I CONTD. ON PAGE 13 MICHELLE REMPEL (MEMBER OF...

CIRCULATED THROUGH : TORONTO, MARKHAM, SCARBOROUGH, RICHMOND HILL, VAUGHAN, WOODBRIDGE, ETOBICOKE, NORTH YORK, MALTON, REXDALE, BR AMPTON, MISSISSAUGA, OAKVILLE, HAMILTON, MILTON, STONEY CREEK, BURLINGTON

MICHELLE REMPEL (MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR CALGARY NOSE HILL, SHADOW MINISTER FOR CITIZENSHIP ANDIMMIGRATION) WITH YUDHVIR JASWAL, GROUP EDITOR AND CEO OF Y MEDIA GROUP DURING HER VISIT TO CHANNEL Y STUDIOS.DETAILED INTERVIEW CAN BE VIEWED ON CHANNEL Y THAT COMES ON ROGERS 857,BELL 828 & TELUS 2418.

INDIA WILL HAVE 'ALL OPTIONS' AVAILABLEIN CASE THERE IS ANOTHER TERROR STRIKE

Y MEDIA PRESENTS

WHO WILL WIN ?INDIA DECIDES - ELECTIONS 2019

CONGRESS SAYS NO ALLIANCE WITH AAP,KEJRIWAL FURIOUS

OPPOSITION CHORUS GROWS FOR PROOF OF AIRSTRIKE IN PAKISTAN

BIG BLOW TO LIBERALGOVERNMENT - CABINET MINISTER

JANE PHILPOTT RESIGNSI DETAILS ON PAGE 9

WATCH CHANNEL Y ON ROGERS 857, BELLFIBE 828, TELUS 2418 & ONLINE AT SOUTHASIANDAILY.COM

‘THEY WANT TO STRIKE AT ME, BUT I WANT TOSTRIKE AT TERROR’: PM MODI

New Delhi : The Congress will not form analliance with the Aam Aadmi Par ty in thenational capital for the upcoming LokSabha elections, Delhi Congress chiefSheila Dikshit told reporters on Tuesday."A unanimous decision has been takenthat there will be no alliance inDelhi," Dikshit said.

ONTARIO PROVINCIAL POLICEDEPUTY COMMISSIONER BRAD

BLAIR FIRED. BLAIR WAS CRITIC OFRON TAVERNER'S APPOINTMENT

BY FORD GOVERNMENTI DETAILS ON PAGE 9

Y MEDIA EXCLUSIVE - JUSTIN TRUDEAU MUST RESIGN:ANDREW SCHEER, LEADER OF CONSERVATIVE PARTY OFCANADA TALKING TO CHANNEL Y ON THE SNC-LAVALIN

SCANDAL. DETAILED INTERVIEWED CAN BE WATCHED ONCHANNEL Y ROGERS 857,BELL FIBE 828 & TELUS 2418

I DETAILS ON PAGE 7

Claims and counterclaims by thegovernment and the Oppositionsent political temperatures soaringon Monday as the Congress partyasked why the government wasnot providing details of the casual-ties inflicted in the air strikes on a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM)?camp in Pakistan last week, while the govern-ment accused the Congress par ty of echoing Pakistan’s line. PrimeMinister Narendra Modi implicitly warned Pakistan about suppor tingterror groups that target India. I CONTD. ON PAGE 12

AIR FORCE DOESN'T COUNT CASUALTIES:IAF CHIEF B.S. DHANOA

COIMBATORE: Amidst a raging controversy overthe damage inflicted on the Jaish-e-Mohammad(JeM) terror camp in Balakot, IAF Air ChiefMarshall B.S. Dhanoa on Monday said his forcedoes not count human casualties but the airstrikehad hit the "target". "The Indian Air Force is notin a position to clarify the number of casu-alties. The government will clarify that. Wedon't count human casualties. We do not count how many people weredead. We count what targets we have hit or not. We hit our target. The airforce doesn't calculate casualty numbers. The government does that," hetold the media here. "The target has been clearly amplified by the ForeignSecretary in a statement. If we plan to hit the target, we hit the target.Otherwise why would he (Pakistan Prime Minister) have responded. Ifwe dropped bombs in the jungles why would he respond," Dhanoa said inhis first public remarks on the February 26 air force operation as a con-sequence of the February 14 Pulwama attack in which 40 CRPF person-nel were killed. I CONTD. ON PAGE 13

India would have "all options" available in case there is another terrorstrike, official sources asser ted on Tuesday while maintaining thatthe government would insist on concrete steps taken by Pakistan indismantling terror infrastructure.Sources said India had shared with the US the evidence of use of F16jet by Pakistan during retaliatory aerial combat and was confidentthat the US is investigating the matter.Since the Balakot strike, India is trying to build maximum pressure onPakistan on the issue of terrorism, sources said.Sources had said on Monday that the Indian Air Force had kept all itsbases in Western sector on the maximum aler t after India car ried outa strike on the biggest terrorist training camp of Jaish-e-Mohammedin Pakistan's Balakot on February 26.Pakistan had attempted to retaliate by unsuccessfully targeting a num-ber of military installations in Kashmir on February 27.India's air strike, which the government had termed a "non-military"action, followed a terror attack on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama, Kash-mir, in which 40 personnel were killed. PTI

I CONTD. ON PAGE 13

JEM CHIEF MASOOD AZHAR'S SON, BROTHERAMONG 44 ARRESTED IN PAKISTANJaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar's son and brother wereamong 44 members of the banned militant outfits arrested byauthorities in Pakistan on Tuesday, amid mounting pressurefrom the global community on Islamabad to rein in the terrorgroups operating on its soil. "We have taken 44 people incustody as par t of crackdown on militant groups," Ministerof State for Interior Shehryar Khan Afridi said at a pressconfe rence here .Min is t ry o f In te r io r Secre ta ry AzamSuleman Khan said Hammad Azhar and Mufti Abdur Raufwere among those ar rested on Tuesday. Hammad is the son ofMasood Azhar while Rauf is his brother.Khan said a dossiershared by India with Pakistan last week also contained namesof Rauf and Hammad.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi continued hisattack on the opposition on Tuesday and ques-tioned their resolve to take on terrorism.PM Modi said the opposition a group which hascome together only to target him. “The oppositionwants to get rid of me. They want to removeModi, I want to remove corruption.

I CONTD. ON PAGE 12

LORD AHMED CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTEDRAPE OF GIRL

A member of the House of Lords has been chargedwith two counts of attempting to rape a girl.Former Labour peer Lord Ahmed of Rotherham, 61, isalso charged with indecent assault of a boy under 13.Prosecutors allege the offences took place between1971 and 1974, when Lord Ahmed would havebeen aged between 14 and 17.Two other men, Mohammed Farouq, 68,and Mohammed Tariq, 63, both fromRotherham, have also been charged. All three men are due to appear atSheffield Magistrates' Cour t on 19 March.Mr Farouq of Worrygoose Lane, Rotherham, is charged with four counts ofindecently assaulting a boy under 13 between 1968 and 1972.Mr Tariq of Gerard Road, Rotherham is charged with two counts of indecentlyassaulting a boy under 13 between 1970 and 1972.

2 MidWeek MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019

MidWeek 3MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2012

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


PAGE 3'A FEISTY GIRL-CHILD ATHEART, WHO IS GOING TORELISH EATING KAIRI':MEGHNA GULZAR ON'CHHAPAAK' STARDEEPIKA PADUKONE

KOFFEE AWARDS 2019 SALMAN KHAN KEEN ON BRINGINGNAVJOT SINGH SIDHU BACK ON'THE KAPIL SHARMA SHOW' ?

SARA ALI KHAN'S DEBUT WAS THE MOST REMARKABLE,KAREENA KAPOOR KHAN WAS THE BEST DRESSED

Koffee with Karan Season 6 saw an interesting line up of celebrities.From the popular siblings like Arjun Kapoor-Janhvi Kapoor, AbhishekBachchan-Shweta Nanda Bachchan, Shahid Kapoor-Ishaan Khatter,Sonam-Rhea and Harshvardhan Kapoor, to female contemporaries likeAlia Bhatt-Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra-Kareena KapoorKhan -- Season 6 had it all.In the last episode Karan Johar invited Malaika Arora, Vir Das, Kirron Kher andMallika Dua to help him decide the best per formances of the season.And here's all those who made it to the winners list:Best Debut (Male) - Diljit DosanjhBest Debut (Female) - Sara Ali KhanBest Dressed (Male) - Vicky Kaushal Best Dressed (Female) -

Kareena Kapoor KhanBest Moment - Ranveer Singh doing an Akshay Kumar imitation -'dancing at a Mundan ceremony'Best Answer Of The Season - Ajay Devgn for when he told Karan, "Ibelieved that all your films star ting with K work till we did 'Kaal'."Lifetime Achievement Award - Priyanka Chopra Jonas as she ap-peared on all the 6 seasons with Arjun Rampal, Hrithik Roshan,Shahid Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor Khan and oncealone.Best Performance (Male) - Ranveer SinghBest Per formance (Fe-male) - KajolBest Episode - Diljit Dosanjh and Badshah

FARHAN AKHTAR POSTS PHOTO OF HIM AND SHIBANI DANDEKARWEARING RINGS, NETIZENS PREDICT THE COUPLE IS ENGAGED

Farhan Akhtar and Shibani Dandekar undoubtedly are major couplegoals. Right from vacationing together to attending social functions ineach other's presence, they have given romance a new definition.Farhan now shared a photo of rings on his and his love Shibani'shands, and the internet has predicted that the couple is engaged.While sharing the photo of their boho rings, Farhan wrote, "There'ssomething so real about holding hands, a kind of complex simplicity,saying so much by doing so little. ~ unknown @shibanidandekar"Soon af ter the actor-singer-filmmaker star ted receiving congratula-

tory messages on his page. Most of them had already assumed thathe is engaged and sent out their congraulatory wishes.The couple, just like Arjun Kapoor and Malaika Arora, are repor tedlyset to be husband and wife in April. On the work front, Farhan Akhtarwrapped his upcoming film The Sky is Pink recently. The movie alsostars Priyanka Chopra and Zaira Wasim in pivotal roles. Farhan isnext going to work in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's movie Toofan.Farhan and Rakeysh are collaborating again post Bhag Milkha Bhag.Farhan plays a boxer in Toofan.

EMRAAN HASHMI: IT IS DIFFICULT BEING A SMART ACTOR INBOLLYWOOD, STUPIDITY GOES A LONG WAY HERE

Emraan Hashmi says there are not many producers who are ready to takerisks in Bollywood, an industry where stupidity dominates, making itharder for actors to be smar t.The actor says today there are at least ahandful people trying to push the envelope, which was not the case ear-lier."It is difficult being a smart actor in Bollywood. Stupidity goes a long wayhere. The audience is smart but not too many producers and directorstake that (risk) and understand that. Now at least we have the new bloodcoming up with new stuff," Emraan told PTI."Back then, it was just about making escapist films with a star, do what astar is supposed to do and get bums on seats. Right now, the audiencewants to see more than that," he added.Emraan started his career in mid-2000s, gaining fame for featuring infilms which were dubbed "bold". The actor eventually shed the "serialkisser" tag with films such as "Shanghai", "Ghanchakkar" and "Ek Thi

Daayan" among others. The actor says before he turned towards edgiercontent, he was "stuck" in a zone for a long time."Initially you can't voice your concerns because scripts choose you ratherthan you choosing scripts. When one thing works, they just stretch that tomake them work again and again. "Producers see it as safety net, a cashregister. Where the audience is expected not to ask questions. Then I metfilmmakers and producers who wanted to challenge me as an actor."Emraan says, if 2018 is anything to go by, where "pure star-driven films"did not work, good concept is the need of the hour."Because of the influence of the web, the audience knows what they'remissing out on here. They won't lap up any mediocre content. Right nowa handful of actors are doing a variety of things."The audience doesn't want to see a star-driven vehicle. They want to seeanother dimension of you, not you wearing the same urban clothes in aforeign location with 50 background dancers."

It looks like Navjot Singh Sidhu is all set to return to 'The KapilSharma Show'. According to a latest repor t in Dainik Bhaskar,the agreement between Sidhu and Sony TV was neverterminatated. Infact the channel and the show's producerSalman Khan are waiting for the dust to settle so that they can bring himback on the show. Once everything is back to normal, Sidhu might bringhis laughter riot and poetry skills back to the show.It's being said that the channel and Kapil Sharma have been advised bySalman to refrain from commenting on the controversy."When this entire controversy happened; the channel was still not sure onwhat decision to make. It was the producer of the show, Salman Khan’simmediate decision to ask Sidhu to step down from the show. Obviously,as a producer, Salman did not want to take a chance especially when somuch money has been involved in its production. The show isdoing well in terms of TRP and Salman doesn’t want to lose itjust for the sake of one person. And so, he decided to take acall immediately," a source had earlier told DB Post.Archana Puran Singh, who was brought in as a replacementto Sidhu, was apparently signed in for only 20 episodes whichfur ther proves that the channel never had any intentions ofpermanently removing Sidhu.Navjot Singh Sidhu was said to have been temporarily sackedfrom 'The Kapil Sharma Show' after his controversial remakrson Pulwama terror attack provoked the nation's ire. The formercricketer was also banned by Federation of Western IndiaCine Employees from entering Mumbai's Film City premises.Singh received severe backlash from his opponents for his'Ter rorism has no religion, no nation' statement. Twitterati made#BoycottKapilSharmaShow and #BoycottNavjotSinghSidhutrend on Twitter the entire day. Some even asked him toapologise while others demanded the channel to expel himfrom the comedy show.

'A FEISTY GIRL-CHILD AT HEART, WHO ISGOING TO RELISH EATING KAIRI':

MEGHNA GULZAR ON 'CHHAPAAK' STARDEEPIKA PADUKONE

Deepika Padukone is all set to team up with Meghna Gulzarfor the first time in Chhapaak. In the film, the actor will beseen playing the role of acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal.The actor will be portraying a never-seen-before avatar andshe will also be making her debut as a producer. The filmwent on floors recently and Meghna announced the same onher Instagram page.On Deepika's official website, Meghna wrote a heartfelt notefor the actor and titled it, "Girl-Woman…" Meghna spoke atlength about how Deepika bagged the role for Chhapaak. TheFilmmaker said that it was a moment of serendipity when sheasked for a meeting with the actor. She revealed that she hadmany conversations with herself assuming that Deepika mightnot be interested in doing this movie and she wasn't. Meghnarevealed that Deepika was eyeing on to do something lighterafter three back-to-back intense films.The Raazi director didn't have any lighter script for Deepikaand after reading the script and knowing about the character,the actor said yes in a hear tbeat. Meghna recalled, "Shehumours me that it is because of a scene where she gets toeat kairi with salt and red chilli powder."

'I HAVE SOMEONE IN MY LIFE':KANGANA RANAUT ADMITS BEING

IN A RELATIONSHIPKangana Ranaut has never shied away from talking about herpersonal life on public platforms. The actor has been laudedfor being upfront and unabashed during media interactions.She has even spoken about her dating life and named the menshe dated. Currently, there were no repor ts of the actor beingin a relationship and her directorial debut Manikarnika: TheQueen of Jhansi has been the topic of discussion. At a re-cently concluded event in Delhi, the stunning beauty admittedbeing in a relationship.Kangana stated, "I have someone in my life. For me, where Iam right now, I do not feel the need for regular dating. I am atan age that I want to have companionship which can inspire me inlife." The talented actor even shared about never been out of love. Shesaid, "I have a romantic side. I feel that being an artist, it is so impor tant tohave a desire in you, to be aroused with life. I don't remember a life whenI have been out of love. I have had bad experiences with love, but Imove on quickly." On being asked if mar riage is on her mind,Kangana said that she will get married and would love to have afamily even though the population explosion is worrying her. She furtherspoke about how the perception of love has changed for her in the pastdecade. Kangana said earlier she had a different expectationin the relationship. She revealed that she is not clingy any-more and has become easier to handle.


TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019s p e c i a l r e p o r t

INDIA DAY CELEBRATIONS AT PDAC 2019

INDIA DAY CELEBRATION' DURING PDAC INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION, TRADE SHOW & INVESTORSEXCHANGE 2019, WHICH IS THE WORLD'S LEADING CONVENTION FOR PEOPLE, COMPANIES ANDORGANIZATIONS IN, OR CONNECTED WITH, MINERAL EXPLORATION. YOU WILL BE PLEASED TO KNOWTHAT FOR PDAC 2019, THE INDIAN DELEGATION IS BEING LED BY SHRI ANIL MUKIM, SECRETARY,MINISTER OF MINES, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA.THE 'INDIA DAY CELEBRATION' HELD AT THE METROTORONTO CONVENTION CENTRE, TORONTO.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 s p e c i a l r e p o r t

OKD SOCCER TEAM WILL TOUR EUROPE THIS SEASON

(BACK ROW) SANDIP SANGHA - BALKARAN DOSANJH - RAMNEEK KHABRA - ISHWARPREET GREWAL - JASMAN PANNU - AKSHPREET KANG - HARJOT TAMBER - BALRAJ KULAR - JAGDEEP MALHI - MANVEERNANUA - ANAIKH RANDHAWA - SIMRAT NAGRA - AMRIK HARE (COACH) (FRONT ROW) HARVEER BRAR - PARNIT SIDHU - PRATHAM SOOD - KARTIK BASRAN - AMTOJ SIDHU - SURAJ DESAI - BARMANJIT SAHOTA - AMIT BAINS - HARMAN DHALIWAL - SUKHRAJ DHILLON

This group is traveling for 10 days to tour Scotland and England. Depart-ing on Friday of the school March break holidays they will be in Glasgowfor 4 days. During that time they will be having training session by CelticFC professional academy coaches and a match in Glasgow. The groupthen depar ts Glasgow on Tuesday to go to Bolton England where they will

have a training session held by Bolton Wanderers FC professional coachand a match against an academy team. Thursday the group has a gamein Nottingham England against a professional academy team and thenhead to St George's Park, this is the home training facility for all ofEngland's national teams. They will be having a England national coach

training them and having a hydrotherapy session before heading off toLondon, where they will spend 3 days at Reading FC.This tour is designed to showcase their talents to coaches and oppositionaround Scotland and England, wish them luck as they go on a trip theywill remember for the rest of their lives.

