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“Sacrificing our love for our different religious beliefs”: Himanshi Khurana announces break up with Asim Riaz

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“Sacrificing our love for our different religious beliefs”: Himanshi Khurana announces break up with Asim Riaz

‘Bigg Boss 13’ fame Asim Riaz and Himanshi Khurana are no longer together in a relationship.

On Wednesday, Himanshi took to social media and announced her break up with Asim.

In a note, she confessed that they “sacrificed love for different religious beliefs.”

“YES, we are not together anymore, All the time we have spent together has been great but our togetherness comes to an end Now. The journey of our relationship was great and we are moving forward in our lives. With due respect to our respective religions, we are sacrificing our love for our different religious beliefs,” the note read.

She also asked everyone to respect their privacy.

“We request you to respect our privacy,” she added.

Himanshi, who belongs to a Punjabi Sikh family. On the other hand, Asim is a Muslim. He hails from Jammu. The two met during their stints in ‘Bigg Boss 13’ and soon fell in love with each other. After coming out from ‘Bigg Boss’, the duo also featured together in several love songs.

In another social media post, Himanshi wrote, “When we tried…But we could not find a solution for our life…You still love each other but luck is not supporting happily ever after…No hate only love…That’s called mature decision.”

However, Asim has not posted anything regarding the separation on social media yet.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

‘Nobody invited me to the meeting, need to be informed at least 7 to 10 days in advance’: Mamata Banerjee on cancelled INDI Alliance meeting

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‘Nobody invited me to the meeting, need to be informed at least 7 to 10 days in advance’: Mamata Banerjee on cancelled INDI Alliance meeting

On Wednesday, Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal, revealed that when Rahul Gandhi contacted her two days prior, she informed him that she had not received an invitation to the INDIA bloc meeting at Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence, which was subsequently cancelled.

Emphasising her commitment to future opposition bloc meetings, she stressed the importance of informing alliance partners at least seven to ten days in advance.

Mamata explained that she had communicated her unavailability for the recent meeting due to prior commitments, echoing the challenges faced by other chief ministers when not provided adequate notice.

Speaking at the Kolkata airport before embarking on her six-day tour of north Bengal, Mamata recounted her conversation with Rahul Gandhi and highlighted the necessity of timely communication for effective participation.

In response to the statement by Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh in Parliament, suggesting that the Chief Minister of Bengal should personally meet Narendra Modi to address the issue of pending dues from the Centre, Mamata Banerjee announced her intention to have a meeting with the Prime Minister soon.

She stated, “I have previously met the Prime Minister three times to protest against Bengal’s deprivation by the Centre. I have also written letters to him. We have organized our ‘Delhi Chalo’ program and have sought permission from the Delhi police for a sit-in demonstration event. We are awaiting permission. Once in Delhi, we plan to request time from the Prime Minister for the meeting.”

Following the Congress’s electoral setbacks in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan, Mamata was the first to criticize the party, attributing the defeat to the party itself rather than the people. She also held the Congress responsible for not collaborating on seat-sharing with partners of the INDIA bloc, formed to counter the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls next year.

Italy officially quits Chinese President Xi Jinping’s pet Belt and Road Initiative, informs China

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Italy officially quits Chinese President Xi Jinping’s pet Belt and Road Initiative, informs China

Italy has officially informed China that it is quitting the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Reuters reported on Wednesday (6th December) citing Italian government sources. In 2019, the then-Italian government had joined the BRI project, and the accord was slated to expire in March 2024. But months before the accord would have automatically renewed, Rome had given a written warning at least three months in advance to the Chinese administration that it was pulling out of the project. 

A government source stated that Beijing had been given a letter “in recent days” informing the Chinese government that Italy would not be renewing the pact, the report added. 

Another government source said, “We have every intention of maintaining excellent relations with China even if we are no longer part of the Belt and Road Initiative. Other G7 nations have closer relations with China than we do, despite the fact they were never in (the BRI).”  

Italy is the only G7 nation to have entered the Belt and Road Initiative of China, a global trade and infrastructure plan modelled on the old Silk Road that linked imperial China and the West.

