said that there is no place for 'enforceable religious dress code' in sports and said that despite many compromises sportspersons make, some things can't be compromised.
The Karnataka police said eminent film and theatre personality Girish Karnad and several litterateurs and rationalists were on the hit list of those suspected of killing journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing Lankesh's murder has recovered a diary from the suspects with entries in Hindi. The diary has the names of personalities known for their strong views against hardline Hindutva.
The prime accused in the lynching of two men in Assam was arrested from Karbi Anglong district. Director General of Police Kuladhar Saikia said the prime accused allegedly had an argument with the two men, following which he spread the rumour that they were child lifters, to instigate the villagers.
Massive response to YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy's "Praja Sankalp Padyatra" in Andhra Pradesh is creating political ripples in the national and state politics. In the latest show of strength by YSRCP, a sea of people welcomed Jagan Reddy as he crossed the iconic Godavari bridge in Andhra Pradesh. This tremendous support pouring in for Jagan Reddy has grabbed nationwide attention, ahead of crucial 2019 state and general elections. Andhra Pradesh has 25 MP seats, making it more important for every political party.Two Muslim men were allegedly beaten to death by a mob in Godda district of Jharkhand over suspicions that they were stealing buffaloes.Celebrity chef Atul Kochhar may face prosecution in Dubai for his Islamophobic tweet. The Michelin-starred chef operated the award-winning Rang Mahal India restaurant at Dubai’s JW Marriot Marquis Hotel. The hotel has terminated Kochhar's employment. "Following the recent comments made by Chef Atul Kochhar, we have taken the decision to end our agreement with him for Rang Mahal. With the termination of our agreement, Chef Atul will no longer be associated with the restaurant," Bill Keffer, the general manager of JW Marriott Marquis Hotel was quoted saying by Gulf News. What exactly happened? Read here. Agree or disagree?
Though Rajasthan is known for 'ship of the desert', Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)'s elephant has been trying hard since 1993 to make inroads in the desert state. The Congress leadership in Delhi is contemplating to enter into a pre-poll alliance with the BSP, but grand old party’s state unit has ruled out any such alliance with the BSP. Narayan Bareth writes on why the Congress doesn’t want an alliance with Mayawati’s BSP.
When a godman voluntarily calls it a day, he is expected to transcend life through 'samadhi', not shatter it by shooting himself in the temple with a licensed revolver. The supremely self-assured Bhaiyyuji Maharaj, who enjoyed vast influence, wealth, good looks and physical fitness, hardly fit the profile of a suicide risk. Bhaiyyuji was often described as a 'political' guru, because of his vast network of political contacts. He was particularly close to Shiv Sena chief Udhav Thackeray and his son and on occasion, played mediator between politicians of rival parties. Bhavdeep Kang writes on Bhaiyyuji Maharaj. On reel
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