TEAM ONTARIO WINS BIG AT THE CANADA GAMESOntario athletes have done the province proud at the 2019 Canada WinterGames in Red Deer, Alber ta, taking home 105 medals in 19 spor ts.Team Ontario's athletes are returning home with 18 gold, 43 silver and 44bronze medals. Some of the standout per formances included:1. Women's Curling: Team Ontario won the gold medal in this event andBella Croisier was chosen as the Team Ontario flag bearer for the closingceremonies. Bella was the skip for her curling team out of Sudbury that wongold with an 8-3 victory over Manitoba.2. Wheelchair Basketball: The Team Ontario Wheelchair Basketball Team

won a silver medal in week 1 of the Games. Ontario beat the four-timedefending champion Quebec team in the semi-final.3. Short Track Speed Skating: Claudia Heeney from Waterloo won a gold(Shor t Track - 3000 m Points Race Female) and a silver (Shor t Track - 500 mFemale) in speed skating. As well, Claudia set a new Canada Winter Gamesrecord for fastest female in the 1,000-metre race, with a time of 1:33.481in the semi-finals."Our government for the people congratulates all of our athletes at the2019 Canada Games," said Michael Tibollo, Minister of Tourism, Culture

and Sport. "Your per formances were exceptional and we are so very proud ofthe job you've done representing our province. I wish you much continuedsuccess and look forward to seeing many of you represent Ontario in thefuture!"A full list of medalists is available here.Ontario is pleased to support athletes competing in amateur spor t in their pursuitof excellence through a number of programs, including Quest for Gold, whichprovides direct funding for costs of living, training, sports equipment and travelto competitions.

‘IT’S CLEAR, PM DID BYPASS SURGERY’:RAHUL GANDHI UPS RAFALE ATTACKCongress president RahulGandhi on Thursday stepped upthe campaign against PrimeMinister Narendra Modi overthe Rafale deal, demanding thatthe government probe him too.“Why can’t there be a criminalinvestigation against him also,”Gandhi said, pointing to theCentre’s decision to probe theleak of official documents fromthe defence ministry.The Congress president’s fresh attack comes a day after the government’s top law officer told the Supreme Cour t thatthe documents cited by lawyer Prashant Bhushan were ‘stolen’. The top court was hearing requests to review itsDecember verdict that rejected the demand for a probe into the deal to purchase Rafale fighter jets from French aviationfirm Dassault Aviation. One document is an eight-page dissent note written by three domain experts in the Indiannegotiating team. In another, a top defence ministry official complained about the PMO conducting “parallel parleys”with the French authorities in the controversial Rafale deal which, Rahul Gandhi cited, to accuse the PMO of influencingthe deal. “PM Modi performed bypass surgery in Rafale deal,” he said. Attorney General KK Venugopal also told thethree-judge bench that the government could invoke the Official Secrets Act against The Hindu newspaper, whichhad published the papers. “Yes of course take action on those involved in this missing documentscase but also initiate an inquiry on PMO making parallel negotiations,” Gandhi said at a mediaconference in the national capital. Sharpening his attack moments later, he asked: “Why doesn’t thePM get a probe ordered if he isn’t guilty”.


TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019c o m m u n i t y

KHALSA DAY CELEBRATIONS,KHALSA SAJNA DIWASNAGAR KIRTAN DATE:

SUNDAY APRIL 28TH, 2019LOCATION: BETTER LIVING CENTRE, CNE GROUNDS,

TORONTOEND OF NAGAR KIRTAN: NATHAN PHILIP SQUARE,

TORONTO City HallKIRTAN 9 AM TILL 12:30 PM AT BETTER LIVING CENTRE

START OF NAGAR KIRTAN 1:00 PMFor the past 42 years Sikhs have been celebrating Khalsaday in downtown Toronto. Like in the previous yearsthousands of Sikhs would be coming to downtown Toronto andshowcase their proud religion, their uniqueness and the prideand joy of the message and teachings of the Guru Granth Sahib.Guru ka langar will be served at the CNE and lots of refreshmentsat the Toronto City Hall.There will be floats from Sikh history, singing of the kir tan bysikh sangat in the parade, School band of Various Khalsa Schoolsand student par ticipants from various Punjabi schools of theGurdwaras. As in the previous years the excellent serviceprovided by the active par ticipation of Toronto Police in managingthe parade will be on full display. Various Invited guests willbring there greeting, including the elected Govt officials. Therewill be a Keynote speaker who will highlight our rich traditionsand Sikhi way of life.Like in the previous years there will be shuttle buses from thecity hall where the sangat can park in the morning and take theshuttle bus to the CNE. Buses will be running from various Gurdwarasin the GTA and for more info they can contact the nearest Gurdwarawhere we will place the Khalsa Souvenir which is specially printedevery year and also contains all the information.Anyone who wants to be Volunteer in the Nagar Kirtan shouldcontact Kultar Singh Gill at 416-676-8820 or Inderjit Singh Jagronat 416-704-0506 or Gurinderjit Singh Bhullar at 416-452-2011For any more information please contact Manjit Singh at 416-524-7330 or Inderdeep Singh, Sect OSGC at 416-835-6355 orGobinder Singh Randhawa, Chairman OSGC at 416-857-5196.

WHEN SNOW KNOCKS ONYOUR DOOR

Keeping Your Driveway ClearWinter may officially be only three months long,but snow fall and cold temperatures can last much longer.Here are some things to keep in mind when clearing snow fromyour proper ty:Shovel early and oftenShovel early and often to keep walkways clear and limit heavysnow build up. Shoveling periodically during a storm can makeheavy snow or significant accumulation easier to clear. Preventan icy stoop by shovelling snow off of it right after a storm,before the snow has a chance to melt and turn into ice.Remember to clear sidewalks that are connected to pathwaysclose to your residence.Watch the TemperatureClear snow from your proper ty before temperatures dropsignificantly to avoid shovelling icy build-up. Be mindful of wetsur faces where snow has melted in milder weather that mayre-freeze when temperatures drop overnight.Avoid an icy drivewayAf ter the snow is removed from your walkway, sidewalk anddriveway, be sure to check if de-icing is necessary. Use saltwisely to minimize the impact of salt on the environment byfollowing manufacturer instructions to apply the right amount,under the right conditions.Check your driveway for cracksFreezing temperatures can cause pavement to chip as watergets inside and freezes. Fill cracks and/or holes. Also seal hardsur faces to prevent water from getting into them. Resolve anydrainage issues on your proper ty to prevent ice from forming.Park vehicles in your drivewayAf ter clearing snow from your driveway, avoid keeping yourvehicle parked on the street so City plows can clear roadssafely and more efficiently.Be a good neighbourYou can help keep your community safe by clearing yoursidewalk of snow and ice as soon as possible after a snowfallends. You can also offer to help your neighbours, especiallyolder adults and people with disabilities, by offering to shoveltheir walkway, sidewalk and drivewayTo learn more about the City's snow clearing operations visitMississauga.ca/snow. To keep up-to-date on the City's snowclearing activities, follow @MississaugaSnow on Twitter ordownload the Mississauga Roads App to track our snow plowsand salt trucks online.

Prime Minister Trudeauannounces changes within theexisting MinistryThe Prime Minister, Justin Tr udeau, today announced thefollowing changes within the Ministry:Lawrence MacAulay, currently Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, becomes Minister of Veterans Affairs and AssociateMinister of National Defence.Marie-Claude Bibeau, currently Minister of InternationalDevelopment, becomes Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.Maryam Monsef retains her role as Minister for Women andGender Equality and also becomes Minister of InternationalDevelopment.In their new roles, the Ministers will advance some of theGovernment of Canada's top priorities, and help improve thelives of people across the country. The Government will continueto deliver on its commitments to Canadians, and create jobs,strengthen the middle class, and help communities everywherebuild a better future.

WOODBINE MALL OPERATORS FINED $50,000 FORFAILURE TO PAY WORKERS AS REQUIRED

Convicted: Woodbine Mall Holdings Inc., 2562 Stanfield Road, Mississauga, Ontario, an operator of a shopping mall and children'samusement centre.Location of Workplace: 500 Rexdale Boulevard, Mississauga.Description of Offence: The company failed to pay wages on the established recurring pay day.Date of Offence: November 1, 2018.Date of Conviction: February 28, 2019.Penalty Imposed:" Following a guilty plea, the company was fined $50,000 in Old City Hall cour t, Toronto, by Justice of the Peace OdidaQuamina; Provincial Prosecutor Dave Simpson." The cour t also imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge iscredited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime. Background:" On November 15th, 2017, an employment standards officer conducted an employment standards inspection of Woodbine.The inspection was initiated after complaints by Woodbine employees were received by the Ministry of Labour alleging thatWoodbine was not paying its employees their wages on the established recurring pay day. The business employs about 140workers." During subsequent visits, inspections and requests for payroll records, it was revealed that Woodbine on or aboutNovember 1, 2018, failed as an employer to meet its established recurring pay period and pay day for the period of October 1, 2018to October 14, 2018. Specifically, Woodbine failed to meet its payroll date of October 24, 2018. Employees were paid on October30, 2018, November 1, 2018 and November 2, 2018 instead of October 24, 2018." On November 1, 2018, Woodbine Mall Holdings Inc. failed as an employer to comply with section 11 (1) of the Employ-ment Standards Act, 2000." That section states that "an employer shall establish a recurring pay period and a recurring pay day and shall pay all wagesearned during each pay period, other than accruing vacation pay, no later than the pay day for that period." The failure was also anoffence under section 132 of the act.

SPECIAL PANEL DISCUSSION HELD ON CHANNEL Y TOPROMOTE PEACE AMONG INDIA AND PAKISTAN

(L-R) SANDIP SANGHA, RAVI HOODA, MUHAMMAD SHABBIR CHOUDHARY, YUDHVIR JASWAL, RANA SUHAIL, RUPINDER HAYER.

See Something,Hear Something,Say Something!In 1986, Peel Regional Po-lice became a proud part-ner with Crime Stoppers toprovide a resource for com-munity members to play anactive role in solving crime.The program is run bytrained volunteers and in-cludes community partnerssuch as the Caledon detach-ment of the Ontario Provin-cial Police (OPP), InsuranceBureau of Canada, CanadianBorder Services Agency(CBSA), Ministry of NaturalResources (MNR), Societyfor the Prevention of Crueltyto Animals (SPCA) and theMinistry of Finance.All repor ts are investigatedwithin 90 days and the mostimportant job of the personrepor ting or 'Tipster' is tonot reveal to anyone thatthey have provided the in-formation. If a Tipster is re-vealed they are then con-sidered a witness and canbe subpoenaed to testify incour t.In the past 5 years PeelCr ime Stoppers has re-ceived over 10,000 tips, re-covered over two milliondol lars in proper ty andseized over 23 million dol-lars in drugs. A Tipster canreceive up to a maximum of$2000.00 for their informa-tion depending on the out-come of the investigation,however not all tips resultin a cash reward.There are a few differentways a Tipster can contactCrime Stoppers:- By phone at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 c o m m u n i t y

New Service Brampton Centrenow open in the Civic Centre

BRAMPTON: As of today, a new Service Brampton Centre is officiallyopen in the Civic Centre at 150 Central Park Drive.This is the first in-person Service Brampton Centre location outside ofCity Hall. The Service Brampton Centre in the Civic Centre providesanother convenient way to access information and City services.Residents can visit this location to request City services and com-plete some transactions on the spot, such as recreation registration,parking ticket payments and theatre ticket purchases. Only credit,debit or cheque payments will be accepted at this new location. Cash

payments may be made at City Hall. Current hours of operation areMonday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm.City services and information are available 24 hours a day, 7 days aweek by phone at 311, or online at www.brampton.ca. The ServiceBrampton Centres at City Hall and in the Civic Centre are designed toenhance the visitor experience at those locations, and provide anoption for residents who prefer face-to-face service.More Service Brampton Centres are expected to open at other City facilitiesin the coming years to provide in-person access to residents.

BRAMPTON CELEBRATES INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAYBRAMPTON, ON- Residents and visitors are invited to celebrate International Women's Day at Brampton City Hall on Thursday, March7, 2019 from 4:30 to 6 pm.Hosted by the City of Brampton and the Zonta Club of Brampton and Caledon, the event will kick off with a smudging ceremony and acelebratory walk from Daily Times Square into the City Hall Atrium, followed by music, mingling and free refreshments.In the City Hall Atrium, attendees can enjoy a series of speakers, presentations and information from local women's organizations,including:" Emcees Cristina Howorun and Tammie Sutherland from CityTV" A welcome address from Mayor Patrick Brown, Regional Councillor Rowena Santos and City Councillor Charmaine Williams" A keynote address from entrepreneur Bisma Haider, featured on CBC's Dragon's Den" Spoken Word by Lamoi Simmonds, Brampton Citizens Award recipient" An interactive session with Margaret Wallis-Duffy of Wallis for Wellness" Presentations by Rachel Lim and Ellia Abidi, Zonta Club students from Nor th Park and Central Peel Secondary Schools" Per formances by Hadassah Annor, Rosey Kaur Chohan, SAMA Models, and Nor thern Lights String Quar tet" Cheque presentation from Zonta Club to the Salvation Army Family Life Resource Centre"Brampton is hosting its first public International Women's Day event to recognize all the impor tant roles women play in our city. Thisevent is an opportunity to celebrate all that women have achieved here in Brampton, across Canada, and around the world," saidMayor Patrick Brown.All residents are invited to help the City honour women using the hashtag #WomenofBrampton on Twitter and Instagram. Post apicture or a video with a shor t statement (15 words or less) about a woman who inspires you using the hashtag #WomenofBrampton and tag@eventsbrampton on Instagram, or @Brampton_Events on Twitter for the chance to have your content shared on the City's channels.International Women's Day is recognized globally to celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of womenwhile calling for a more gender-balanced world. The theme for 2019's campaign is #BalanceforBetter.

Black History Month ShouldLive Beyond February

Black History Month Should Live Beyond FebruaryBlack History Month is an official invitation each February tolearn about the contributions of black people to our society -both past and present but that's most often where it ends.Peel Regional Police hosted a Lunch and Learn for employ-ees in honour of Black His-tory Month, with a keynotespeech delivered by Mr .Mark Beckles, head of RBCInsurance Advice Centre.The event was attended byofficers, civilians and mem-bers of our Black AdvisoryCommittee.During his speech, Markstressed the importance of hav-ing a Black History Month to honour cultures both old and new butalso issued a challenge for us to find ways to leap forward. Heemphasized that this can happen when we take time to learn aboutothers, embrace diversity, insist on inclusion and defend social jus-tice. This is an attainable goal if we all do our part.Pause. Reflect. Challenge. And Change.About Mark BecklesWidely recognized as a leader in the African-Canadian community,Beckles is known as a consensus builder for his ability to navigatecultural and social divides to bring communities together. His inter-national development experience was effectively demonstrated whenas president and CEO of the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund(Canada).In 2011, the Barbados-born community leader received the City ofToronto Bob Marley award for his commitment to diversity and citybuilding. A year later, he was recognized with the BBPA Distin-guished Men of Honour award. He was also recognized for his workin support of the Canadian Sickle Cell Network.In 2012, Mark received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubileemedal for his community volunteerism.

Have Your Say: CRTC Wantsto Hear Your Views on

Internet ProvidersBRAMPTON - The Canadian Radio-television and Telecom-munications Commission (CRTC) is asking Canadians, in-cluding residents of Brampton South, to share their experi-ences with Internet Service Providers."It's very important to hear the experiences of ordinary Cana-dians while making policy, so I encourage you to contact theCRTC to share any experiences you've had around contractclarity, bill shock or service cancellation," said MP Sonia ofSidhu, Member of Parliament (Brampton South).The CRTC's online consultation will be running until Monday,March 4th. Residents are encouraged to submit their com-ments via the CRTC's Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/cr tceng

THREE MALES ARRESTEDFOR ELEVEN BREAK ANDENTERS - PEEL POLICE

REGION OF PEEL - Investigators from 22 Division Breakand Enter and 21 Division Break and Enter units are advis-ing that three males have been arrested for eleven break andenters. Beginning in December 2018 and into January 2019 policewere investigating numerous break and enters into auto body shopsin Brampton. The males were responsible for stealing numeroushigh-end vehicles from the premises valued at over $500,000. All ofthe vehicles have been recovered.On January 24, 2019, Enock Makori, a 21-year-old male, from theCity of Guelph, was arrested and charged with numerous Break andEnters and Fail to Comply with Undertaking. He was held for a bailhearing that took place on January 25, 2019.On February 25, 2019, Daryl St. Marie (21-years-old), and Shem St.Marie (20-years-old), from the City of Brampton, were arrested andcharged with numerous Break and Enters, Theft Under $5000, Pos-session of Proper ty Obtained by Crime, and Breach of Under takings.Both males were held for bail hearings that took place on February26, 2019.Anyone who may have information concerning this investigation isasked to contact 22 Division Break and Enter Unit at (905)453-2121 Ext 2233. Information may also be left anony-mously by calling Peel Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS(8477), or by visiting https://peelcrimestoppers.ca/.