Rome joined the Chinese-led project dismissing concerns from the United States that the BRI project would enable China to gain control of Italy’s sensitive technologies and vital infrastructure.

While not discussed officially, Italy being part of the BRI had been a matter of concern among other G7 nations. Italy will be the G7 president next year, and it was expected that it would leave the Chinese initiative within this year. 

Additionally, when the incumbent Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni took office last year, she had announced that she wanted to withdraw from the deal stating that it had brought no significant gains to Italy. 

Subsequently, in September, Italy had informed China about its intention to leave the BRI. Back then it was reported that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni privately told Chinese Premier Li Quiang about Italy’s plan to pull out of the initiative during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Delhi.

Further, the expected announcement comes against the backdrop that Italy along with 7 other countries signed the MoU India – Middle East – Europe Economic Corridor, which has been viewed as an answer to the BRI of China.

Annamalai compares DMK’s ideology to that of Hitler after Senthilkumar’s ‘Gaumutra’ slur

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Annamalai compares DMK’s ideology to that of Hitler after Senthilkumar’s ‘Gaumutra’ slur

In a scathing attack on the DMK concerning MP DNV Senthilkumar’s ‘Gaumutra’ slur, Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai compared the party’s “theory” to that of the late Nazi leader Adolf Hitler on Thursday. He called for the party to be ousted from the state.

“He (Senthilkumar) is a repeated offender. DMK’s theory is similar to Hitler’s theory. This theory has to be nipped in the bud. Politically, DMK should be thrown out of Tamil Nadu,” Annamalai told ANI.

He stated that Senthilkumar’s comment was a result of “seeing India in the wrong way.”

“If such words are said by mistake, then an apology can be accepted, but if the words are said because of a deep sense of insecurity, then nobody is going to accept the apology. The words uttered by the DMK MP came from a deep sense of seeing India the wrong way; they came from a deep sense of their faulty ideology,” Annamalai added.

On Tuesday, Senthilkumar triggered a political storm when he said that the power of the BJP in winning elections mainly lies in the Hindi heartland states, during which he used the pejorative.

“The people of this country should think that the power of BJP of winning elections mainly lies in the Hindi heartland States, what we generally call as … States. You cannot come to South India! You can see what happened in election results in all the States of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka. We are very strong over there. So we will not be surprised if you have an option of converting all these states into Union Territory…,” the DMK MP had said.

The DMK MP was quick to apologise for his comments in the Lower House saying that he was not using the term with any “intent”.

“Commenting on the results of the five recent state assembly elections, I have inappropriately used a word. Not using that term with any intent, I apologize for sending the wrong meaning across,” he said in a post on ‘X’.

The BJP however continued its attack on the DMK MP accusing members of the INDIA bloc of making divisive comments to vitiate the atmosphere.

Union Minister Anurag Thakur launched an all-out attack on the Congress accusing them of conspiring to erase the country’s culture.

“After the defeat, they(Congress)have resorted to abuse, and their thinking very clear now…they slam EVMs…They’re conspiring to erase the culture and identity of our country…some people stand with the ‘Tukde-Tukde’ gang… but we won’t let this nation divide…Their thoughts are to insult Hindutva and Sanatan Dharma. Congress and their alliance (INDIA alliance) keep showing Sanatan Dharma in bad lights…Telangana CM designate made a statement that ‘Telangana’s DNA is better than Bihar’s DNA’…DMK leaders’ statements against Sanatan Dharma, Hindus and Hindi-speaking people are a well-planned conspiracy” the Union Minister said.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Supreme Court sets aside Gujarat HC’s 2017 order quashing FIR against Mehul Choksi and his wife in cheating and forgery case

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Supreme Court sets aside Gujarat HC’s 2017 order quashing FIR against Mehul Choksi and his wife in cheating and forgery case

The Supreme Court has recently set aside a 2017 judgement of the Gujarat High Court, which quashed an FIR registered by the State Police in 2015 against the fugitive businessman Mehul Chinubhai Choksi and his wife.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti asked Gujarat police to go ahead with the investigation.

