Sunday, 26 June 2022

SC to hear Eknath Shinde, 15 MLAs' plea against disqualification notice; the latest on the Maharashtra crisis

Eknath Shinde and other 15 Shiv Sena MLAs, currently camping in Guwahati in Assam since 22 June, moved to the Supreme Court against disqualification notice issued by the deputy speaker them. The court is likely to hear the plea today. As Maharashtra political crisis continues to gain steam, here are all the updates:

Top 10 developments of Maharashtra political crisis

1 - Rebel Sena MLAs held meetings on Sunday, discussing various options after summons were sent to all 16 MLAs named by Shiv Sena's chief whip Sunil Prabhu, seeking written replies by the evening of 27 June to the complaints seeking their disqulification

2 - Eknath Shinde's faction claims to have the support of more than two-thirds of Sena MLAs, has contended that Prabhu has been replaced as party whip by Bharat Gogawale

3 - The Eknath Shinde camp has also challenged the appointment of Ajay Choudhari as Shiv Sena Legislature Party leader by the Uddhav Thackeray camp and also the rejection of no-confidence motion against Deputy Speaker Narahari Zirwal

4 - On Sunday, another Maharashtra minister Uday Samat reached Guwahati and joined the dissident camp. Till now, state cabinet ministers Gulabrao Patil, Dada Bhuse, Sandipan Bhumre, and ministers of state Shamburaje Desai and Abdul Sattar have joined the rebel camp

5 - Another minister, Bachu Kadu of Prahar Janshakti Party, and an Independent minister from Sena quota, Rajendra Yedravkar, are also in Guwahati, camping with Shinde

6 - Shinde, late on Sunday evening, launched a fresh attack on Shiv Sena leadership and said he wonders how could Bal Thackeray's party support the people having a direct connection with Dawood Ibrahim who was responsible for killing innocent Mumbaikars by triggering bomb blasts. The tweets by Shinde Shinde's were an apparent reference to Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) minister Nawab Malik who is in jail in connection with a money laundering case allegedly involving relatives of Dawood Ibrahim

7 - Shiv Sena minister Aaditya Thackeray on Sunday claimed that over a month ago, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray had asked Eknath Shinde whether he wanted to become the chief minister, although the latter had sidestepped the issue then. "He should have demanded the post directly on the face instead of running away to Surat and Guwahati," Aaditya said

8 - Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut called Shiv Sena rebel MLAs "living corpses" and said that their "souls are dead". "40 MLAs in Guwahati are living corpses, their souls are dead. Their bodies will be sent directly to the Assembly for post-mortem when they come back. They know what can happen in the fire that has been lit here," he said

9 - "How can Hinduhridaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray's Shiv Sena support those who have a direct connection with Dawood who killed innocent Mumbaikars by carrying out Mumbai bomb blasts? We are taking this step to oppose this; Don't care if this step leads us to the brink of death," Shinde tweeted in Marathi. In another tweet, the senior Shiv Sena leader said they will consider themselves fortunate if they die while saving Shiv Sena and the ideology of Bal Thackeray

10 - Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Sunday has asked state Director General of Police (DGP) Rajnish Seth to provide adequate police protection to the families and homes of rebel MLA. As per the letter written by the Governor, he had received a representation on 25 June from 38 MLAs of Shiv Sena, two members of the Prahar Janshakti Party and seven Independents.

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Dharma Files | Understanding Islam in the light of Hinduism

The Nupur Sharma controversy represents a crisis in Hindu-Muslim relations. It has been said, however, that a crisis is a terrible thing to waste. For often a crisis also brings a great opportunity in its wake. Perhaps this moment of crisis in Hindu-Muslim relations can also be a great teaching moment. How might that be possible?

In the heat of the exchanges on the issue of the putative discovery of the Shiva-linga in the Gyanvapi mosque, aspersions were apparently cast on the character of the Prophet of Islam. However, no one has challenged the accuracy of the statement made in the course of the debate, for which the relevant chapter and verse from Hadith literature (Bukhari 5134) has been cited abundantly during the debates. Some videos even depict the Islamic evangelist, Zakir Naik, confirming the statement involved. So while the motive underlying the statement that was made can be questioned, the same cannot be said of the statement, which is apparently textually accurate.

One must now note that similar accusations can and have been made against revered Hindu figures. Sita, by one calculation, it seems, was six years old when she was married to Rama. The Puranas are full of accounts of the gallantries of the many gods of the Hindu pantheon. And so on. How then does the Hindu tradition teach us to deal with such cases and help us understand the situation better?

The Hindu tradition does so by advising that one should not do what the holy figures do, but rather do what the holy figures ask us to do (na devacaritam caret… devakathitam caret). It thus sets up a distinction between the character of the person and the statement made by the person.

Is this a cop out? I would like to suggest that a serious argument may be involved here. The reason why we look up to great figures in history is because of the contribution they have made in their respective fields. Thus we look up to Einstein for his famous theories of relativity (and not because he was not an ideal husband). We look up to Mahatma Gandhi for devising a way of fighting for justice without violence (and not because he was not an ideal father). We look up to President Kennedy for taking the right decision during the Cuban crisis (and not because he was not a family role model).

***

Also Read

The perils of India’s street veto: The other side of the Nupur Sharma saga

Gyanvapi mosque row: Time for enlightened community leaders to choose the path of discussion and reconciliation

***

When we think of Prophet Mohammed, we think of the founder of one of the major religions of humanity, under whose inspiration the hitherto unknown Arabs founded a far-flung empire within half a century of his passing away. When a Muslim thinks of the Prophet, he thinks of a person through whom God’s words became human words. To invoke the more mundane side of the lives of these major figures is, in a sense, to diminish them, for we thereby draw the focus away from their great achievements, for which we cherish them, and compromise their inspirational role in our lives.