Freeze Out Auto Theft This WinterNo one likes getting into a cold vehicle first thing in themorning, especially during our Canadian winters. Whilenewer cars only need 30 seconds to a minute to warm up,it only takes a few seconds to become the victim of auto-theft if you leave your car while it's running.In 2016 there were 88 warm up thefts across the Region ofPeel and the number more than doubled in 2017 to 189. The majorityof these thef ts were in the months of December, January and Febru-ary when people would rather wait a few minutes inside their cozyhomes than shiver in a cold driver's seat.If you need to run back into the house while your vehicleis idling, here are some safety tips to reduce your risk ofbecoming a victim of vehicle theft.1. Keep the keys with you if your vehicle is a pushstar t and lock your doors.2. Use your spare set of keys so you can lock yourdoors when you leave.3. Install an automatic star t in your vehicle andensure the doors are locked.4. Don't leave your vehicle unattended for long pe-riods of time.

CANADIANS TO BENEFIT FROM ENHANCED PARENTAL LEAVEBrampton - The Government of Canada is putting in place an impor-tant new initiative that will allow more Canadians to enjoy parentalleave through the Employment Insurance system."The government's changes to EI Parent Benefits will help parentsspend more time with their kids at a critical stage in their lives. Andbeyond offering more time, it creates and incentive for both parents tospend some time at home, which is good for families and makes iteasier to plan a return to work," said MP Sonia of Sidhu, Member ofParliament (Brampton South).This new measure will provide an additional five weeks of Employ-ment Insurance parental benefits when parents agree to share paren-tal benefits, or an additional eight weeks for those who choose theextended parental benefit option. Parents with children born or placedfor adoption on or after March 17, 2019, will be eligible.As a result of this new measure it will be easier for both parents tospend time with their children. The initiative was originally supposedto take effect in June 2019, and moving it up to star t in March willallow 24,000 additional parents to benefit from it.

JUSTIN TRUDEAU MUST RESIGN:ANDREW SCHEEROTTAWA, ON - Andrew Scheer, Leader of Canada's Conser -vatives and of the Official Opposition, issued the followingstatement following the resignation of Treasury Board Presi-dent Jane Philpott:"Last week, Jody Wilson-Raybould lifted the veil on the corrup-tion around Justin Trudeau and his highest-ranking officials. Asustained and coordinated effor t to get her to inter fere in a crimi-nal case to benefit Justin Trudeau's friends and help the Liberalpar ty win elections. A campaign of bullying and intimidation,with veiled threats and unrelenting pressure. She told him tostop. He did not stop. And when she didn't do what he wanted,he fired her. This cor ruption scandal has engulfed his govern-ment and called into question the very rule of law our democ-racy depends on."Justin Trudeau cannot continue as Prime Minister given hisunprecedented political inter ference in the course of justice.Last week, I said he had lost the moral authority to govern.Today, a senior member of his inner circle has come to thesame conclusion. "Jane Philpott's resignation from cabinet clearly dem-onstrates a government in total chaos, led by a disgraced prime ministerconsumed with scandal."It's time for every Liberal cabinet minister to ask themselves the samequestions Jane Philpott did. Is this what they got into politics for? To prop upa prime minister who will subver t the law to win elections and benefit itscorporate friends? If not, they must stand up and be heard. LikeJane Philpott did today."If Liberal ministers stay silent, Canadians will have no choicebut to conclude that the ethical rot that infects this governmenthas consumed it entirely.


TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019opinion

Published By

Asian World Today Inc.1310, Midway Blvd, Unit # 31, Mississauga Ontario L5T 2K5

Direct Line - 647-272-8182Tel: 905-670-3687 Fax: 905-670-5344

YUDHVIR JASWALYUDHVIR JASWALYUDHVIR JASWALYUDHVIR JASWALYUDHVIR JASWALCHIEF EDITOR & CEO

yudhvir@southasiandaily.com647-272-8182647-272-8182647-272-8182647-272-8182647-272-8182

All Rights Reserved. No material herein or portions thereof may be printed without the written consent of thepublisher. DISCLAIMER: DISCLAIMER: DISCLAIMER: DISCLAIMER: DISCLAIMER: Asian World Today Inc. assumes all advertisers to be reliable and responsible for anyand all liability from their claims. The publisher reserves the right to refuse any advertisement he may see unfitfor publication. The opinions expressed in Midweek may not be those of the publisher.

Published By

Asian World Today Inc.1310, Midway Blvd, Unit # 31, Mississauga Ontario L5T 2K5

Direct Line - 647-272-8182Tel: 905-670-3687 Fax: 905-670-5344

E-mail : For [email protected]

Newspaper

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLYPublished in English every Tuesday

Radio

SOUTHASIAN PULSEPrime Time Mon to Fri - 10:00 AM to 12 Noon

on 770AMDrive Time Mon to Fri - 3:00 PM to 6 PM

on 91.9 FMLISTEN TO SOUTH ASIAN PULSE RADIO

ON YOUR MOBILELocal Number Toronto: 647-557-1017

Local Number Montreal: 438-795-9000To Listen in US: 213-493-2020

Television

CHANNEL YRogers 857

Bell 828Yupp TV

Online

WWW.SOUTHASIANDAILY.COMONLY News Portal for Southasian-Canadians

Cricket

CANADIAN PROFESSIONALCRICKET (CPC)

6th AnnualCPC Inter-City Cricket Cup Starting June 2013

6 Months of Non-stop cricket action

Events

AnnualMidweek Southasian Awards

MidWeek

SUNIL VERMASUNIL VERMASUNIL VERMASUNIL VERMASUNIL VERMAGRAPHICS DEPARTMENT

BASHIR NASIRBASHIR NASIRBASHIR NASIRBASHIR NASIRBASHIR NASIRPHOTOGRAPHERS

THAPLIYAL & RAI LAWTHAPLIYAL & RAI LAWTHAPLIYAL & RAI LAWTHAPLIYAL & RAI LAWTHAPLIYAL & RAI LAWOFFICEOFFICEOFFICEOFFICEOFFICE

LEGAL ADVISORNAVEEN SHARMANAVEEN SHARMANAVEEN SHARMANAVEEN SHARMANAVEEN SHARMA

INDIA MARKETING HEAD

DR. PUSHPINDER BRARDR. PUSHPINDER BRARDR. PUSHPINDER BRARDR. PUSHPINDER BRARDR. PUSHPINDER BRARCONTRIBUTING WRITER

ALI - NICE PHOTOGRAPHYALI - NICE PHOTOGRAPHYALI - NICE PHOTOGRAPHYALI - NICE PHOTOGRAPHYALI - NICE PHOTOGRAPHYPHOTOGRAPHERS

DISCLAIMER: THE VIEWS EXPRESSED ON THIS PAGE ARE THE PERSONAL OPINIONS OF THE AUTHORS.THE INFORMATION, FACTS OR OPINIONS APPEARING IN THEARTICLES DO NOT REFLECT VIEWS OF MIDWEEK AND ITS MANAGEMENT AND SO THE PAPER DOES NOT ASSUME ANY RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR THE SAME.

GURPREET SINGH LOONAGURPREET SINGH LOONAGURPREET SINGH LOONAGURPREET SINGH LOONAGURPREET SINGH LOONAOPERATIONS MANAGER

OIC provides India with a platformto engage with the Muslim world

E-mail : For [email protected]

The symbolism couldn’t have been starker. An empty chair for foundermember Pakistan as external affairs minister, Sushma Swaraj, rep-resenting India as a guest of honour at the meeting of foreign minis-ters of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Abu Dhabi,spoke of New Delhi’s deepening engagement with states in the 56-member grouping. Pakistan stayed away from the meeting on Fridayover the invitation extended to India at a time of heightened tensionsbetween the two sides. India used the forum to send out a messageon dismantling terrorism infrastructure in states that shelter terror-ists, and Ms Swaraj also spoke about India’s long-standing relationswith many OIC members and the recent boost in economic and secu-rity ties with West Asian nations.Pakistan hit back a day later with resolutions that spoke of atrocitiesand “Indian ter rorism” in Kashmir, with language similar to that ofpast OIC resolutions. The UAE’s foreign minister sought to balancethis with talk of India’s historic presence at the meet and the desirefor stronger ties.Almost 50 years ago, India had, with Saudi Arabia’s blessings, re-ceived an invitation to the Morocco meeting that laid the foundationsof the OIC. However, the manoeuvring of Pakistan’s then presidentYahya Khan put paid to India’s chances of becoming a member of thegrouping. Since then, Pakistan has regularly used the OIC to snipe atIndia, usually on the issue of Kashmir, something that caused consid-erable hear tburn in South Block. However, India has worked hard inrecent years to build robust economic, political and security coopera-tion with key OIC members from West Asia and also bolstered itsengagement with members in Asia under its Act East policy. This has

resulted in effor ts by members such as Bangladesh to push for ob-server status for India at the OIC.After all, if Russia, with some 16 million Muslims can be an ob-server, India, with the world’s third largest Muslim population, isa deserving candidate. There are also some eight million Indiansin West Asia, which continues to be the most impor tant source of

energy for the country. India’s presence at the OIC meeting couldopen doors for a broader engagement between the country andthe Muslim world that could shore up New Delhi’s interests inareas ranging from energy security to counter ter rorism coopera-tion at a time when the world order is in a flux and new partner-ships are being actively forged.

EMPTY PAKISTANI CHAIR AT ORGANISATION OF ISLAMIC COOPERATION (OIC) AS GUEST OF HONOUR SUSHMA SWARAJ GIVESHER SPEECH IN ABU DHABI ON FRIDAY. (ANI)

Pakistan’s moment of international isolation has arrivedThe ceremonial handover by Pakistan of a captured Indian Air Force pilot might make for good television, but Pakistan’s increasingglobal isolation is the story that has greater significance. Talking heads on television in both countries claim victory for their side on analmost daily basis. Amid this noise, and well after the current heat dissipates, it is Pakistan’s loss of friends abroad that will havestrategic consequences. The day Wing Commander Abhinandan Var thaman returned, Pakistan failed to attend a meeting of the Organi-zation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), of which it is a founding member, for the first time ever. This was Pakistan’s way to protest therefusal by OIC foreign ministers to rescind their invitation to India’s foreign minister to address the conference in Abu Dhabi.That India’s external affairs minister, Sushma Swaraj, addressed the 57-member body of majority-Muslim countries while Pakistanwas absent speaks volumes about the state of Pakistan’s ties even with traditional allies. The host, United Arab Emirates (UAE), hadonly recently helped bail Pakistan out of its economic difficulties. But it chose India over Pakistan as the preferred guest at the OICmeeting within a couple of weeks after the Pulwama terror attack and just a few days after the Indian air strike inside Pakistan.India-Pakistan crises are not new, nor are ter rorist attacks by Pakistan-based groups or India’s attempts to coerce Pakistan in theiraftermath. What has changed this time is the regional and global reaction to both the February 14 terror attack at Pulwama, where aJaish e Muhammad suicide bomber attacked an Indian paramilitary convoy, and India’s punitive action against Pakistan.Almost every major country, as well as the United Nations Security Council, have been unequivocal in condemning the ter rorist attackand most have not minced words in assigning the blame to Pakistan. Even China disregarded Pakistan’s usual ploy of linking terrorismto the situation in Jammu and Kashmir or demanding more evidence about those who orchestrated the attack in Pulwama.This global condemnation was also visible at the February 17 meeting of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) where Pakistan waskept on the grey list — meant for countries that have not done enough against money laundering and terrorist financing.Pakistan has reacted to global opprobrium with predictable denials but there seem to be no takers for the disavowal outside Pakistan.In the eyes of the world, there is no question that terrorist groups continue to freely operate, recruit, and obtain financial suppor t inPakistan and the country’s government is not doing enough to control them. Even after the Mumbai terror attacks of 2008, statementsby countries that used to be allies of Pakistan — the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union, as well as Gulfcountries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — provided some leeway to Pakistan. Words such as “non-state actors”were sometimes used alongside expressions of faith in Pakistan’s promises of acting against the terrorists.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 c a n a d a

General Accounting & Bookkeeping

BRAMPTON ENTREPRENEURSCORES AT DRAGONS' DEN

Co-founders of fashion brand "Love &Nudes" secure $40K in seed funding

BRAMPTON- Following a successful pitch to CBC's Dragons' Denyesterday, Chantal Carter Taylor and Colleen Cole - Brampton-basedco-founders of the fashion brand Love & Nudes - secured $40,000 inseed funding in exchange for a 40 per cent stake in their company.Taylor, who first approached the Brampton Entrepreneur Centre (BEC)in 2016 for suppor t in developing her business model, was featuredon the reality show that aired Canada-wide on Thursday February 28,2019. Presenting their business to the panel of venture capitalists (the"Dragons") the duo outlined the reasons that led them to establishLove & Nudes in 2017 and spoke about their plans to scale up theirbusiness. Their compelling pitch, and strong business propositionand model, captured the attention of the Dragons. Love & Nudesprovides underwear options to meet the demands of women withdarker skin - almost two-thirds of the world's female population -options that were previously almost non-existent.They also touched on their company's mission to empower women ofcolour. All Love & Nudes garments are made in a women-owned, fair-wage facility that employs single mothers in Colombia.Speaking earlier to Client Spotlight, BEC's online channel that high-lights local entrepreneurial success stories, Taylor said: "BEC's advi-sors gave me a lot of guidance in registering my business, preparingmy marketing strategy, and making connections with the right peopleand organizations. BEC events were another great way to learn andconnect - I've listened to some awesome business advice from speak-ers, and received a ton of inspiration from fellow entrepreneurs andtheir business stories." BEC runs events throughout the year to sup-port businesses and connect entrepreneurs. It also offers individualconsultations and advice, and is the access point for funding andprograms to support star tups and established businesses. Visitwww.brampton.ca/bec for more information.

Brampton co-hosts international summit on Smart Cities technologiesBRAMPTON: As cities around the world face multiple challenges on social, economic and environmental fronts, governments must useinnovative technologies and collaborate with businesses, universities and communities to facilitate sustainable urban development,said international experts at the Smar t Cities Technologies Summit in Brampton on Tuesday, February 26, 2019.The event, co-hosted by the City of Brampton and the Information Technology Association of Canada (ITAC), brought together exper tsfrom municipalities, tech companies and universities across Canada, and even Europe. Discussions centered on human mobility, dataprivacy and security, digital transformation networks, modernizing city services and civic innovation.The summit took place within the context of how populations are rapidly rising in cities around the world. According to a recent UNrepor t, 68 per cent of the global population will be living in cities by 2050, compared to 55 per cent today. This increase could placesignificant pressures on aging urban infrastructure, and unprecedented demands for food, water, energy, healthcare, transpor tation andsecurity in cities.Panelists also cautioned against?the view that holds technology as the "be all, end all" for every?urban?problem. Smar t City plannersare required to integrate a variety of?creative solutions that go beyond technology, such as inclusive community involvement andcollaboration with the academic and business sectors.?The event comes at a time when Brampton is driving several projects that encourage innovation, technology and job creation.These projects include par tnering with Ryerson University to launch the Cybersecure Catalyst, a national centre for cybersecurity topromote training and cer tification, research and development, and commercial innovation in this growing field.The City is also collaborating with Ryerson to launch an incubator space in downtown Brampton, designed to suppor t both emergingstar tups and established businesses.Quotes"It is fitting for Brampton - Canada's second fastest growing and youngest city - to have co-hosted this summit with ITAC. The eventcomes at a time when exciting developments are taking place in Brampton, which reinforce Brampton's claim as one of Canada'sfastest-emerging tech and innovation hubs. Our city has many of the components required to become one of the smar test urbandestinations in the world, creating jobs."- Mayor Patrick Brown

BIG BLOW TO LIBERAL GOVERNMENTCABINET MINISTER JANE PHILPOTT RESIGNSIn a serious blow to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, a second member of his Cabinet resignedon Monday, saying she had lost confidence in how the government had dealt with an escalating politi-cal scandal.The depar ture of recently appointed Treasury Board President Jane Philpott, who was in overall charge ofgovernment spending, deprives Tr udeau of another power ful female Cabinet minister just months ahead of anelection that polls show he could lose."Sadly, I have lost confidence in how the government has dealt with this matter and in how it has respondedto the issues raised," Philpott said in a statement.