“Investigation will continue without being influenced by any of the findings or observations made in the impugned judgment or the present order. We also clarify that while conducting the investigation, the Investigating Officer will keep in mind the rulings of this Court and High Courts interpreting Sections 406, 420, 464 and 465 etc of the IPC,” the order stated.

On the complaint of one Digvijaysinh Himmatsing Jadeja, the Gandhinagar police had registered an FIR for the offences of criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy for failing to return 24-carat gold bars in terms of agreements entered into 2013.

The complainant alleged that Choksi’s company failed to return to him gold bars and misappropriated them, violating the terms of the agreement.

The Gujarat High Court on May 5, 2017, had quashed the FIR on the ground that the complaint was mostly a civil breach of contract and no criminal offence was made out.

Reversing the High Court’s order, the apex court said the High Court’s judgement exceeded its jurisdiction under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure by delving deep into the factual controversy.

“Suffice it is to observe that the High Court should not have examined and recorded a conclusion on the disputed fact to quash the FIR. At this stage, we record that under the registration of the FIR, the investigation had proceeded,” the order stated.

It allowed the investigation to continue without being influenced by any of the findings or observations made by the High Court or Supreme Court.

“The observations in this order will not be read as comments or observations on the merits of the case,” the bench stated in order of November 29.

Mehul Choksi, along with his nephew Nirav Modi, is wanted in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam, where it is alleged that they defrauded the bank of more than Rs 14,000 crore. 

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

BJP to hold Parliamentary party meeting tomorrow amid suspense over next CMs in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh

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BJP to hold Parliamentary party meeting tomorrow amid suspense over next CMs in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will hold the Parliamentary party meeting tomorrow at Balayogi Auditorium in the Parliament House complex amid suspense over the selection of Chief Ministers in three states – Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with all the party MPs will be present at the meeting.

BJP has the crucial task of selecting potential chief ministerial candidates to lead new cabinets for the upcoming five years.

A BJP tsunami swept the Hindi heartland on the counting day for four states that polled for their assemblies last month with the party getting stunning mandates in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan.

It stumped not just their rivals but also some pollsters who had predicted tight races in these states.

The election results in four states, especially the losses in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, came as a huge blow to the Congress’s hopes for 2024 as it is now out of power across a vast swathe of the Hindi heartland.

The BJP, which had been battling close to 20 years of incumbency, won a resounding mandate bagging 163 seats while the Congress finished a distant second at 66 seats.

In Rajasthan, the vote count painted a starkly different picture to what some of the pollsters had predicted, with the BJP poised to form the government, winning 115 seats, and the Congress trailing at 69 seats.

Of the 90 assembly constituencies in Chhattisgarh, the BJP bagged 54 while the Congress won 35. 

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Press release announcing Mahanth Balaknath Yogi as next CM of Rajasthan is fake: State BJP

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Press release announcing Mahanth Balaknath Yogi as next CM of Rajasthan is fake: State BJP

Days after the BJP achieved a resounding victory in Rajasthan, speculations have been rife over the appointment of the next Chief Minister of the state. Following these developments, on 6th December, a purported press release attributed to BJP claimed that the party had selected Mahanth Balaknath Yogi as the next Chief Minister and appointed two Deputy Chief Ministers to assist the CM.

It also stated that Senior BJP leader and MLA from Sawai Madhopur Kirodi Lal Meena and MLA from Rajsamand Diya Kumari will be the two Deputy Chief Ministers. However, the Bhartiya Janata Party’s state unit took to X (formerly Twitter) and alerted that the press release claimed to be theirs is Fake. 

From its official Twitter handle BJP4Rajasthan, the party tweeted, “Fake Alert!” along with the forged press release having the party’s name as the header to make it look authentic.

Earlier on 3rd December, the BJP defeated the ruling party Congress after it secured 115 seats. While Congress bagged 69 seats, other parties in the likes of Bharat Adivasi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party secured 3 and 2 seats respectively. 

