1. Bhima Koregaon Violence: Prakash Ambedkar Calls off Maha Bandh
Dalit activist and grandson of BR Ambedkar, Prakash Ambedkar, has withdrawn the Maharashtra bandh called to protest violence at the 200th anniversary celebrations of the Bhima Koregaon battle near Pune.
Meanwhile, unrest in Maharashtra continued for a third consecutive day. State capital Mumbai came to a standstill after protestors disrupted local train services. Many airlines waived off the cancelation fee for commuters to and from Mumbai.
The opposition is demanding that PM Modi should make a statement on the unrest and created a ruckus in the Rajya Sabha. Dalit activist and grandson of BR Ambedkar, Prakash Ambedkar, eventually withdrew the Maharashtra bandh.
(Read updates from the ground.)
2. Oppn, Centre Face Off on Triple Talaq Bill in Rajya Sabha
The Triple Talaq Bill was tabled in the Rajya Sabha by Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad amid uproar from the Opposition.
Congress' Anand Sharma moved a motion in Rajya Sabha to send the bill to the Select Committee for consideration and also proposed names of committee members.
“I move the following motion, that this House being strongly committed to women’s rights, wants to refer the bill to the select committee,” said Sharma.
In response to Sharma’s notice, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said, “The House is taken by surprise that a motion is suddenly moved, it has not been submitted a day before. The motion has to be given at least 24 hours in advance. The whole country is watching that in the other House you supported the bill and in this House you are trying to derail it.”
(Read more updates on the Triple Talaq Bill.)
3. AAP Picks Sanjay Singh, ND Gupta, Sushil Gupta For Rajya Sabha
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) nominated Sanjay Singh, Sushil Gupta and ND Gupta for the three Rajya Sabha seats from Delhi. In-direct elections will take place for these seats on 16 January in the Delhi Assembly, which is dominated by AAP.
Ahead of the announcement on Wednesday, 3 January, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal met MLAs of the party and then with the Political Action Committee (PAC).
A rift appeared in the party as one group emphasised on sending independent members to the Rajya Sabha, while another favoured nominating senior party leaders.
AAP founder member Kumar Vishwas expressed his disappointment at having been denied a Rajya Sabha nomination by the Aam Aadmi Party, saying “This is how I have been rewarded for speaking the truth for the past 1.5 years.”
(Follow more updates on The Quint.)
4. Smith, Styris, Aakash & Jones Predict Retentions by IPL Teams
The IPL Governing Council has allowed returning franchises Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals to secure the players who represented them in the 2015 edition and were part of Rising Pune Supergiant and Gujarat Lions squads in 2017.
An IPL franchise is eligible to secure up to five players by using a combination of player retention (pre-player auction) and Right to Match (during the auction) for the 2018 edition of the tournament.
(Watch updates and analysis of IPL retention here.)
5. Anurag Kashyap on the B-Word and How ‘Mukkabaaz’ Is a Family Film
Anurag Kashyap loves being behind the camera and so he is back with his next film Mukkabaaz, starring Vineet Singh and Zoya Hussain. It was screened in the Special Presentations section at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival and it received a standing ovation at the 2017 Mumbai Film Festival.
Mukkabaaz is set in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly and inspired by a true story. Vineet Singh plays boxer Shravan Singh who has to take on a ruthless local boxing association member who is hell-bent on destroying his career.
It’s the protagonist’s battle for victory over the forces of prejudice and corruption. Shravan's love interest, Sunaina is hearing and speech impaired and is being played by newcomer Zoya Hussain.
(Watch an exclusive interview with Anurag Kashyap and the cast of Mukkabaaz)
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