ONTARIO PROVINCIAL POLICE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER BRADBLAIR FIRED. BLAIR WAS CRITIC OF RON TAVERNER'S APPOINT-

MENT BY FORD GOVERNMENTQUEEN'S PARK - The government of Ontario has fired Deputy Director of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP),Brad Blair, "Brad Blair is both a whistleblower and a distinguished officer with decades of exemplary service,"said NDP Leader Andrea Horwath who is calling for a full public inquiry into Doug Ford's meddling in the OPP,and the firing of Blair. "His actions were instrumental in uncovering the extent of Doug Ford's meddling in thehiring process of the new OPP commissioner, and shining a light on the cesspool of political inter ference intothe OPP - including Blair's revelation of Ford's disgusting, possibly illegal, attempts to procure a luxury supervanoff the books, secretly using public money. Community Safety Minister Sylvia Jones denies there was politicalinvolvement in the firing of deputy OPP commissioner Brad Blair.“I was notified; I was not asked for permission.I was not asked for advice,” Jones said of the decision to terminate Blair.

Ontario Announces New GO Station at WoodbineTORONTO —Jeff Yurek, Minister of Transpor tation, along with Kinga Surma, MPP for Etobicoke Centre and Parliamentary Assistant to theMinister of Tr ansportation, and Phil Verster, President and CEO of Metrolinx, announced our government's plan to build a new GO station at Woodbineat no cost to taxpayers.The Ontario Government and Metrolinx are par tnering with Woodbine Entertainment to build the station along Highway 27, on the Kitchener GO railline. "Our government is putting Ontario's transit users and taxpayers first by delivering a modern GO station at Woodbine," said Minister Yurek. "Weare moving quickly to address transit needs and get relief to people who rely on the GO network."As par t of Ontario's broader strategy to deliver more transit solutions in the GTHA, the province is pursuing a transit-oriented development approachto the delivery of transit infrastructure to reduce the cost to taxpayers.Woodbine Enter tainment has development plans that will bring new jobs, housing and enter tainment opportunities to the area around the station."The new station is terrific news for everyone in Etobicoke and the surrounding area," said PA Surma. "Our government came into office with a clearmandate to help people and this will better connect Etobicoke residents to the GO line.""A new GO station at Woodbine will offer oppor tunities to live and work near a major employer and enter tainment destination, as well as betteraccess to the local community and jobs in this employment mega zone," said Phil Verster, President and CEO of Metrolinx. "This is a wonder fulannouncement for our customers. We look forward to working with Woodbine Enter tainment on this exciting venture."



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 i n d i a

22 trains cancelled, 24 diverted asthousands of Punjab farmers lay

siege to railway tracks

‘The protesters sat on the tracks at1:30 pm disrupting the traffic onAmritsar-Delhi route, forcingcancellation of as many as 22 trainsand diversion of 24. Thousands ofpassengers were left stranded.

Thousands of farmers, labourers and women under the banner ofKisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) on Monday blockedAmritsar-Delhi rail line at Jandiala town, 20 kms from the districtheadquar ters, continuing their protest of ‘Jail Bharo Andolan’ on four thday. The protesters sat on the tracks at 1:30 pm disrupting the trafficon Amritsar-Delhi route, forcing cancellation of as many as 22 trainsand diversion of 24. Thousands of passengers were left stranded.Director of Amritsar railway station Amrit Singh said, “We have can-celled 22 trains while 24 trains were diver ted via Amritsar-Tarn Taran-Beas and Jalandhar-Mukerian-Pathankot routes. Besides this, eighttrains have been shor t-terminated till Beas railway station and sixtrains have been shor t-originated from Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Phagwaraand Beas railway stations.”Major trains affecting the region that have been cancelled by Nor th-ern Railway include Amritsar-Nangal Dam (14505), Amritsar-Chandigarh (12412), Chandigarh-Amritsar (12241), Amritsar-Hisar(54602) and Ludhiana-Ambala (64524). The Amritsar-Chandigarh(12412) train was cancelled for Tuesday.Six of the nine trains diver ted via other routes include Delhi-Pathankot(22429), AmritsarNanded (12422), Amritsar-Chhindwara Junction(18238), Amritsar-New Delhi (12030), Amritsar-Howrah (13006) andJammu Tawi-Tatanagar Junction (18102).Meanwhile, New Delhi-Amritsar (12497/98) and Saharsa-Amritsar(15531/32) were shor t-terminated at Beas, 99 kms from here.Earlier, the protesters were on a sit-in outside the Tarn Taran deputycommissioner office over their various demands since March 1. Theyhad been asking the state government to either meet their demandsor arrest them. The protestors flayed the Centre and Punjab govern-ment for their ‘unkept promises’. State president, KMSC, Satnam SinghPannu said farmers have been committing suicide as the state gov-ernment has not waived off their entire loan. Farmers are receiving

notices of ‘kurki’ from many banks and even many of them are beingarrested, he alleged. The protesters demanded that full loan of farm-ers and labourers should be immediately waived off. ‘Kurkis’ of landand arrest of farmers should be stopped, blank cheques taken bybanks and commission agents from farmers for giving them loansshould be returned, payment for sugarcane crop with 15 per centinterest should be released, cut-ting electricity tariff to Rs 1 perunit and pending electricity billsof labourers should be waived off,were their other demands. “Thegovernment should arrest us orgive us assurance to meet all ourdemands or else we will continuethe stir,” said Pannu. Deputy com-missioner (DC), Amritsar, ShivdularSingh Dhillon, said the officers of thedistrict administration were negotiatingwith the farmers. “Our talk with the farm-ers is going on to lift the protest,” headded.

BJP steps up attack onCongress after Digvijaya Singh’sPulwama ‘accident’ barb

Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday hit back atthe Congress par ty after senior leaders including Kapil Sibal,Digvijaya Singh and P Chidambaram sought clarification fromthe Narendra Modi government over repor ts in internationalmedia on strike by the Indian Air Force in Pakistan’s Balakot.Prasad, who is also the chief spokesperson of the BJP, saidstatements made by the Congress leaders are aimed at “low-ering the morale” of the forces. “Has Digvijaya Singh re-duced himself to such a low level that he will call the mostheinous terrorist attack on 45 CRPF jawans as an accident?This is their thinking,” said Prasad at a press conference atthe BJP headquar ters in New Delhi.Digvijaya Singh, earlier in the day, had said, “…some for-eign media have raised doubts over the air strike by our airforce following Pulwama accident which is putting questionmark on the credibility of our Government of India.” Prasadalleged that Digvijaya Singh, Kapil Sibal and P Chidambaram,who targeted the government over IAF strike on Monday,were issuing statements “as par t of a design” that has “ap-proval of Congress president Rahul Gandhi”.“Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi must answer…These threesenior leaders (Kapil Sibal, Digvijaya Singh and PChidambaram) who are repeat offenders are not saying inisolation. It is par t of a great design with the blessings ofRahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi,” said Prasad.Sibal and Chidambaram had sought answers from the gov-ernment citing conflicting repor ts in international media anddiffering claims made by BJP leaders over IAF strike at terrorcamps in Balakot on February 26. “IAF Vice Air Marshaldeclined to comment on casualties. The MEA statement saidthere were no civilian or military casualties. So, who put outthe number of casualties at 300-350,” Chidambaram said onMonday. Responding to the charge, Prasad read out a fewrepor ts published by Indian media to state that considerabledamage was caused to the terrorists in the IAF attack afterPulwama terror attack. “Not even a single country has soughtevidence of IAF air strike,” he said adding, “This is clear thatpurely for the consideration of votes, they are lowering themorale of India.”

No alliance with AAP in Delhi, says Congress’ SheilaDikshit after Rahul Gandhi’s meetingDelhi Congress chief Sheila Dikshit on Tuesday said there will be no alliance with the Aam AadmiPar ty (AAP) in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The decision was taken in a meeting of the DelhiCongress leaders with Congress president Rahul Gandhi.“There will be no alliance with AAP. The decision was taken unanimously,” said Dikshit whileexiting the meeting.This announcement puts to rest weeks of speculations of an alliance between Congress and AAP inDelhi, which, according to Delhi chief minister and AAP head Arvind Kejriwal, was “necessary todefeat BJP”.Senior leaders who were present in the meeting said the leadership also had a problem with theseat distribution proposed by the AAP.“We are a national par ty capable of winning the election in Delhi all by ourselves. Why should wefight only on one or two seats?” a par ty leader said.

Priya Dutt, Milind Deora, Eknath Gaikwad, SanjayNirupam: Congress candidates from Mumbai?After Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s city visit on F riday, the Mumbai unit of the par ty hasalmost finalised candidates for four of the five seats they will contest in the Lok Sabha polls.The city has six Lok Sabha constituencies. Par ty’s former MP Priya Dutt has repor tedly agreed tofight from the Nor th-Central constituency, while Milind Deora is par ty’s Mumbai South candidate.Eknath Gaikwad and Mumbai Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam are expected to be in the fray from theSouth-Central and Nor th-West constituencies, respectively.Although Gandhi did not hold any formal meetings with the state or city leaders, the par ty presidenthas set the ball rolling over disputed seats, alliance with smaller par ties and probable candidatesin key constituencies.Priya Dutt, who has stayed away from par ty functions for the past few months, met Gandhi atMumbai airpor t on Friday morning for a few minutes and repor tedly agreed to fight the polls. Dutthad issued a press statement two months ago saying she was opting out of the fray for personalreasons. She was actively involved in the rally at MMRDA grounds on Friday, where par ty workersfrom her constituency were seen holding placards that read: ‘Priya Dutt Once Again’. “The par ty’sstate and Mumbai leadership convinced her to not opt out, as the constituency is one of the mostfavoured for the par ty. She has star ted working in her constituency,” said a par ty leader.While Deora has no competition within the par ty for his seat, Gaikwad is believed to have scoredover his competitors for the South-Central seat. Similarly, Nirupam’s candidature is considered tohave been finalised by the par ty. The par ty still hasn’t got a suitable candidate in Mumbai Nor thconstituency to take on the Bharatiya Janata Par ty’s incumbent MP Gopal Shetty. “We have candi-dates for Mumbai Nor th too. We expect the screening committee to meet in Delhi in the next fewdays to take a call,” said Nirupam.


TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019i n d i a

IAF PILOT ABHINANDAN WILL NOW BE PARTOF RAJASTHAN SCHOOL SYLLABUS

School students in Rajasthan will now read the story of bravery ofIndian Air Force pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Var thaman intextbooks.The proposal came from the state’s education minister Govind SinghDotasra who cited the pilot’s school education in Jodhpur as hetweeted on Monday “Abhinandan’s story of bravery will be introducedin the school syllabus of Rajasthan in a bid to honour him.” He alsowrote a s imi lar Facebook post late Monday using the#AbhinandanDiwas.But Dotasra did not mention the classes where Wing CommanderAbhinandan’s story will be studied.Wing Commander Abhinandan emerged a hero after he shot down aPakistani F-16 warplane before his MiG 21 was downed forcing himto bail out. He was captured and spent about 60 hours in Pakistanicustody before returning home Friday night.Earlier the minister had proposed the addition of stories of trooperswho died in the Pulwama attack in the syllabus which was accepted

‘Rajasthan’s education ministerGovind Singh Dotasra said thestep is to honour the fighter pilot.

by the syllabus review committee. Dotasra recently constituted twocommittees to review the syllabus of the school textbooks of thestate. He had earlier accused the previous government of politicizingeducation and neglecting history, culture and great personalities inschool textbooks.The education depar tment of Rajasthan recently inaugurated a Gov-ernment defence academy which is to be set up with an investment ofRs. 31.5 crore in Sikar. The academy named Maharao ShekhajiShashastra Bal Prasikshan Academy will provide oppor tunity to theyouth for recruitment in army, navy and air force, Dotasra said.

Opposition chorus grows for proof of air strike in PakistanAll of this came even as Indian Air Force chief BS Dhanoa steeredclear of a question on the number of casualties, the core of the contro-versy. Following the air strike on Februar y 26, Indian intelligenceofficials mentioned numbers in the range of 300 to 350 to media (in-cluding Hindustan Times). The numbers weren’t official estimatesand the officials were not on record. Since then, questions have swirledabout the actual number amid effor ts by Pakistan to downplay theimpact of the Indian air strike.On Sunday, Bharatiya Janata Par ty (BJP) president Amit Shah said

that 250 terrorists were killed in the air strike.The government has, however, not released any evidence of the ca-sualties as demanded by the Opposition.Hours before Dhanoa’s comments, former finance minister and Con-gress leader P Chidambaram, apparently referring to statements lastweek by the air force, said on Twitter : “IAF Vice Air Marshal declinedto comment on casualties. The MEA statement said there were nocivilian or military casualties. So, who put out the number of casual-ties at 300-350?”

Chidambaram added: “As a proudcitizen, I am prepared to believemy government. But if we wantthe world to believe, the govern-ment must make the effor t, notindulge in opposition-bashing.”The BJP shot back through Unionminister Piyush Goyal . “Thisshows Congress par ty believesin Pakistan propaganda and notin our own armed forces and whatour army, navy and air force said.It is thoroughly condemnable andI am ashamed that we have suchleaders like P Chidambaram inthe wonder ful state of Tami lNadu,” Goyal said in Tuticorin.

Shiv Sena joins Oppn chorus,says citizens have right to

know casualties in IAF strike

The Shiv Sena on Tuesday said that Indians have a rightto know about the casualties in the air strike on a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) camp in Pakistan. Opposition par tieshave also been asking the BJP-led NDA government toreveal the exact number of terrorists killed in the Febru-ary 26 air strike. The Sena in an editorial in par ty mouth-piece Saamana asked, “The question that how many ter-rorists were killed in the airstrikes is not just being askedby the political opponents of Modi. The media of England,USA, etc too have raised this question. Citizens of thecountry have the right to know what and how much harmhas been caused to the enemy by the defence forces. Wedo not think the morale of our forces is being lowered byasking for it.” The Centre has so far not given any officialfigure of casualties of the airstrikes. On Monday, IndianAir Force head Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa said the IAFdoesn’t count human casualties and counts whether tar-gets were hit or not. Also read: Opposition chorus growsfor proof of air strike in Pakistan. On Sunday, BJP presi-dent Amit Shah had claimed that over 250 terrorists werekilled in the airstrike. Shah’s claim came after Union min-ister of state, electronic and IT, S S Ahluwalia said onFriday that the strikes were meant to scare and warn andnot to take human lives and neither the Prime Ministernor the BJP chief had mentioned any figure of casualties.The editorial said that the Opposition par ties have askedfor “proofs” which has angered the prime minister. “Wheredid the 300-kg RDX used in Pulwama attack come from?How many terrorists were killed in our strikes on terrorcamps? Discussions over these will happen till the lastdays of polls,” it said.The Sena added that the Opposition par ties are now “dis-appointed” after Prime Minister dropped a “bomb” on the“burning issues of inflation, unemployment, Rafale deal”,which were used as ammo against the Narendra Modi-government. The Sena added that the strike on terroristlaunch pad and a warlike situation had sidelined issueslike Ram temple in Ayodhya, repealing of Ar ticle 370 inJammu and Kashmir and the agrarian crisis.Allies BJP and Shiv Sena, who have often taken potshotsat each other, finalised a seat-sharing pact last month for2019 Lok Sabha elections.

‘THEY WANT TO STRIKE ATME, BUT I WANT TO STRIKE

AT TERROR’: PM MODI

Can Sharad Pawarupset the BJP-Senaalliance in western

Maharashtra?For more than 15 years till 2014, west-ern Maharashtra ruled the state with afirm grip as leaders elected from theregion controlled the reins in the gov-ernment. In 2014, however, thingschanged significantly when the BJP-Sena wrested control of WesternMaharashtra’s sugar belt from the Con-gress-NCP by securing 7 out 12 of LokSabha seats. This tally was higher byone, till the time that the SwabhimaniPaksha (SWP) was with the Na-tional Democratic Alliance (NDA)and had not turned a rival.The outcome of the Lok Sabha pollsfollowed by the assembly electionschanged this situation dramatically.With 12 constituencies spreadacross six districts, WesternMaharashtra, largely dominated byMarathas, is now as much crucialfor the Nationalist Congress Par ty-Congress alliance as it is for theBJP and Shiv Sena in the 2019 gen-eral elections. The saffron combineis hopeful of gaining from the 16per cent reservation it has offeredto the Maratha community. The cur-rent drought in Maharashtra is un-likely to affect this regionelectorally. The stakes are higherfor NCP and Congress as the twoparties are seeking to regain theirlost grip over the region.