Since then, the race for the next Chief Minister of Rajasthan has thrown up many probable faces including the likes of Mahanth Balaknath, Diya Kumari, Former CM Vasundhara Raje, Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat among others.

Decide in 3 months representation to ban dangerous dog breeds: Delhi HC asks Centre, stresses need to promote local breeds of dogs

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Decide in 3 months representation to ban dangerous dog breeds: Delhi HC asks Centre, stresses need to promote local breeds of dogs

On 6th December (Wednesday), the Delhi High Court asked the Union government to expeditiously make a decision, preferably within three months, on a representation to ban and cancel licenses for the possession of “dangerous” dog breeds like Pitbulls, Terriers, American Bulldogs, and Rottweilers.

Notably, the petition was filed in October. The matter is being heard by a bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and it also includes Justice Mini Pushkanra. The court asked the petitioner to let the authorities ‘take a call’ on this matter, noting that they were the ones who needed to draft the relevant laws and regulations on this issue.

The court ordered, “They (the authorities) shall decide representation as expeditiously as possible, preferably within three months.”

During the proceedings, the bench also emphasised the need to promote the local breeds of dogs stressing that they are “sturdy”. The court observed, “Indian breeds need to be taken care of. They are far more sturdy. They don’t fall sick that often because they have acclimatised. Today we are vocal for local.” 

The Counsel of the Union government apprised the Delhi High Court that the representation has already been sent to the department concerned and a decision will be taken after consulting with stakeholders. 

Earlier, on 5th October, a division bench headed by then Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma had refused to entertain the petitioner’s PIL on the issue. The court directed the petitioner that they should first approach the government authorities with their grievance. 

The petition filed by Legal Attorneys and Barristers Law Firm alleges that dog breeds like Bulldogs, Rottweilers, Pit Bulls, Terriers, and Neapolitan Mastiffs are “dangerous dogs”. It noted that these “dangerous” breeds of dogs are banned in more than 12 countries including India. However, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi was still registering them to be kept as pets, the petition added.

Additionally, it brought the court’s attention to several incidents of such dog breeds attacking people including their owners.

The petition stated, “lt is the need of the hour to ban and cancel the license to keep dogs such as Pitbull, Terriers, American bulldogs, Rottweilers, Japanese Tosa, Bandog, Neapolitan Mastiff, Wolf Dog, Boerboel, Presa Canario, Fila Brasileiro, Tosa Inu, Cane Corso, Dogo Argentino and crossbreeds of above-mentioned dogs.” 

According to the petitioners, it is the duty of the Centre and the state government to act as a welfare state and to take preemptive action to save the lives of the citizens from the risk of any major dog bite incident by these “dangerous” breeds.

Delhi: INDI alliance meeting to be held today at Kharge’s residence

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Delhi: INDI alliance meeting to be held today at Kharge’s residence

A meeting of the floor leaders of the INDIA bloc will be held today at 7 pm at Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence here in the national capital.

According to the sources, the Trinamool Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) are likely to skip the meeting.

Earlier today, amid speculations that Mamata Banerjee is likely to skip the INDIA bloc meeting due to scheduling issues, the West Bengal Chief Minister clarified, saying that the opposition leaders will be meeting shortly whenever the Congress comes up with a favourable date.

“I was not informed earlier. Only a day before yesterday, Rahul called me up and told me about the meeting…We will be meeting shortly whenever they decide,” Mamata said before leaving for her scheduled North Bengal tour on Wednesday.

Speaking about scheduling issues, the Chief Minister said that her counterparts need prior invitations at least seven or ten days in advance.

“Other Chief Ministers also have meetings. They need to know about the program seven days ago or 10 days ago,” she said.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said that the next meeting of the INDIA bloc can take place between December 16 and 18 and many things including the face of the alliance will be decided at that time.

“The INDIA alliance meeting was supposed to be held today but some prominent leaders were not available. There is a wedding in Mamata Banerjee’s house, MK Stalin is busy with the relief operation in his flood-hit state, Nitish Kumar is not well, and Akhilesh Yadav is not available, therefore this meeting will be held on the 16th or 18th of December. The face etc. everything will be decided in the meeting. We are together and you will see its result in 2024,” Sanjay Raut said.

