1. Karnataka I-T Raids Spark Showdown Between Congress and Govt
Hitting out at the Modi Government over the Income Tax (I-T) raids against his senior minister, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday alleged it was a politically motivated move to silence voices against the BJP, and vowed not to bow down to such “intimidation.”
The I-T Department conducted searches at multiple properties related to senior minister DK Shivakumar, who was overseeing the stay of 44 Congress MLAs from Gujarat at a resort near here, in connection with a tax evasion case.
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2. We The Minority: India's Muslims Speak Out in Times of Gau Raksha
For Mohammed Shamsi, a businessman in Moradabad, UP, riots are a practical hindrance to doing business. It’s an opinion mirrored across the country, where businesses in small-towns depend entirely on good Hindu-Muslim relations.
While the aftershocks of violence against Muslims is felt, most Muslim business owners say they have good relations with their mostly Hindu customers and suppliers. We spoke to Muslims in cities like Varanasi, which have flourished for centuries on the bedrock of a syncretic Hindu-Muslim culture, to ask if such a deep social and economic relationships can crumble so easily?
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3. Virender Wins Another Deaflympic Gold, But India Remains Silent
Virender Singh, who won his third Deaflympic gold medal at Samsun in Turkey, returned home to yet another disappointing response by the sports ministry of India.
The wrestler was hoping that the government will have a grand welcome for the Deaflympics athletes, but not a single official was there to receive them. India won five medals in the competition – which is their most successful campaign at the Deaflympics.
Speaking to The Quint, Virender Singh speaks about his struggles in his career and his journey to the top.
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4. Exclusive: CBFC’s Shocking Sexism & ‘Tutiyapa’ Over ‘Bandookbaaz’
The Nawazuddin Siddiqui starrer Babumoshai Bandookbaaz is the CBFC’s latest victim. The film is based on the life of a contract killer played by Nawaz. While it was clear from the trailer itself that the film would get an ‘A’ certificate, but what came as a shock were the 48 cuts that followed, thanks to Mr Nihalani.
We got in touch with Kushan Nandy, the director of the film, for an exclusive chat about his experience of presenting Babumoshai Bandookbaaz to Pahlaj Nihalani and all that followed.
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5. Remembering Aarushi: Her Grandfather Rues “Miscarriage of Justice”
BG Chitnis sits with the demeanour of a dignified man in his Noida flat. The 84-year-old is a former Group Captain in the Indian Air Force and also Aarushi’s maternal grandfather. It’s difficult to ignore the bright, smiling photograph of Aarushi kept in a corner of the hall. In contrast, there is no emotion on his wrinkled face.
Chitnis recently wrote an open letter defending the accused in the Aarushi-Hemraj double murder case – his daughter, Nupur Talwar and his son-in-law, Rajesh Talwar. In the letter, he blamed the UP Police, the CBI and the judiciary for putting the couple behind bars without a shred of evidence.
(This article was first published on 14 October 2015. It is being reposted from The Quint’s archives ahead of the Allahabad HC hearing of the case on 31 August.)
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