They want to strike Modi, I want to strike terrorism,”Modi said in Ahmedabad on Tuesday after launching the‘PM Shram Yogi Maandhan Yojana’ pension scheme forunorganised sector.He said the opposition is restless because he has got ridof the “middleman culture”. “They (the opposition) areshouting because their shop has shut. So now they arescreaming ‘Modi hatao, Modi hatao’ get rid of me. ButThis chowkidaar stands strong in his resolve,” Modi said.Modi has taken an aggressive stand against the opposi-tion since the Indian Air Force carried out airstrikes onterror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad’s largest camp in Paki-stan at Balakot on February 26. He had targeted the oppo-sit ion on Monday too during his ral ly in Gujarat’sJamnagar. He had said that the Rafale fighters would havegiven greater firepower to the IAF during the aerial withPakistan a day after the strike at the Jaish camp.The PM had accused past regimes of failing to crackdown on terrorism and questioned the opposition for in-dulging in vote-bank politics. He claimed that he wouldnot hesitate to hunt down terrorists in their safe havens ifIndia was attacked. In an apparent dig at Congress presi-dent Rahul Gandhi, PM Modi on Tuesday said only thoseoblivious to sleeping hungry at night can think that pov-er ty is a state of mind. He said for some people, povertyis just an “opportunity to click photos”. Rahul Gandhi, ina rally in 2013, had said “poverty is just a state of mind”which was criticised by his opponents.“This (pension)?scheme is aimed at uplift of the sectionof society which has been ignored and left at the mercy ofGod. They (Congress) gave slogans of garibi hatao (endpover ty). They ruled the country for 55 years and col-lected votes in the name of poor,” Modi said.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 i n d i aY MEDIA PRESENTS

WHO WILL WIN ?INDIA DECIDES - ELECTIONS 2019

AAP DECLARES CANDIDATES FOR 6 SEATS IN DELHI

Says No Alliance With Congress

‘THE SEVENTH AND THE FINALSEAT, WEST DELHI, IS STILLBEING DISCUSSED AND IS YETTO BE ANNOUNCED

CONTD. FROM PAGE 1The par ty will field Atishi from East Delhi, Raghav Chaddha fromSouth Delhi, Pankaj Gupta from Chandni Chowk, Dilip Pandey fromNorth East Delhi, Gugan Singh from Nor th West Delhi and BrajeshGoel from the New Delhi Lok Sabha seat. The six candidates wereearlier appointed as in charge on the respective Lok Sabha seats.The candidate for the seventh and the final seat, West Delhi, is stillbeing discussed and will be announced later, senior par ty leaderGopal Rai said at a press conference this afternoon.The BJP had won the seven Delhi seats in the 2014 election. Sincethen, however, AAP has made i ts presence felt with impressivewins in assembly polls. "We won 66 out of 77 seats in Assemblyelections. We will try to make a similar presence felt during theLok Sabha elections," Mr Rai said.On why AAP did not tie-up with the Congress to take on the BJPand PM Modi, Gopal Rai pinned the blamed squarely on the Con-gress and its chief Rahul Gandhi."Sheila Dikshit has said a straight no to alliance. Rahul Gandhialso said not possible... Aam Aadmi Party wanted the alliance,but the Congress is not ready" Gopal Rai said.At a public meeting last week, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwalhad said he was "tired" of trying to persuade the Congress toagree to an alliance with his AAP. A day later, Sheila Dikshit re-

tor ted, "When did AAP ever come to us? If Arvind wants an alli-ance, then he should directly speak to me."Just weeks before that, Arvind Kejriwal and Rahul Gandhi bothattended a meeting of opposition leaders at Maharashtra politi-cian Sharad Pawar's home in Delhi. West Bengal Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee, who also par ticipated in the discussions, toldrepor ters that AAP and Congress had been urged to consider ty-ing up in Delhi.Mr Kejriwal's par ty was born out of the anti-corruption movementagainst the Congress over the demand of an anti-cor ruption body. In2013, the Congress helped AAP take power in Delhi, but Mr Kejriwalquit after a 49-day stint over the anti-corruption Lokpal bill, adding tothe acrimony. Two years later, AAP returned to power with a spec-tacular mandate and the Congress was wiped out. The Congress, saysources, believes AAP rode to power by eating into its vote-base.

CONTD. FROM PAGE 1There has been a controversy over the number of people killedin the attack on the JeM camp in Balakot. While officially nofigures have been given, BJP President Amit Shah claimed inAhmedabad on Sunday that more than 250 terrorists were killedin that airstrike.Union Minister S.S. Ahluwalia had said that the Balakot strikewas to convey a message that India has the capacity to strikedeep inside enemy lines and was not intended to inflict anyhuman casualties.Dhanoa said the bomb damage assessment was a differentaspect and it was difficult for the IAF to confirm casualties. Howmany people were inside the targets cannot be said.He also defended the use of the vintage MiG-21 Bison in theaerial engagement with a large package of intruding PakistanAir Force (PAF) fighters on the Line of Control (LoC)."One is a planned operation in which you plan and carry out. Butwhen an adversary does a strike on you, every available air-craft goes in, irrespective of which aircraft it is. All aircraft arecapable of fighting the enemy."The Mig-21 Bison is a capable aircraft, it has been upgraded, ithas better radar, air-to air missiles and better weapons sys-tem," he said.Refusing to get drawn into Prime Minister Narendra Modi's com-ment that the outcome would have been different had Rafalejets joined the service, Dhanoa said that after the upgradation,the Bison is 3.5 generation with a range of missiles and avion-ics.He said it has all the systems like chaffs, flares and other fea-tures.The IAF chief also said that the first Rafale should come to Indiaby September.Amidst various repor ts in the international media questioningthe veracity of the Indian claim of shooting down a PAF F-16,Dhanoa said it is confirmed that the American jets were used.On the question of the US objecting to Pakistan using F-16s in acombat role against India, the IAF chief said he was not awarewhat is the end-user agreement between Washington andIslamabad over F-16s.He said India got the evidence that F-16 fighter planes wereused by Pakistan in its attack on India as a par t of the AMRAAMmissile was recovered from Indian soil.Talking about Wing Commander Abhinandan Var thaman gettingback into his squadron, Dhanoa said it will depend on his medi-cal condition and how fast he recovers to get back into a fightercockpit."Abhinandan flying again depends on his medical fitness. If heis fit to fly a fighter plane then he will go back to the same unit."Elaborating on the IAF's future inductions, he said final pricenegotiations for 83 LCAs will be finalised soon.The IAF is awaiting LCA mk 1a and LCA mk 2, still on the draw-ing board, to replace Jaguars, Mig-29s, and Mirages leading tothe fifth generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).

AIR FORCE DOESN'T COUNTCASUALTIES: IAF CHIEF B.S. DHANOA

CONGRESS SAYS NO ALLIANCEWITH AAP, KEJRIWAL FURIOUS

CONTD. FROM PAGE 1The announcement by the former Delhi chief minister camefollowing a meeting with Congress president Rahul Gandhi.Meanwhile, Kejriwal slammed Congress for not joining handswith AAP and said that the move will split anti-BJP votes. "Ata time when the whole country wants to defeat Modi- Shahduo, Cong is helping BJP by splitting anti-BJP vote. Rumoursr that Cong has some secret understanding with BJP. Delhi isready to fight against Cong-BJP alliance. People will defeatthis unholy alliance," tweeted the AAP leader. AAP had al-ready announced names of its candidates for six Lok Sabhaconstituencies in Delhi a couple of days back, and was in theprocess of announcing the name of another candidate for thelast Lok Sabha constituency in Delhi.

MAYAWATI MUST TOWER OVER ALL IN POLLPOSTERS: BSP DIKTAT TO CANDIDATES

Bahujan Samaj Par ty (BSP) president Mayawati on Tuesday directedthe par ty leaders not to use their big photographs on hoardings andbanners during the Lok Sabha election campaign.According to the directives, all banners and hoardings should havebig pictures of Mayawati, dalit icons and par ty symbol with a smallphotograph of the Lok Sabha candidate on the lower corner of thehoarding.The directive was read to par ty leaders and office-bearers by BSPzonal coordinator and Rajya Sabha member Bhimrao Ambedkar atthe par ty’s divisional level meeting held here on Tuesday.“The par ty president has asked the leaders and candidates not to putup their big pictures on hoardings and banners at public places. Manyleaders have put up hoardings which violate the directive. All suchhoardings and banners should be immediately removed,” Ambedkarsaid.He said the leaders who continued to violate the order would be ex-pelled from the par ty. “If a leader wishes to put up hoardings, he willhave to submit an application with the sample of the hoarding at thestate unit office. The approved samples will be used for campaigningand creating awareness among the people,” Ambedkar said.“The par ty leaders should understand that ‘behenji’ (Mayawati) is themessiah of dalits. She is revered by members of the Scheduled Castecommunity across the country and there is no bigger dalit leader thanher. All hoardings and banners should have her big pictures,” he said.A senior BSP leader, who did not wish to be named, said Mayawatiwas trying to instil discipline among par ty leaders and office-bearers

before the crucial Lok Sabha election.The BSP leaders have also been directed to work in co-ordinationwith the Samajwadi Par ty (SP) leaders and workers.In the review meeting held on Sunday, Mayawati had expressed con-cern over the continuing differences between the BSP and SP work-ers and appealed them to work in coordination.According to BSP leaders, the par ty is also planning to launch cam-paigns to create awareness about the working of voter verifiable pa-per audit trail (VVPAT) as it would be used in polling.“Majority of BSP suppor ters live in rural areas and many of them areilliterate and not tech savvy. There is a need to train them about theuse of VVPAT,” said another BSP leader.Meanwhile, the BSP is also planning to celebrate the bir th anniver-sary of par ty founder Kanshi Ram on March 15.“The par ty suppor ters will gather at Kanshi Ram Memorial in Lucknowto pay their obeisance. The suppor ters have been urged to donategenerously for the programme. If the model code of conduct is imple-mented before March 15, the programme will be celebrated in a simplemanner,” Ambedkar said.“The par ty leaders have also star ted organising meetings at divi-sional and district headquar ters across the state from Tuesday. TheBSP will transfer its vote to SP candidates on the seats that have beenallotted to alliance par tner. The same formula will be followed by theSP on seats allotted to it,” he added.


TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019w o r l d

Pakistan Navy claims it thwarted Indiansubmarine from entering its waters

PAKISTAN ISSUES ORDER TO SEIZEASSETS OF ALL BANNED OUTFITS

Donald Trump to end trade preference deal,

INDIA SAYS WON’T HIT EXPORTSPresident Trump said that he had“determined that India has notassured the United States that it willprovide equitable and reasonableaccess to the markets of India”.‘

The Pakistan Navy also shared a footagewith the media, which it said was “actual”.The image showed that the footage wasmade at 2035 hours on March 4.‘

The Pakistan Navy Tuesday claimed it had thwar ted an attempt by anIndian submarine to enter the country’s territorial waters.The repor t comes af ter tensions flared up between the two nuclear-armed neighbours following a terror attack claimed by Pakistan-basedJaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in which 40 Central Reserve Police Forcepersonnel were killed in Kashmir’s Pulwama district on February 14.The Pakistan Navy also shared a footage with the media, which itsaid was “actual”. The image showed that the footage was made at2035 hours on March 4.“The Pakistan Navy used its specialised skills to ward off the subma-rine, successfully keeping it from entering Pakistani waters,” aspokesperson said in a statement.The Indian submarine was not deliberately targeted by Pakistan togive peace a chance, the spokesperson said.“The Indian submarine was not targeted keeping in view Pakistan’spolicy of peace,” the official said, adding that India must learn fromthis incident and “move towards peace”.“The Pakistan Navy is always ready to guard its territorial waters andis capable of responding to any kind of aggression with full force,” the

navy said. The naval forces claimed that it was the second attemptsince November 2016 that they have caught the Indian Navy trying toenter the country’s territorial waters.Earlier in 2016, the Pakistan Navy successfully repelled an Indiansubmarine from entering the country’s ter ritorial waters, the repor tsaid.After the Pulwama attack, the Indian Air Force carried out a counter-terror operation, hitting what it said was a JeM training camp in Balakot,deep inside Pakistan on February 26.The next day, Pakistan Air Force retaliated and downed a MiG-21 andcaptured its pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Var thaman who washanded over to India on Friday.

The Trump administration on Monday notified US congress of its in-tent to remove India from a list of beneficiary countries of a zero-impor t duty programme, called the Generalized System of Prefer-ence (GSP), for not granting American producers “reasonable ac-cess” to its markets.India has been the top beneficiary of this programme that extendszero-tariff regime for some goods, not all, to 120 countries. It exportedan estimated $5.6 billion wor th of goods to the US under this schemein 2017, more than 11% of the total value of it expor ts to the UnitedStates, $48.6 billion. That’s why it matters.“I am providing notice of my intent to terminate the designation ofIndia as a beneficiary developing country under the Generalized Sys-tem of Preferences (GSP) program,” President Donald Trump wrotein a letter to the heads of the House of Representatives and the Sen-ate. The president added that he had “determined that India has notassured the United States that it will provide equitable and reason-able access to the markets of India”.In New Delhi, India’s commerce secretary Anup Wadhawan said the

US decision to withdraw India’s name from the GSP list won’t haveany “significant impact” on the 5.6 billion dollar expor ts to the US.“India expor ts goods wor th USD 5.6 billion under the GSP, and theduty benefit is only USD 190 million annually,” news agency PTI quotedWadhawan as saying.Trump’s letter kicked off a 60-day notice period, which is essentiallythe time India has to try and reverse the decision. And the only way itcan, according to people close to these matters, was for it to “capitu-late” on all of US demands that had been under discussion for the lastsome months.If India refuses to yield, hundreds of types of goods it expor ts to theUnited States under the GSP will now be subjected to rates that amountto “around” $190 million in impor t duty, according to people dealingwith bilateral trade between the countries and the contentious andprotracted negotiations underway for months.The decision was along expected lines but New Delhi was both disap-pointed and irritated. “We had conceded most of their demands andhad indicated our readiness to discuss the few remaining ones aswell,” an official close to the negotiations said, adding, “but theyseemed to be in the mood to go for all”. US exper ts and observers ofrelations with Indian were disappointed as well, largely, as they sawit, because of the administration’s failure to see the trade issue in thecontext of its own national security strategy objectives for Asia, withthreat from China as a shared objective.

The Pakistan government has issued an order to streamline aprocess for the implementation of sanctions against individu-als and entities of all banned outfits as designated by the UNSecurity Council, the Foreign Office announced.The UN Security Council (Freezing and Seizure) Order, 2019,has been issued in accordance with the provisions ofPakistan’s UN Security Council (UNSC) Act, 1948.Interpreting the order, Foreign Office spokesman MohammadFaisal said it means that the government has taken over thecontrol of all proscribed outfits operating in the country.“(From now onwards), all kinds of assets and proper ties ofall (banned) organisations will be in the government’s con-trol,” the spokesperson told Dawn news.He added that the government will also seize the charity wingsand ambulances of such outfits.“The objective of the (order) is to streamline the procedure forimplementation of Security Council Sanctions against desig-nated individuals and entities,” Faisal said.Also on Monday, a high-level meeting was held at the InteriorMinistry to discuss the implementation of the National ActionPlan (NAP). The Ministry has directed all provincial govern-ments to “speed up” action against banned organisations.The developments come a day af ter reports emerged of adecisive crackdown to be imminently launched by the gov-ernment against extremist and militant organisations in thecountry, Dawn news said. Information minister FawadChaudhry said the government had taken a firm decision that therewould be stern action against all militant groups. But he refused to giveany timeline for the operation against militant groups.

CHINA SILENT ON PAK MINISTER’SSTATEMENT TO SEND SPECIAL

ENVOY TO NEW DELHI, ISLAMABAD

China on Monday refused to comment on Pakistan foreign ministerShah Mohammed Qureshi’s statement that Beijing was preparing tosend a special envoy to Islamabad and New Delhi to mediate in theaftermath of the Pulwama terror attack and rising tension betweenthe two nuclear-powered neighbours. Qureshi was widely quoted inPakistani media over the weekend as saying that China had decidedto appoint and send a special envoy to meet the Indian and Pakistanileadership to ease tensions. The Pakistani minister didn’t give atimeframe but the surmise was that the Chinese envoy would visitthe two capitals soon. India has consistently maintained that thedispute over Kashmir is a bilateral issue and that there’s no need fora third party to intervene or mediate.The Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson didn’t comment onQureshi’s claim and instead responded in broader terms, sayingChina was always ready to help.Asked about Qureshi’s remarks, spokesperson Lu Kang said: “As toyour question, like we said before, we really hope India and Paki-stan, both important countries in South Asia, can resolve the rel-evant issues through friendly consultations and negotiations.” “Inorder to ease the tensions, China has maintained close communica-tion with both India and Pakistan. Whatever is conducive to regionalpeace and stability, China will try to do that, and we will continue todo so,” Lu said at the regular ministry briefing on Monday. In refer-ence to Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov saying Russia isalso ready work with India, Pakistan to ease the tension, Lu said:“We welcome all the effor ts that are conducive to easing tensionsand promoting peace and stability in this region.”

US tries to safeguard Afghan peace push from India-Pakistan crisisThe United States is trying to prevent simmering tensions between India and Pakistan from impacting a third country: Afghanistan,where a fragile peace push is underway to try to end more than 17 years of war with Taliban insurgents.US President Donald Tr ump’s administration has been publicly focused on lowering tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals sincea Feb. 14 suicide car bomb in Kashmir triggered the first Indian air strikes inside of Pakistan since a 1971 war.Senior U.S. officials told Reuters that as the United States spoke with senior Pakistani officials, emphasizing the need to lower the riskof conflict with India, Islamabad privately offered warnings on Afghanistan.Pakistani officials said their ability to suppor t Afghan peace talks could be in jeopardy in the event of a full-blown crisis, U.S.officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.“They’ll stop being a facilitator, they will stop the pressure they are applying” on the Taliban, one U.S. official said, recountingPakistani warnings conveyed to Washington.Pakistan has publicly denied any role in the suicide bombing. But the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant groupclaimed responsibility for it, and India has long accused Islamabad of suppor ting them.The United States has likewise accused Pakistan of ties to Taliban militants who are fighting in neighboring Afghanistan againstAmerican and U.S.-backed Afghan government forces.Reuters has previously reported, however, that U.S. officials have recently seen a positive shif t in Pakistan’s behavior.Pakistan, long at odds with the United States over the war in Afghanistan, has played a behind-the-scenes role in suppor tingU.S. peace talks with the Afghan Taliban, including by facilitating travel to negotiations.Current and former U.S. officials caution that Islamabad could again choose to act as a spoiler.“I don’t believe that Pakistan has the capability to straight out make peace happen in Afghanistan, but they definitely have thecapability to make peace not (happen),” said Laurel Miller, a former senior State Depar tment official. In the past several days,India and Pakistan have appeared to dial down hostilities that brought the arch enemies to the brink of another war. But it’sunclear whether the calm will hold. A Pakistani official in Washington, speaking on the condition of anonymity, cautioned thatunless the tensions were reduced, there was a “very strong likelihood” that Pakistani troops would be moved from the borderwith Afghanistan to reinforce positions near India.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


MALAIKA ARORA, ARJUNKAPOOR TREND AGAIN AMID

WEDDING RUMOURS

DEEPIKA PADUKONE DECLARESRANVEER SINGH ‘HUSBAND NO. 1,

CUTIE NO 1, HOTTIE NO 1’ AFTERHIS NEW MAG COVER

DEEPIKA PADUKONE AND RANVEER SINGH’SPDA CONTINUES. THE CHHAPAAK ACTOR’S

COMMENT ON HUSBAND RANVEER’S LATESTCOVER PHOTO FOR A MAGAZINE WILL TAKE

YOU BY SURPRISE.