Seat sharing for the Lok Sabha polls, which is just four months away, is likely to be at the top of the agenda. The next INDIA bloc meeting would also be crucial for Congress, particularly as the party lost Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls, the Hindi heartland states that send a large number of members to the Parliament.

The first meeting of the joint opposition convened in Patna on June 23 and the second meeting was held in Bengaluru on July 17-18. The third meeting happened in Mumbai during August 31-September 1.

The INDIA alliance had appeared on shaky ground when the Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav accused the Congress of betrayal after the Congress failed to reach a seat-sharing agreement for the Madhya Pradesh election.

The Samajwadi Party has mellowed its stance now, party spokesperson Rajinder Chaudhary said that the results in the assembly polls would strengthen the INDIA bloc.

INDIA or ‘Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance’ is a group of 28 opposition parties, including the Congress. The parties have come together to take on the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which is led by PM Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and prevent it from winning a third straight term at the Centre in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

In the Mumbai meeting, the opposition parties adopted resolutions to collectively contest the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections while announcing that seat-sharing arrangements would be finalised as soon as possible through a spirit of give-and-take.

The theme chosen by the INDIA bloc for the elections is “Judega Bharat, Jeetega India” (India will unite, India will win) to take on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

24 seats reserved in PoK because it belongs to India: Amit Shah in Parliament introducing bill to increase seats in Jammu and Kashmir

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24 seats reserved in PoK because it belongs to India: Amit Shah in Parliament introducing bill to increase seats in Jammu and Kashmir

On Wednesday (6th December), Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the two bills related to Jammu and Kashmir that the Union government introduced in parliament are geared at providing justice to those who have been denied their rights for more than 70 years. During a debate on the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, Shah criticized the Congress while not naming the party, asserting that the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits could have been avoided if terrorism had been dealt with without regard for vote-bank politics.

While defending the bills, he stated that the two bills would provide representation to those who were forced to flee Kashmir due to terrorism. Amit Shah reported to the House that one seat in the Kashmir assembly would be reserved for those displaced from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. He also stated that one of the two bills would nominate two members of the Kashmiri migrant community to the assembly.

“When they (Kashmiri Pandits) were displaced, they were forced to live as refugees in their country. Around 46,631 families were displaced in their own country. This Bill is to get them rights, this Bill is to give them representation,” he said.

“Had terrorism been tackled at the beginning without considering vote-bank politics, Kashmiri Pandits wouldn’t have had to leave the valley,” he added. He also declared that 24 seats in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly would be reserved for Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK), which belongs to India.

Amit Shah stated while tabling the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2023 in the House that Jammu previously had 37 seats but now has 43. Meanwhile, Kashmir has 47 seats, up from 46.

Further criticizing the Congress party, Shah said that those responsible for stopping the exodus were enjoying vacations in England. “There was an era of terrorism (in Jammu and Kashmir) after the 1980s and it was a horrifying scene. Those who lived on the land considering it their country, were thrown out and no one cared about them, neither did they try to stop it. Those who were responsible for stopping it were enjoying vacations in England,” he added.

The Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023, introduced in Lok Sabha on July 26, 2023, aims to modify the reservation act of the union territory. Members of the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and other backward classes would be given preference in jobs and educational institutions under this bill. It provides social and educational reservations to people living in backward villages and similar areas along the Line of Control and International Border.

The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 amends the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which facilitated the reorganisation of the erstwhile state into the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. This amendment proposes to increase the total number of seats in the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly from 83 to 90, of which seven would be reserved for scheduled caste members and nine seats for legislators from scheduled tribes.

The bill also empowers the Lieutenant Governor to appoint up to two members of the Kashmiri migrant community, including one woman, to the assembly. Persons who moved from the Kashmir Valley or any other part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir after November 1, 1989, and have registered with the Relief Commissioner are considered migrants. Additionally, one member representing displaced persons from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir may be nominated.

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