Headlines at 9 PM: ‘Gully Boy’ India’s official Oscar entry

'Gully Boy' India's official Oscar entry

Zoya Akhtar's "Gully Boy", featuring Ranveer Singh as an aspiring rapper, has been selected as India's official entry in the International Feature Film category at the Oscars, the Film Federation of India (FFI) announced on Saturday.

“Gully Boy" features Ranveer as an up-and-coming rapper who sets out to achieve his dream by rhyming about his life on the Mumbai streets.

"India's official entry for Oscars this year is 'Gully Boy'. There were 27 films in the running this year but it was an unanimous decision to select 'Gully Boy'," FFI secretary general Supran Sen said.

Why no simultaneous bypoll for seven seats in Gujarat, Congress asks

The Congress on Saturday criticised the Election Commission of India (EC) for announcing by-elections to only four Assembly seats in Gujarat and leaving out three other vacant seats. It said the EC was acting under the BJP's pressure.

"The Election Commission was supposed to announce by-election to seven seats, but election for only four seats was announced. It clearly shows that the BJP has put pressure on the commission," state Congress chief Amit Chavda told reporters.

"Nevertheless, the Gujarat Congress is fully prepared for by-elections," he added.

No proof Chidambaram’s Delhi house ‘acquired from proceeds of crime’: PMLA Tribunal

The Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Appellate Tribunal has said there is no evidence that the Jor Bagh house in New Delhi, owned by former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram and his son, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram, was “acquired from proceeds of crime.”

This comes as a blow to the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED’s) plans to attach the property. The ED had, on August 1, 2019, issued a notice to Karti asking him to vacate the Jor Bagh house in 10 days.

Kalyan Singh told by CBI court to appear on Sep 27 in Ayodhya case

A Special CBI Court has ordered BJP leader Kalyan Singh to be produced before it on September 27 in the Ayodhya case. Kalyan Singh was the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh when Babri Masjid was demolished by a Hindutva mob on Dec 6, 1992.

Teen allegedly raped in Mathura hospital

A 16-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a compounder in a hospital here, police said on Saturday.

An FIR was filed by her brother on Thursday night at the Highway police station. No action could taken against the accused, Shyam Sundar, as the statement of the girl is yet to be recorded. She has been shifted to a hospital in Jaipur, Inspector S R Gautam said.

Two doctors, Pankaj and Gaurav, have also been booked. The investigation would proceed when her statement is recorded, police said.

Iran's Guard says ready for 'any scenario' amid US standoff

Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard is ready for combat and "any scenario," its chief commander said Saturday, as the country's nuclear deal with world powers collapses and the U.S. alleged Iran was behind a weekend attack on major oil sites in Saudi Arabia that shook global energy markets.

20 years after Staines murder CBI nabs an accused in Odisha

Two decades after the ghastly killing of Australian missionary Graham Stuart Staines and his two minor sons in Odisha's Keonjhar district, CBI has arrested one of the accused persons in the triple murder case.

The CBI arrested Budhadeb Naik (45), a close associate of Dara Singh who was convicted in the case, from his house at Nischitapur village under Thakurmunda police station in Mayurbhanj district.

Naik was among those who had set fire to the station wagon in which Australian Missionary Graham Stuart Staines and his two minor sons - Philip (10) and Timothy (7), were sleeping in front of a church at Manoharpur village in Keonjhar on the night of January 22, 1999.

Pakistan ‘least qualified’ to criticise India on Kashmir: Tharoor

Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Saturday said Pakistan is the "least qualified" country to criticise India on the Kashmir issue, especially in view of its own record in PoK.

Speaking at the Pune International Literary Festival, the Lok Sabha MP from Kerala also said differences between political parties do not matter when it comes to foreign policy.

"I would like to send an implicit message outside. We may have differences within our country but when it comes to India's interest, it is not BJP's foreign policy nor is it Congress' foreign policy. It is the Indian foreign policy," Tharoor asserted.

Probe Rs 6,000 crore spent on Goa roads in past 5 years: Congress to CM

The Goa Congress on Saturday demanded a probe into the Rs 6,000 crore spent on roads in the state, claiming they were riddled with potholes.

Goa Pradesh Congress Committee president Girish Chodankar has written to Chief Minister Pramod Sawant seeking action against the officials who oversaw these road works.

Eight dead in rain-related incidents in UP

At least eight people were killed in Uttar Pradesh in rain-related incidents. All the deaths took place on September 20, Uttar Pradesh Relief Commissioner GS Priyadarshi said.

Due to snakebite, one person each died in Pilibhit, Lalitpur and Kannauj Similary and two were killed in Etawah, he said. Two persons died due to lightning in Chitrakoot, while one person died due to lightning in Sonbhadra, the statement said.

He also informed that rivers Ganga, Yamuna, Betwa and Ghaghra are flowing above the danger mark at various places in the state.

UP farmers end protest after govt assurance

The farmers squatting on the UP-Delhi border after their march to the national capital was stopped withdrew their protest on Saturday evening after authorities assured that five of their 15 demands will be met, the spokesperson of the organisation leading the agitation said.

A delegation of the farmers met Joint Secretary in the Union Agriculture Ministry Vivek Agarwal, who assured them five of their demands will be met, Bharatiya Kisan Sangathan spokesperson Lalit Rana said.

Rana said the farmers have decided to withdraw the agitation after the assurance. The farmers had started their march from Saharanpur on September 11.

Fmr Kolkata police commissioner Rajeev Kumar's anticipatory bail plea rejected

The Alipore District and Sessions court on Saturday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of former Kolkata police commissioner Rajeev Kumar, who is evading CBI summons in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam case.

Kumar, who is currently the ADG of the CID, had failed to get a relief from the Barasat district and sessions court on his anticipatory bail application in the case. The CBI had moved the Alipore court on Thursday, seeking an arrest warrant against the former Kolkata police commissioner.

Pawar slams PM Modi for wrongly tauntig him over Pakistan

NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the latter's swipe about Pawar "liking" Pakistan, and said it did not behove a PM to speak before verifying the facts.

Addressing a rally in Nashik on Thursday, ahead of Maharashtra elections, Modi alleged that Pawar "likes" Pakistan. Countering him, Pawar on Saturday said that the ruling establishment and the army in Pakistan have a policy of badmouthing India.

"This policy is not in the interest of common people in Pakistan, but it serves the interests of the rulers in that country...I said this. Did this help Pakistan in any way? Should a prime minister speak in this way?" Pawar asked.

Heavy rains in parts of Delhi

Heavy rains lashed parts of the national capital on Saturday. The Safdarjung observatory recorded 23 mm rainfall while the areas under the Palam observatory received 32.6 mm rainfall.

The rainfall received by Ridge area, Lodhi Road and Aya Nagar observatories was 56.8 mm, 21.2 mm and 20 mm, respectively.

The weatherman has forecast cloudy sky for Sunday morning with possibility of light rains towards noon.

Trump to meet Pak PM Imran on Monday, PM Modi on Tuesday in New York

US President Donald Trump will meet Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday, a day after he joins Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the "Howdy Modi" event in Houston and will again hold a meeting with the Indian leader in New York on Tuesday, officials said.