Akshay Kumar sings Kesari song AjjSingh Garjega ahead of its release

BRAHMASTRA: RANBIR KAPOOR ISSHIVA, ALIA BHARAT PLAYS ISHA.

HERE’S EVERYTHING TO KNOWABOUT AYAN MUKERJI’S TRILOGY

2019 IS THE YEAR OFCRICKET WORLD CUP

AISHWARYA RAI, ABHISHEK BACHCHANTO STAR IN SAHIR LUDHIANVI BIOPIC?

TO WATCH ALL THE LATEST GOSSIP IN ENTERTAINMENT,WATCH CHANNEL Y ROGERS 857, BELLFIBE 828, TELUS 2418

P20 P18

HERE ARE DETAILS ABOUT RANBIRKAPOOR AND ALIA BHATT’S

BRAHMASTRA. THE FILM’S LOGO WASREVEALED BY 150 DRONES AT KUMBH ON

MAHASHIVRATRI.

P19

INDIA LAUNCH NEW JERSEY FOR ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP 2019.

BUZZ SUGGESTS THAT MALAIKAARORA AND ARJUN KAPOOR MAY

BE PLANNING TO GET MARRIEDLATER THIS YEAR. THEY ARE YET

TO COMMENT ON THEIRRELATIONSHIP PUBLICALLY.

JOHN ABRAHAM ON INDIA-PAK TENSION‘THERE HAS TO BE A WAR AGAINST TERROR, NOT AGAINST A COUNTRY OR RELIGION’

Just a day after Kangana Ranaut criticised Bollywood for not speak-ing up on political issues, John Abraham has said there should be awar against terror but not a country or religion. He also said actorsshould not speak up on the political situation to “trend”, adding theymust speak if they are aware of the political situation in the country.The actor was asked about the escalating tension between India andPakistan post Pulwama attack. “There has to be a war against ter ror,not against a country, religion, religions or between religions. I amvery clear in my outlook. I (will) probably get picked on, but I am notgoing to sit on the fence and say ‘this audience will like it, that won’t’.There has to be a war on terror. It has to be over and done with. Thatdoesn’t mean you have to fight with another country. That doesn’tmean you have to stereotype people,” John told repor ters.

Asked if he believes actors are obliged to make a political comment,John told repor ters, “Yes, if they are politically aware. Kangana isvery politically aware and she has got a voice. I think you must takea stand if you are politically aware.” The actor said one should refrainfrom commenting on politics if they know nothing about the country.“But you shouldn’t be stup idly talented. You can’t be an idiot, who knowsnothing about which country lies where. If you don’t know what’s happening fromBihar to Syria, then you should shut up and smile and show your mug that you havedone so much work on. Don’t talk,” he said. John was speaking at the trailer launchof his upcoming espionage thriller, Romeo Akbar Walter (RAW). The film,directed by Robbie Grewal, also features Mouni Roy, Jackie Shroffand Sikander Kher. The 46-year-old actor said everyone who workedon the film knew what is happening in the country.

Akshay Kumar, who is gearing up for the release of his ambitiousperiod drama Kesari, revealed Monday that the film inspired him tosing as well. Ahead of the song’s release, Akshay shared a videowhere he can be seen singing a few lines of the song.Sharing the video, Akshay tweeted, “Next song from #Kesari,#AjjSinghGarjega is packed with so much power & pride, couldn’tstop myself from singing two lines. Here’s a teaser,full song out to-morrow by @jazzyb @Parineet iChopra @SinghAnurag79@DharmaMovies #CapeOfGoodFilms @iAmAzure @ZeeStudios_@ZeeMusicCompany.” Kesari is based on the Battle of Saragarhi,which was fought between the British Indian army’s Sikh Regimentand Afghan tribesmen in September 1897. The 21 Sikh soldiers took astand unto death against around 10,000 Afghans.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and husband Abhishek Bachchan are easilyone of the most sought-after couples in Bollywood. Their posts onsocial media are eagerly followed by fans, while all their public ap-pearances tend to go viral. However, they haven’t been seen togetheron big screen for a while now. If a repor t in Mid Day is to be believedthe couple may star in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s next film, a biopic onSahir Ludhianvi. While Abhishek will be seen as the famous Bollywoodlyricist, Aishwarya will play the role of the celebrated Punjabi poet-ess Amrita Pritam. Incidentally, Bhansali’s film on Sahir-Amrita lovestory has in the pipeline for a long time. However, there have been anumber of names floating around for the role of Amrita Pritam. It wasinitially repor ted that Priyanka Chopra was being considered for therole. Next, Deepika Padukone, who has worked in three films byBhansali, too was repor tedly considered for the project.

HIGHEST ODI TOTALS AFTER WC 2015481 Eng v Aug, Trent Bridge, 2018444 Eng v Pak, Trent Bridge, 2016438 SA v Ind, Mumbai WS, 2015418 Eng v WI, St George’s, 2019408 Eng v NZ, Edgabston, 2015

399 Eng v SA, Bolemfontein, 2016399 Pak v Zim, Bulawayo, 2018


TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019b o l l y w o o d

NO CLASH WITH AJAY DEVGN'S 'DE DE PYAR DE'SIDHARTH MALHOTRA-PARINEETI CHOPRA'S'JABARIYA JODI' RELEASE PUSHED TO JULY

‘I COULDN’T HAVE MADE BADLA WITHOUTAMITABH BACHCHAN’: SUJOY GHOSH

MALAIKA ARORA, ARJUNKAPOOR TREND AGAIN

AMID WEDDING RUMOURS

With Bollywood actors Arjun Kapoor and Malaika Arora’srelationship getting more visible by the day cour tesypaparazzi and social media, speculation suggests that awedding is in the offing. The grapevine is abuzz that Malaikaand Arjun may take their relationship to the next level soonby getting married.A repor t by Quint has suggested that a wedding may takeplace as early as next month. However, neither Arjun norMalaika has commented on their relationship or a possiblewedding. However, in a recent episode of Koffee With Karan,Malaika was heard saying, “I like Arjun this way or that.”Malaika was married to actor-producer Arbaaz Khan for 18years, before they announced their split in 2016. Together,they have a 16-year-old son named Arhaan. While Arbaazis dating Italian model Giorgia Adriani, Malaika is oftenseen at outings with Arjun.They were also seen together at the pre-wedding celebra-tions of Akash Ambani and Shloka Mehta in Switzerlandlast month. Malaika and Arjun’s relationship has also beenmentioned more than once by filmmaker Karan Johar onhis chat show Koffee With Karan.In fact, on the controversial episode featuring cricketersHardik Pandya and K.L. Rahul, Karan had asked Rahulabout his crush in Bollywood. When the cricketer saidhe had none at the moment, but that he had a crush onMalaika once, Karan asked if it was “because she wasdating Arjun Kapoor?”On an episode featuring Kareena Kapoor Khan, Malaika’sclose friend, Karan asked her if she would like to say any-thing about Malaika’s wedding. He even asked Kareena ifshe was going to be a bridesmaid to Malaika and Kareenaonly responded with a smile.

Mark your calendar, Sidhar th Malhotra and Parineeti Chopra-starrer'Jabariya Jodi' is coming to the theatres near you on July 12, this year.The film was earlier slated to release on May 17, 2019. Indian filmcritic and trade analyst Taran Adarsh made the announcement on hisTwitter handle.He shared a poster from the film featuring the lead pair and wrote,"Sidhar th Malhotra and Parineeti Chopra... #JabariyaJodi release datefinalised: 12 July 2019... Directed by Prashant Singh... Produced byShobha Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor and Shaailesh R Singh."The poster features Parineeti and Sidhar th in a quirky setup, dressedup in colour ful and bright outfits. The shooting for the film had begunon August 20, 2018. Some pictures featuring the duo had released

earlier which showed them in a desi avatar.This is the second time, the two actors will be seen sharing screenspace after having worked together in 'Hasee Toh Phasee'. The ro-mantic-comedy also stars Aparshakti Khurrana, Sanjay Mishra, NeerajSood, Gopal Dutt, Javed Jaffrey, Chandan Roy Sanyal. Produced byEkta Kapoor under the banner of Balaji Motion Pictures and ShaileshSingh's Karma Media Net, the flick is directed by Prashant Singh.Meanwhile, Parineeti last appeared in 'Namaste England' oppositeArjun Kapoor. She will be next seen in 'Kesari' alongside Akshay Kumarand 'Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar' opposite Arjun Kapoor. On the otherhand, Sidhar th will next appear in 'Marjaavan' opposite 'Ek Villain' co-star Riteish Deshmukh and debutante Tara Sutaria.

For someone who star ted his career with Jhankaar Beats (2003), afilm on music and friendship, Sujoy Ghosh seems to have made thrill-ers his speciality with the super success of Kahaani (2012). Eventhough his last two movies — Te3n (2016), which he produced andKahaani 2: Durga Rani Singh (2016), which he also directed — didn’tmeet the audience’s expectations, the curiosity generated by the trailerof his Friday release, Badla, suggests that he’s on terra firma.Considering that this Amitabh Bachchan and Taapsee Pannu-starreris a remake of the 2016 Spanish film, The Invisible Guest, Sujoy sayshis challenge is to tell this story in an engaging and exciting manner.In a quick chat over coffee and croissants, he talks about teaming upwith the Big B again, why he finds suspense films appealing andmore. Excerpts...Now that people have loved Badla’s trailer, do you feel relieved?I feel I have passed one leg of the journey. Everything is a test. I’vepassed the poster, teaser, trailer and even a song. The big exam is onMarch 8.Taapsee told us that she first suggested you direct this film, but yourefused it back then. Some months down the line she heard that AmitabhBachchan was doing the film and you were directing it. What madeyou change your mind?As a director, my job is to tell a story. You give me one, I will tell it tothe audience. If you give me a book or a script to do so, I’m happy. Ifyou give me a plot that has already been told so beautifully, how do Imake it better? What am I bringing to the table? That was my di-lemma. However, the producers of Badla had an interesting approachand Taapsee nagged me to hear it. I felt I could add to that and then Ifelt confident.And how did you convince Mr Bachchan to give the nod?Sir ko kheench ke laya. I told him, ‘Sir, ek saath doobenge agar kuchhhoga toh.’ I thought he’s the only person who could play this charac-ter. That’s why I asked him. When you visualise the character in yourhead, as a director you see who can fit this role, and this one justhappened to be Sir. Maybe Balraj Sahni, but he’s no longer with us.That’s the kind of actor I needed — Sir, Balraj Sahni or perhaps DilipKumar saab.With Sir, you tell him this is what it is. He hears you out and gives hisdecision, whether he’ll do the film or not. In this case, he said yes.Otherwise, this movie couldn’t have been made.Having worked with him as a producer in Te3n, how different was itdirecting him in Badla?Both the jobs come with different kind of responsibilities. When I’mproducing a film with him, my job is to make sure the director haseverything the film needs. He is very sharp; so if I’m compromisingon anything, he will know. That was a challenge. Te3n had everythingthe team needed. When I’m directing him, I have to be careful and

ensure that I’m not compromising on the storytelling. Sometimes, hewill give a bad take just to see if I’m awake.Having star ted with a musical like Jhankaar Beats you seem to havefound your calling in the thriller genre, with Kahaani, Kaahani 2, pro-ducing Te3n in the interim and now, helming Badla.Every story comes with its own challenge, irrespective of its genre.Each movie is like a painting which demands its own canvas, whetherit requires oil colour or watercolour or charcoal. This film demandedits own telling, unlike any other film I’ve done. After a point, you forgetthat it’s a thriller. For me, it’s just that this is the story I have to tell.Whether it translates effectively and convincingly on the screen, wedon’t know till we see the final print.Once I decide on the story, I’m good. The genre doesn’t matter. That’show I made Jhankaar Beats, Kahaani, Ahalya and Anukul.How much did you have to deviate from the Spanish original, TheInvisible Guest? Especially since those who’ve seen it, know thesuspense.As far as the characters are concerned, yes, a little in keeping withour cinema, but I haven’t tried to mess with the world too much.That’s like saying, I can recreate the Taj Mahal. I can’t and it’s silly toeven attempt it. For me, principally, I have to be true to the story, as awriter. The characters, their lives, their nuances... what I’ve alteredand how much, you’ll have to wait to see it when the film releases.As for those who’ve seen The Invisible Guest, that’s the challengeyou have to undertake. Take Kahaani for example, after the first show,everyone knew what was the ending. So, I could hide it only till thefirst show. Whatever success my films or I have got is because of theaudience. They have taken the onus of my movie and made it a hit. Iknow that if viewers likes my film, ending kuchh bhi ho, I don’t needto worry.It must have been upsetting when Te3n and Kahaani 2 weren’t assuccessful as Kahaani.It’s always a disappointment. I agree that it’s normal for people tohave expectations. I come from a middle-class family, and nothingwas given to me on a platter. I had to struggle for everything. I’m okaywith that, not to say that I’m happy about it, but I can move on. I havea wife and kids, I have to pay my bills. If a film doesn’t work, you haveto move on.What keeps you going and motivated?The bills keep me going (laughs). Storytelling is inspiring. When yousee other people working, the kind of films that are being made, new-age filmmakers like Amar Kaushik and Aditya Dhar, that is inspiring.Anything that makes me feel I want to do that also, is motivating. Thedigital world is inspiring, the kind of writing you see there is some-thing I’ve never experienced before.

BIOPIC? YES, POLITICS? NO:KANGANA RANAUT SHARESHER FUTURE PLANS POSTMANIKARNIKA SUCCESS

On March 3, Kangana Ranaut threw a par ty to celebrate thegood box-office run of Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi.The powerhouse performer not only played the lead role butalso helmed the period drama, which was backed by ZeeStudios. Amidst the celebrations, she also expressed herhappiness over the safe return of Indian Air Force (IAF)Wing Commander Abhinandan Var thaman, who has wonmillions of hear ts with his act of bravery. Of late, the ac-tress has been in the news for her biopic and likely plungeinto politics.Taking a few minutes off from the bash, the National Awardwinner said, “Yes, I am working on the idea of my biopic.However, it is not an immediate plan. I have to finish workon films like Mental Hai Kya (MHK, which will now releasein May) and Panga before I embark on anything else. I mayalso direct another movie before I star t a film based on mylife. But yes, I will make the biopic for sure.”ON RUMOURS OF HER JOINING POLITICSWhen asked if there was any truth to the news of her foray-ing into politics, she clarified, “They are rumours. I knownothing about politics, so I will not take the plunge. I can bean influencer, but I don’t see myself in any other role.” Shelaughed and added, “I am happy being an actor and film-maker in Hindi cinema. I’m creatively challenged and sat-isfied. Politics doesn’t interest me. Also, I am too straightan arrow to be able to fit into that field.”ON MENTAL HAI KYA GETTING PUSHEDThe actress pointed out, “Manikarnika is still running intheatres. I just felt that a March 29 release for yet anotherfilm of mine wasn’t advisable. Hence, my producers and Idecided to push MHK to May.”



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


STRONG ON GRIT, SHORTON EMOTIVE RESONANCE

CAST: MANOJ BAJPAYEE, SUSHANT

SINGH RAJPUT, BHUMI PEDNEKAR,

RANVIR SHOREY, ASHUTOSH RANA

DIRECTOR: ABHISHEK CHAUBEY

M O V I E R E V I E W

b o l l y w o o d

Brahmastra: Ranbir Kapoor isShiva, Alia Bharat plays Isha.

Here’s everything to knowabout Ayan Mukerji’s trilogy

Abhishek Chaubey and Sudip Sharma’s reinvented version of the reallife events that granted legendary infamy to dacoits like Man Singh(Manoj Bajpayee), Lakhna (Sushant Singh Rajput), Vakil (RanvirShorey), and Phoolan (for a brief bit in this film)–is like a palliativeeffor t at minimising cruelty in the name of remorse, morals, supersti-tion and piety.Chaubey and Sharma would have us believe that these dreaded ban-dits were governed by a strange set of ethics – a code that oncecrossed, lead them to self-destruction even though tenacious attemptswere made for restitution and redemption. And that’s a theory born outof a wild imagination at best.Chaubey and Sharma people this unrelenting drama with hyphenatedsymbols of oppression. A woman, Indumati Tomar (Bhumi Pednekar)and the brutally raped child victim she rescues, seeks refuge in theravines of Bundelkhand, Chambal valley that is governed by fear-some dacoits.The attempt here is to show that there are varying degrees of evil.Indumati Tomar, a victim of toxic patriarchy and her attempt to savethe Dalit girl from eventual death, is a story thread meant to infiltrate

the viciousness of a band of brigands and showcase them as men ofcompassion and remorse.When Indumati Tomar ’s track intersects with that of Phuliya (akaPhoolan), there’s a sor t of kindred bonding that expresses itself inPhuliya offering Indumati a chance to take up the gun as a fellow gangmember. Indumati shrugs off the offer—thus exposing the writers’attempts to contrive a sor t of hope where there is really no silverlining. Mind you, we’ve already been told that she can’t go back to herwimpy husband and blood-thirsty son.The young gang-rape victim is also kept alive (when the doctor hasalready declared that chances of her surviving are next to impossiblegiven the topography of the region and the distance and hurdles inreaching a major hospital in time) in a rather unbelievable attempt todispel the inherent darkness in the violence driven, masochism ondisplay.The audience is also made privy to a recurring nightmare (visuals ofa bloodied screaming young girl child) that haunts the outlaws asthey make their way towards a destiny that has already been decidedon the script page.

Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra is perhaps one of the most ambi-tious films to come out of Bollywood in recent times. Thefantasy drama, which revealed i ts logo at Kumbh onMahashivaratri, is finally dropping some information. RanbirKapoor, who reportedly plays a man with special powers inBrahmastra, is named Shiva while Alia Bhatt’s name is Isha.Sharing the details, Alia wrote on social media, “Shiva aurIsha #Brahmastra.” Ayan, who is collaborating with Alia forthe first time, shared an anime from his upcoming sci-fi filmwhich shows a car toon version of the lead pair against abackground with several rays of l ight. “Par t 1: Love#brahmastra (P.S.: going to take some getting used to thisnew Instagram life),” he wrote.Brahmastra is a weapon of Hindu God Brahma, who is calledthe creator of universe. The weapon is considered lethal andlike its namesake, the film’s title refers to “ancient wisdom,energies and power”.Talking about Brahmastra last year, Ayan had said, “It’s amodern-day film set in India as it exists today. But the reasonit’s called Brahmastra is because the energies, wisdom, pow-ers in the film come from ancient India. That’s all I would say.There are some costumes, may be not the way you’d expectthem to be.”Film’s lead Ranbir had called it a “supernatural fairytale athear t” in the past.“It is actually a supernatural romantic fairy tale at hear t. Ayan(film’s director Ayan Mukerji) will never make a characterthat doesn’t have truth to it, or which is unbelievable. It’s tooearly to talk about the film, but it is something I am terriblyexcited about,” Ranbir had said.On Monday, around 150 drones lit up the sky forming theBrahmastra logo at Kumbh on Mahashivratri as actors AliaBhatt, Ranbir Kapoor and director Ayan Mukerji came to-gether for a one-of-a-kind film marketing initiative.“It’s the ‘Brahmastra’ logo day... Our journey has just aboutbegun and we are at the Kumbh mela, and we are very ex-cited. Look up at the sky,” Alia said ahead of the logo launch.Ranbir said: “(I am) Very excited... can’t match her energy,but super excited.”Hours before the logo unveiling, the team members hadteased fans with what they had planned. Alia took to Instagramand asked fans, “Why do you think we are going to KumbhMela?” and Ranbir joked “to leave you there”.On a serious note, the actress said: “It is a special day and itis a supremely special plan from the team of ‘Brahmastra’.We are excited about it.”


TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019b o l l y w o o d

hollywoodM O V I E R E V I E W

Kartik Aaryan and Kriti Sanon's romantic-comedy is

let down by Rohan Ghuge's writing

BILLY BATSON TRADES PUNCHESWITH DOCTOR SIVANA IN NEW

TRAILER FOR 'SHAZAM'

CAST: KARTIK AARYAN, KRITI SANON,

APARSHAKTI KHURANA, VINAY PATHAK,

PANKAJ TRIPATHI

DIRECTOR: LAXMAN UTEKAR

RATING:

Director Laxman Utekar fails to sink his teeth into the film'scardinal subject: live-in relationships. Barring a fleeting conversa-tion about Rashmi being good at cooking and Guddu having anaversion to cleaning toilets - 'Luka Chuppi' doesn't take us throughthe beats of a live-in dalliance. At some point, the audience evendoubts whether Guddu and Rashmi are actually ready for marriagethat is eventually thrusted upon them.Kar tik Aaryan doesn't get his signature breathless monologues buthe does put up an earnest per formance though he grapples with thesmalltown quirks. Kriti displays greater confidence as an actor.Although she gets slightly annoying in her will to be por trayed asthe dominant par tner at times, she is largely sharp and delivers.The stellar cast is let down by the persistent attempts to makethem seem chronically hyper. Pankaj Tripathi, as Guddu's nosey,perverted brother-in-law Babulal, disappoints. The actor constantlytries to rise above the grossly underwritten role he has at hand, butfails.Vinay Pathak's caricaturish por trayal of an or thodox father, comes

as a painful reminder that merely getting these heavyweights onboard doesn't guarantee a good film. Ghuge fails to do justice toboth these actors' incredible comic timing. Aparshakti, however,manages to stay true to his element. In a sea of loud characters,Abbas offers solace. The actor brightens the screen with hissporadic appearances and deadpan expressions.In his very first Hindi outing, the fact that cinematographer anddirector Laxman Utekar has managed to give the rom-com anunderlying layer of satire is appreciable. The well-intentioned film,however, is let down by Rohan Ghuge's patchy writing and RohanShankar’s screenplay. The dialogues lack emotions and seem tooper formative. Guddu and Rashmi's mandap adventures star t gettingrepitive after a while, leaving the audience restless.The only thing that comes to the film's rescue is the few butgenuine laugh-out-loud moments. Guddu bidding his familymembers an emotional goodbye with Hum Aapke Hain Kaun'sBidaai song playing in the background is one of my personalfavourites.Overall, 'Luka Chuppi' is a clean family enter tainer.

DEEPIKA PADUKONE DECLARES RANVEER SINGH ‘HUSBANDNO. 1, CUTIE NO 1, HOTTIE NO 1’ AFTER HIS NEW MAG COVERRanveer Singh and Deepika Padukone are easily one of the most-loved couples of Bollywood and the duo never shies away fromshowing their love for each other. The hype around their weddingand their many receptions may have died down, but the craze forthe couple has only increased.In the past, Ranveer would subtly hint at his affection for her butDeepika has always shied away from being upfront about it. How-ever, all that is in the past and Deepika is proudly wearing her loveon her sleeve, or her social media account to be more precise. OnMonday, Ranveer shared a picture of his on the cover of a glossycalled Grazia. In no time, Deepika commented on it, calling herhusband, “Cutie No 1, Hottie No 1 and Husband No 1”.Ranveer, wearing a dull grey semi formal suit with a printed shir tand hair tossed to his right, makes a pretty picture. He is seatedon a sofa and looks calm, a far cry from his hyper-energetic self.In fact, so good is the effect, that even his Simmba star Sara AliKhan left fire emoji in the comments.Ranveer and Deepika got married on November 14 and 15 in Italy’sLake Como. What followed were three high profile wedding recep-tions in Bangalore and Mumbai.Meanwhile, Deepika will soon be seen in a new commercial withher ex-flame Ranbir Kapoor, pictures of which went viral sometime back. In fact, Ranveer was later asked if he felt insecureabout Deepika working with Ranbir.Speaking at an India Today event, Ranveer said: “Do I seem likean insecure person, really? I am not an insecure type at all. I amextremely secure in who I am and what I am. I know that nobodycan love her the way I do, so it’s cool,” he said.“Within six months of our relationship, sometime in 2012, I knewthat she was the one. I knew that this the woman I wanted to marryand grow old with, this is the mother of my children. I just knew it.That’s it. I went about it that way. I nurtured it and cultivated it, Iworked on it. She took her time to come around and I was patientlywaiting. It was just a matter of time. It was whenever she wantedand whatever she wanted. But I just wanted her,” Ranveer alsosaid about his wife.On their respective work fronts, Deepika will soon get busy withher next film, Meghna Gulzar’s Chhapaak while Ranveer has al-ready commenced work on his Kabir Khan film, ‘83.

In what is to be an unusual superhero story, by the currentstandards of the superhero genre, the latest trailer forShazam shows Billy Batson test his superpowers, fiddle with thecreativity to come up with a superhero name and actually fight the badguy that is Mark Strong's Dr Thaddeus Sivana.The two-minute-long video was unveiled on Monday tobegin the week of DC Extended Universe fandom on a goodnote. So far, we have seen Batson (Asher Angel) becomeCaptain Marvel/Shazam (Zachary Levi) and do the trialruns with his foster home brother Freddy Freeman (JackDylan Grazer). In the new trailer, Batson figures out hissuper strength, ability to manipulate electricity, hyperspeed, and the power to buy beer like an adult!Freemantries to christen Batson's superhero as 'Captain SparkleFingers.' Thankfully, it doesn't fly.It's all fun and games until Dr Thaddeus Sivana shows upon the horizon. In comic books, Sivana is a literal por trayalof a mad scientist. Apar t from becoming a foe to CaptainMarvel, he also has coined the term 'Big Red Cheese' torile up the superhero. Strong has not used the nickname inthe trailer yet. We shall see if it pops up in the movie.

JAMES GUNN IS STILLATTACHED TO 'GUARDIANS OF

THE GALAXY: VOL 3'

Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige has confirmed that Guard-ians of the Galaxy: Vol 3 will use the screenplay penned byembattled director-writer James Gunn.The threequel took a hit after Disney sacked Gunn from thenew film last July when his old offensive tweets resur-faced on social media.Gunn was in the middle of writing the script for the thirdfilm when he was fired from the job.Feige has said the controversy may have pushed the moviewith the studio currently concentrating on other projectsbut Vol 3 is happening. "I mean, when it was pushed back,it was pushed back. Meaning the release date, becauseit's not coming out although we've never announced a re-lease date actually, but it was gonna happen sooner ratherthan later, initially of course."Outside of knowing that we're gonna use (Gunn's) draft,(we have) been focusing on other projects," Feige toldCollider. Last month, Chris Pratt, who plays Peter Quill/Star-Lord in the Guardians series, assured fans that thethird instalment will surely see the light of the day.

I REALLY OWNED THECHARACTER: BRIE LARSON ON

'CAPTAIN MARVEL'Brie Larson says she owned the persona of Captain Mar-vel inside out for the film as featuring in the movie for herwas more that sporting a superhero costume and "playingstrong". The 29-year-old actor stars as US Air force pilotCarol Danvers, who transitions into one of the universe'smost power ful heroes, has become the first woman to leada stand-alone Marvel superhero film. The Oscar winnertoiled for nine months in the gym before she star ted shoot-ing and said the training experience which required her tolift weights confronted her with many gender norms."Cer tain men did not want to make a safe space for mebecause they felt threatened by the fact that I could liftmore. I got tonnes of odd comments at a time. There wasone guy looking at me and was like 'Wow, I can't even liftthat'. And I was like 'Ok, I'm taller than you.' I don't under-stand," Larson said in a group interview here. The actorsaid the society still needs to do a lot of rethink on genderstereotypes. "I wanted to make sure that when you watchthis movie, it's not that I'm just putting on a costume andplaying strong. I really owned that. I was able to deadlift225 pounds by the end of my training and star ting the movie.And it says a lot. We can do incredible things," she said.Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Captain Marvelreleases in India on Friday.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


10songsTERE BIN SIMMBA

MERE NAAM TU ZERO

ASLI HIP HOP GULLY BOY

PROPER PATOLA NAMASTE ENGLAND

ISSAQBAAZI ZERO

CHOGADA LOVERATRI

URVASHI URVASHI

KAMARIYA MITRON

MORNI BANKE BADHAAI HO

DILBAR SATYAMEVA JAYATE

top

SONG

MIDWEEK HIT OR FLOP

MIDWEEK BOX OFFICE

EK LADKI KO DEKHA FLOP

URI BLOCKBUSTER

MANIKARNIKA SUPER HIT

CHEAT INDIA FLOP

ACCIDENTAL PRIME MINISTER FLOP

b o l l y w o o d

FILM

1APNA TIME

AAYEGAGULLY BOY

JOHN ABRAHAM SHUTS DOWN A REPORTER WHOASKED IF HE WILL "TEMPT" PEOPLE THROUGH RAW

TO TAKE ACTION, POST PULWAMA ATTACK

GULLY BOY 81.10 CR

AMAVAS 02.85 CR

EK LADKI KO DEKHA TOH AISA LAGA 22.01 CR

ZERO 59.7 CR

KGF 9.2 CR

Tamannaah Bhatia ready tobreak her no-kissing clause

for Hrithik Roshan

Actor John Abraham said on Monday that his upcoming film RomeoAkbar Walter (RAW) is not a chest-thumping nationalist project andhe himself would like to stay away from jingoistic movies. Directedby Robbie Grewal, the espionage thriller chronicles the story of a spywho goes to Pakistan."It's very impor tant to make films with good stories. If tomorrow,there's a great patriotic film, I would love to do it. But I would not liketo do jingoistic films. I am not anti any other country, I am not anti anyother religion. I'm very pro-secular and I would like to make films thatreflect the true nature of this country," John told repor ters.At the trailer launch event, John also shut down a repor ter when heasked the actor will "tempt" people through the film to take action,af ter the Pulwama attack. The actor said, "You have to be very carefulwith the way you ask questions, you have a responsibility. Pleaseapologise to everyone."Talking about RAW, the actor said the film looks at people from anobjective gaze and doesn't colour anyone with judgements. "It's avery objective film. No one is bad or good in this, it's just how youlook at things. We are not depicting any other side as the bad side. It'sa story of a spy who goes across, but it's a different story than 'Raazi'or many of the other stories.""It's not jingoistic, typical flag saluting film. It's very different andthat's why we are proud to be associated with it." John said the project's

key requirement was "extreme research" and the team did just that asit's a sensitive topic and there's a sense of responsibility riding onthem. The actor, however, said there's nothing wrong in making filmsabout war heroes. "If you look at Hollywood, it makes fantastic warfilms and they glorify their soldiers, so why can't we? I think it's agreat time for India, the audience."Romeo Akbar Walter is scheduled to release on April 5.

BUZZ IS: SALMAN KHAN WANTS KATRINA IN 'HUMDIL DE CHUKE SANAM 2' WHILE BHANSALI IS

KEEN ON HAVING AISHWARYA OR DEEPIKA

19 years after 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam', Salman Khan and SanjayLeela Bhansali are all set to team up on a new romantic film.Prerna Singh, CEO of Bhansali Productions, recently confirmed thenews, saying, “Yes, Salman Khan and Sanjay Leela Bhansali arereuniting after 19 years for a love story. Their collaboration is the bestthing that can happen in terms of story-telling.”Ever since the announcement has been made, several actresses'names have been doing the rounds for the lead par t opposite Salman.Now as per a latest repor t in Pinkvilla, Salman Khan is keen onhaving Katrina Kaif as his co-star. However, Bhansali wants to castDeepika Padukone instead, considering his longtime association withthe actress.While there has been no official confirmation on the casting of thefilm's leading lady, grapevine also suggests that Bhansali is making

effor ts to approach and convince Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to comeon board. Earlier it was repor ted that Salman had also recommendedAnushka Sharma's name to Bhansali. Names like that of Alia Bhattand Janhvi Kapoor have also been doing the rounds but sources claimthat Bhansali feels both of them will look relatively young oppositeSalman. It is also to be noted that when Priyanka Chopra recentlyappeared on 'Koffee With Karan 6', she revealed that she is currentlyin talks with both Bhansali and Vishal Bhardwaj. So, we must not yetrule out her name from the list.The film which has been tentatively titled 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam2' will go on floors in the second half of the year sometime aroundSeptember, right af ter Salman finishes shooting for 'Dabangg 3'. Itwould be jointly produced by Bhansali and Salman. The director willalso score the music himself.

FARHAN AKHTAR SHOOTS FOR LAST LEG OF 'THESKY IS PINK' BEFORE KICK-STARTING 'TOOFAN'

Actor Farhan Akhtar kickstar ted the shoot for the final schedule ofhis upcoming film 'The Sky is Pink' today. The actor announced iton his social media and shared the pictures of him star ting withthe last schedule of the film.The actor took to social media and posted a picture of himself withthe caption, "Getting back into 'The Sky is Pink' frame of mind." Heshared a second picture, where he can be seen at the gates ofMehboob Studio, with the caption, "#theskyispink #finalschedule#mumbaimornings." Farhan will be shooting in Mumbai andAndaman - the Nicobar Islands for the last schedule. It is a 2

weeks schedule and as soon as the actor wraps the final scheduleof the film, he will star t prepping for Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra'snext 'Toofan.' The film will see Farhan essaying the role of a boxer.The actor has already started prepping for the film and will reunitewith Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra after six years, following the 2013hit 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag.' On the work front, Farhan Akhtar is cur-rently basking in the glory of his recent production 'Gully Boy' andis also gearing up for his upcoming 'The Sky Is Pink' where theactor will be starring alongside Priyanka Chopra after 'Dil Dhadakne'and 'Toofan.'

It’s been over a decade since Tamannaah Bhatia beganher innings as an actress. However, very early on, al-most five years into her tryst with films, the actress be-gan to have the key clause of “no k issing”, “nolovemaking” and “no bikini” on screen for her films. Butvery recently, in an episode of Famously Filmfare, theactress made an interesting revelation.Apparently, the diva who’s a renowned name down Southwith several hit films to her credit is totally okay withbreaking the clause for only one actor – Hrithik Roshan!Revealing about the same, Tamannaah said, “I don’t kisson screen. That’s actually a par t of my contract. I keepjoking with my friends. But Hrithik Roshan… yay! I would,I would. (sic)”Interestingly, the revelation caught a great deal of atten-tion with everyone talking about it. But this isn’t the onlyinteresting bit of information the actress shared though.Talking about the low phase she underwent in her careerin the past, Tamannaah shared that she would eternallybe grateful to director SS Rajamouli for pulling her out ofit by offering her a role in the Baahubali series.The actress revealed, “Baahubali happened at that timewhen my career was sort of, I mean if I have to be honest,slightly at a low point. All the Hindi movies I did at the time,they were all really big films, but they did not work. (sic)”

Kangana Ranaut and RajkummarRao starrer 'Mental Hai Kya' gets

a new release date yet againAfter impressing everyone with her incredible performance asRani Laxmibai in Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi, people arenow excited to see Kangana Ranaut in Mental Hai Kya. The filmmarks the reunion the actor with her Queen co-star RajkummarRao after six years. Mental Hai Kya was initially slated to re-lease on February 22, 2019. Later on, the release date waspostponed to March 29, 2019. Now, the makers of the much-awaited flick have further pushed the release of the film.As per reports in a tabloid, Mental Hai Kya will now release inthe month of May this year. The delay came in af ter Kanganainsisted the makers. Talking about the same, a source revealedto the tabloid, "After the success of Manikarnika, Kangana wantedto space out her next film. Mental Hai Kya was coming exactlytwo months after Manikarnika's release, which implied thatshe would have to immediately dive into the film's promotions.She requested the makers for a breather as the period dramahad taken a toll on her." As Kangana had to reshoot the portionsof Manikarnika, the patchwork of Mental Hai Kya is yet to befinished which is one of the reasons for the delay. The con-firmed release date is yet to be decided by the makers.

VIRAT KOHLI COMPLETES HIS HALF-CENTURY IN THE 25TH OVER. THIS IS HIS 89TH SCORE OF 50 OR MORE IN ODI CRICKET. CANHE CONVERT THIS IN A HUNDRED TODAY? (IMAGE: REUTERS)

PCB seeks ‘visa guarantee’ for Pakistan cricketers at twin

ICC events scheduled in IndiaThe Pulwama attack has created a rift between India and Pakistanand the cricketing fraternity has also seen its effect. After India call-ing to boycott clash with Pakistan in the World Cup on June 16 andeven seeking ouster of the arch-rivals from the tournament, Pakistanhave now raised some concerns from their side.According to Ehsan Mani, chairman of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB),he said he wants ‘visa guarantee’ for its players who could be travel-ling to India to attend two events of the International Cricket Council(ICC). The first is the T20 World Cup in 2021 and the other is the ICCWorld Cup in 2023. Mani who has been president of the ICC sought theguarantee but was repor tedly told that such issues are taken up ayear ahead of the scheduled event.Bilateral cricketing ties between the two countries have remainedsuspended and the two play only in multilateral events.The duo have faced each other in India during the 1996 and 2011

World Cups. On both occasions, Pakistan lost to the hosts in theknock-out stage.The two Asian powerhouses last played a bilateral series in 2012-13when the neighbours came to India for two T20Is and three ODIs. TheT20Is ended in a draw, however, Pakistan won the ODI 2-1.VISA DENIAL:The request by PCB comes days after two Pakistani shooters wererefused visas by India for the International Shooting Spor ts Federa-tion (ISSF) Shooting World Cup event which was held in Delhi.The ISSF decided to cancel all Olympic qualification quotas from thecompetition but relented af ter India’s Spor ts Ministry and Indian Olym-pic Association made requests.The International Olympic Committee, however, took in writing thatno par ticipant would be denied visa by India at any international spor t-ing event.

ICC Test player rankings:Could Kane Williamson regaintop spot ahead of Virat Kohli?

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson reached a career-best of 915 rating points after New Zealand's win overBangladesh. His unbeaten double-century has lifted himfrom 897 points to within seven points of India captainVirat Kohli.The Indian skipper was at the top of the MRF Tyres ICCTest Player Rankings with 922 points. With two more Testsremaining, Williamson has a chance to regain the topspot, which he had occupied towards the end of 2015.Williamson’s rating points is the highest by any NewZealander in Test cricket. The other from New Zealandwould be Richard Hadlee, who crossed the 900-point markwith a best of 909 points in bowling. The other Kiwi play-ers such as Jeet Raval and Tom Latham have also climbedup the rankings. Openers Latham and Raval also madegood progress after their centuries in Hamilton.Latham reached the 11th spot with 161 points and is justthree points away from South Africa’s Faf du Plessis, who is in10th place with 702 points. Raval also climbed the ladderand gained five slots to reach the 33rd position.

Bajrang Punia wins gold in DonKolov Wrestling, dedicatesmedal to Abhinandan

India's star wrestler Bajrang Punia has won the gold medalat the Dan Kolov-Nikola Petrov tournament in Ruse, Bul-garia and dedicated the victory to Indian Air Force (IAF)Wing Commander Abhinandan Var thaman.Punia, a World Championship silver medallist, overpow-ered Jordan Oliver of USA 12-3 in the 65kg freestyle finalto begin the season on a resounding note in the Bulgariancity. The Indian also secured the maximum ranking pointsfrom the tournament." I want to dedicate my gold to Wing CommanderAbhinandan Var thaman. He has inspired me. I want tomeet him one day and also shake hands with him," Puniatweeted af ter his victory.The IAF pilot Var thaman returned to India from captivityin Pakistan on Friday night after a suspenseful wait last-ing hours, which is being seen as a major step towardsdefusing a near-war situation triggered by India's retalia-tion following the Pulwama terror attack on February 14.Punia, who bagged the top prize at the CommonwealthGames and the Asian Games last year, has won four goldmedals and one silver in the last five tournaments.This was Punia's 10th medal in as many internationaltournaments since failing to finish at the podium in the2017 World Championships in Paris.

STATISTICAL HIGHLIGHTS OF NAGPUR ODIVIRAT KOHLI STEALS THE SHOWIndia all-rounder Vijay Shankar scalped the last two Australian wick-ets in a hear t-stopping final over that saw the visitors lose the secondODI in Nagpur by 8 runs. What star ted off as a Virat Kohli show as theskipper registered his 40th ODI century, ended with some nerves ofsteel bowling from Shankar in front of a capacity crowd at the VCAStadium. The Indian bowlers once again showed they have the guileto defend smallish targets.Here’s a look at the statistical highlights from the match –Virat Kohli scored 116 (120) and that helped India pile up a scoreof 250 after losing the toss and batting first. This was Kohli’s 40thODI century and his 7th century against Australia in ODIs. He nowhas scored the joint 2nd most century against the Australians in ODIcricket. Sachin Tendulkar is the leader with 9 and Rohit Sharma isjoint 2nd with 7.As a captain, Virat also completed 9000 runs in international cricket(Tests + ODIs + T20Is). He became the 6th player to complete 9000international runs. His tally of 36 centuries as captain in internationalcricket is the 2nd best only after Ricky Ponting’s 41.Australia had a good day with the ball. They bowled out India for 250and thus took all 10 wickets (includes 1 run-out). This was only the1st time in the last 13 innings that Australia managed to take all the 10wickets. The last time Australia managed to take all 10 wickets of theopposition was against England (259/10) at Per th, 28th January 2018.Third time since 2018 and they have lost in 2 of these matches. Since

2018, this was only the 5th time that Australian bowlers took at least9 wickets out of a total 18 innings.With the 8-run win over Australia, India registered their 500th win.India is only the 2nd team to reach this landmark after Australia. It isonly the third time a team batting first has won a match at the VCAStadium in ODIs. India have never lost an ODI at VCA Stadium.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 s p o r t s

Steve Smith, the banned Australia batsman, has returned to thenets for the first time since undergoing elbow surgery, as heraces against time to be fit for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup

2019 in England and Wales. Smith and David Warner are both nearingthe end of their year-long bans for ball-tampering and will be eligiblefor selection for the World Cup 2019. However, their returns to inter-national cricket were muddled when both batsmen returned earlyfrom the 2018-19 Bangladesh Premier League with elbow complaints.Smith suffered the more severe injury and it was even rumoured atone stage that he could be held back from the World Cup to preservehim for the subsequent Ashes series in England. While a timeline forhis return is still not set, Smith posted a video on Instagram, where hesaid the elbow felt good.“Great to have my first hit back today,” he wrote alongside a shor tclip of him having a hit. “The elbow is feeling good.”Warner, meanwhile, is understood to be making good progress and islooking at playing a grade match to get match ready. Both batsmenwill be eligible for selection on 29 March, the day of Australia’s four thODI against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates. However, it is highlyunlikely for either batsman to make an immediate comeback, espe-

cially Smith, who isn’t even expected to have fully recovered by then.Justin Langer, the Australia coach, has already indicated that the In-dian Premier League could be a possible rou te back for both players.“From all accounts, they should both be ready for the IPL, which is really positive,”Langer said. “Dave’s probably a little more advanced, but my understand-ing is they’ll be ready to go in the not-too-distant future.”Australia play 10 straight ODIs in the build-up to the World Cup, star t-ing with the first ODI against India on Saturday, 2 March. Af ter thefive-match series concludes in the country, they head straight to theUAE for five more games against Pakistan.As their final stretch of preparation ahead of the big event, these tengames will be Australia’s last chance to settle on a combination forthe World Cup, although with Smith and Warner’s return not set yet,they will likely have to make some late tinkering to their squad for theevent. Australia have a deadline of 23 April to name the squad for theWorld Cup, although it can be tweaked later, with the approval of theInternational Cricket Council’s event technical committee.Australia’s World Cup squad will gather in Brisbane in early May fora training camp that includes warm-up matches against New Zealand,before flying out to the UK in mid-May.

INDIA LAUNCH NEW JERSEY FOR ICCMEN'S CRICKET WORLD CUP 2019

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Harmanpreet Kaur wereamong those donning India’s new kit for the ICC Men’s CricketWorld Cup 2019, launched on Friday, 1 March.The launch, on the eve of the first one-day international betweenIndia and Australia in Hyderabad, also involved AjinkyaRahane, Jemimah Rodrigues and Prithvi Shaw.The men’s team will spor t the jersey for the first time duringthe five ODIs against Australia.The jersey's special feature is that the dates of India's pastWorld Cup triumphs – the ODI World Cups in 1983 and 2011,and the T20 World Cup win in 2007 – are all emblazoned behindthe back collar.“This is our new jersey, which we will be spor ting during theODI series. It helps to be agile on the field,” Rohit Sharma toldBCCI.tv. “One interesting fact is, along with all the colours, thedates when we won the first World Cup, the T20 World Cup, andour second 50-over World Cup winning date in Mumbai.“[That is] rare and it is pretty nice and good looking.”Dhoni, however, was most impressed by the fabric. “You mayhave many designs, but ultimately, it’s the fabric that reallymakes you feel comfor table,” he was quoted as saying byQuint.“Wearing it (the jersey) right now, it feels so comfor table likeyou’re not wearing anything at all. It doesn't weigh you down.”

KL RAHUL, MAYANK AGARWALREVEAL HOW RAHUL DRAVID'S

MENTORSHIP SHAPES NEXTGENERATION OF CRICKETERS

Seven years into his retirement and former test stal-war t Rahul Dravid is still making a silent and impor tantcontribution for India, shaping the next generation ofcricketers who will form the core of the team.For a significant par t of his 16-year test career, Dravidwas the bulwark in India's star-studded batting line-upthat also included Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Gangulyand V.V.S Laxman.A classical batsman who built his game around a near-impregnable defence and an over-my-dead-body atti-tude, 'The Wall' was a purist's delight even though teammates of ten eclipsed his best effor ts. His 95 in his very first testinnings was overshadowed by fellow debutant Ganguly's centuryin the 1996 match at Lord's. Three years later, Dravid hit 145 in aWorld Cup match against Sri Lanka but once again Ganguly's 183was the talking point. Dravid's 180 in the 2001 Kolkata test wascrucial to India's stunning victory against Australia but still endedup being second fiddle to Laxman's epic 281. Having quit interna-tional cricket with more than 24,000 runs against his name, Dravidhas since taken charge of India's under-19 and A teams, oversee-ing the seamless transition of youngsters into the senior side.Among his wards, Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shah and HanumaVihari have taken to test cricket like a duck to water, all-rounderVijay Shankar is staking World Cup claims, whileShubhman Gill broke into the ODI team in New Zealand.

IPL HAS SET GOLD STANDARD FOR OPERATIONSGLOBALLY, SAYS ICC CEO DAVID RICHARDSON

ICC CEO David Richardson has denied repor ts stating the possible inter-ference of ICC in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He said the primaryobjective is to ensure that other leagues around the world operate withina consistent framework. “We are for tunate to have some outstanding T20leagues, including the IPL, which set the gold standard for operationsglobally and this Working Group has taken into account those standardswhen developing the draft set of regulations. Our primary objective is toensure other leagues around the world put in place the same minimumcriteria and operate within a consistent framework,” Richardson said.“Reports in the Indian media that the ICC is somehow seeking to inter fere in or dictateto the IPL are wide of the mark. That is not the case. As the Chief Executives’ Committeeand the ICC Board were advised over the past few days, the development of the Regulations has been led by the Working Group, on behalf of its Members, toensure the long-term health and reputation of the spor t internationally and domestically.” The ICC had set up a Working Group in June 2018 to consider thesanctioning of events and player release. “Poorly resourced and structured leagues are not sustainable in the long-term and may notsuppor t or invest in the growth and development of the game. They may also present challenges around cor ruption, failed leagues andnon-payment of players all of which can damage cricket’s global reputation. “They also recognize and encourage the impor tant rolethat these leagues, when staged by or in partnership with Members, can play in the promotion of the spor t, in raising operationalstandards, protecting the health, safety and welfare of its par ticipants and enabling professional cricketers to reap the rewards of theirtalents by mandating minimum contractual protections for players," he concluded.

Haven't ousted RavichandranAshwin and Ravindra Jadeja, sayschinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav"We haven't ousted anyone but made use of oppor tuni-ties that we got," was how young chinaman bowlerKuldeep Yadav responded when asked if YuzvendraChahal and his per formances have literally shut the ODIdoor on veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.The wrist spinner duo of Chahal and Kuldeep have beena regular feature in India's ODI format confining fingerspinner Ashwin to the sidelines and relegating RavindraJadeja as the third specialist spinner."No, no, not at all. We haven't ousted anyone. It's justthat we have got the oppor tunities and we did well. They(Ashwin and Jadeja) have always been doing well forIndia. In Test matches, Ash (Ravichandran Ashwin) andJaddu Bhai (Ravindra Jadeja) are still playing," Kuldeepsaid on the eve of the second ODI. Since it was a lead-ing question, Kuldeep made an extra effor t to make itclear that the perception of wrist spinners getting pref-erential treatment compared to finger spinners.

‘Elbow is feeling good’Smith returns to nets after surgery

India vs Australia: Not techniquebut mindset is ShikharDhawan’s problem, feel expertsIndia opener Shikhar Dhawan’s prolonged bad patch ismore about his mindset rather than technique, feel formerplayers, who have watched the batsman’s dip in formover the past few months.Since Asia Cup where he was the top scorer, Dhawanhas scored only 376 runs in 15 innings at a below paraverage of 26.85 and only two half-centuries to showfor his effor ts.If pacer Nathan Coulter-Nile got him in the first ODIagainst Australia in Hyderabad, it was par t-time off-spin of Glenn Maxwell that became his undoing in thesecond game after getting set.Both Aakash Chopra, who has opened alongsideDhawan in the first-class cricket and Vijay Dahiya,who has been Dhawan’s captain as well as coach inthe Delhi team, agreed that he is going through a badpatch. But having keenly tracked his career, both theformer Test players are confident that the lef t-handerwill turn it around.Even former India keeper and analyst Deep Dasguptathinks that “mindset is an issue as Dhawan has al-ways found ways to score runs, working around histechnique.” “There is no denying Dhawan is goingthrough a bad patch but with only three internationalmatches left, I don’t see any drastic changes hap-pening,” Chopra told PTI on the eve of the third game.“If he has scored 5000 plus ODI runs (5199 from 125games), it means that he has been around for a rea-sonable period of time, seen ups and downs to havescored that many runs. “His record in multi-nationtournaments (World Cup, Champions Trophy, Asia Cup)is fabulous, so it could well be a matter of time that he isback in form,” feels Chopra.Dahiya thinks Dhawan’s issue is that of mindset andtrying to score quickly. “I won’t say technique is a bigissue here as the boundaries that he got were all in-front of the wicket. May be not on the off-side but thosewere not behind the stumps shots either,” said Dahiya,who believes that every individual reacts to pressure indifferent situation.

I CONTD. ON PAGE 13 MICHELLE REMPEL (MEMBER OF...

Documents

Transcript of I CONTD. ON PAGE 13 MICHELLE REMPEL (MEMBER OF...