The advice contained in the saying, that one should not act as the sages acted but act as they ask us to, it seems to me, conveys this point in a folksy way. If we adopt a similar attitude in this case, then we could argue that what really matters about the Prophet is that he was a channel for conveying God’s word to humanity, he “spoke” God’s words, and that this was the great miracle of his life, and this is what one should focus on.

My suggestion is, however, open to a serious objection from the Muslim side, namely, that the Prophet is the ideal person whose actions Muslims are encouraged to emulate and that, by distinguishing between his prophetic (speaking for God) role from his exemplary role, I am being unfair to the Islamic tradition. This objection seems to me to be well-founded and must be taken with the utmost seriousness. One cannot separate out the private and public life of the Prophet the way we might do so in the case of an Einstein or a Kennedy, or even a Gandhi, because both the Quran and the Sunna constitute the great sources of the Shariah. And the Sunnah stands for what the Prophet said or did.

However, it is clear that the Muslims are not expected to follow the Prophet in all respects. For instance, the ordinary Muslim cannot emulate the prophetic function of the Prophet. Even the number of marriages allowed to a Muslin under the Shariah, for instance, is restricted to four, as against the many more recorded in the biographical accounts of the Prophet. Here again, perhaps, Hinduism might help us understand Islam. The Gandhian saint, Vinoba Bhave, points out in his writings that we admire the Maratha chief, Shivaji, for building numerous forts, which enabled him to become a military force in his times. But if we feel that the country needs to become a military force in our own times, we wouldn’t go around building forts, but instead would build military training centres or airfields, or similar institutions suitable for a modern army. The obvious point is that when we decide to follow a great leader, we must adapt his model to the contemporary setting in order to be true to the leader.

The provision for quadrigamy in the Islamic tradition could serve as a case in point. The revelation, which provides for four wives for a Muslim, took place after the battle of Uhud, in which the residents of Medina fought off the Meccans, under the leadership of the Prophet, and were able to hold their own, but at great cost to human life. This loss of life left many women and children in the Muslim community without support, and it could be argued that the provision for four wives was to enable the burden to be shared with the rest of the community. Perhaps the message here is to imagine how best this might be achieved in our times. That is to say: How best one might provide for the widow and the orphan in our society.

How then might Hinduism help us understand Islam? It could do so first by pointing out that the details of the private life of religious figures need not come in our way of heeding their teachings; that, if the Prophet did marry Aisha at the age of six and the marriage was consummated at the age of nine, this fact need not compromise his role as a messenger of God. And Hinduism also helps us understand Islam better by promoting the realisation that the teachings of religious figures should not be followed blindly, that one should look at them through a contemporary lens, and that this is what the Quran perhaps implies by emphasising aql (one’s discriminative faculty), as a young Malaysian Muslim woman scholar once suggested to me at a conference.

The author, formerly of the IAS, is the Birks Professor of Comparative Religion at McGill University in Montreal Canada, where he has taught for over thirty years. He has also taught in Australia and the United States and at Nalanda University in India. He has published extensively in the fields of Indian religions and world religions. Views expressed are personal.

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'India is mother of democracy, says PM Modi while addressing the Indian diaspora in Munich

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the Indian diaspora at Audi Dome in Munich on Sunday. He was welcomed with enthusiasm and chants of 'Modi, Modi'

It was the largest gathering of the Indian diaspora in Germany post-pandemic. Most of the people came dressed in traditional attire.

Addressing the programme Modi lauded Indian democracy while mentioning the "Emergency" declared by the Indira Gandhi government on 25 June 1975. Earlier in the day, the topic had prominently featured in his Mann ki Baat programme as well.

Emergency

In an exhilarating atmosphere in Munich, Modi described how the 'DNA of democracy' is inscribed in Indians. "Today is 26 June which is also known as the day when India's democracy-- that's is in the DNA of every Indian-- was trampled and suppressed 47 years ago. Emergency was a black spot on the vibrant history of India's democracy," said Modi.

He said that 47 years ago an attempt was made to hold that democracy hostage, and crush democracy; however, Indians answered all the conspiracies to crush democracy.

"The people of India answered all the conspiracies to crush democracy, done in a democratic way. We Indians take pride in our democracy wherever you are. Every Indian proudly says India is Mother of democracy," said the prime minister.

Digital India

Speaking on the progress that the country has been making, the prime minister said that in the last century, Germany and other nations benefitted from the industrial revolution; India was a slave back then and failed to leverage the same resources. "But now India will not be left behind in the fourth industrial revolution, it's now leading the world", said Modi.

He said, there was a time when India was nowhere in the race of startups. Today, India has the third-largest startup ecosystem. He added that on an average, a Unicorn is being made in India every 10 days.

Similarly, the country used to import even the simplest phones, but today, India is the second-largest mobile phone manufacturer in the world. he said. "We are making new records in data consumption, data prices, and even digital transactions. India is leading the way. With the highest mobile data consumption, India is one of the cheapest data providers in the world," he added.

The India of the 21st century, in the fourth industrial revolution is not one of the laggards, but one of the leaders. Be it IT or digital technology, India is shining on every front, the prime minister said.

Besides, India has also come out of the mentality of chalta hai’ (lackadaisical attitude) and moved on to ‘karna hai’ (have to do). "Today India takes a pledge to 'have to do', 'have to do' and 'have to do on time', he said.

"Today, every village in our country is open defecation free, has electricity, has roads and 99 per cent of the villages also have clean cooking fuel," the prime minister added.

COVID-19

He said, today every poor in India is getting free treatment of Rs 5 lakh. In this time of pandemic, India has been providing free food grains to 80 crore poor for the last two years. He also said, there was a time when people said India will take 10-15 years to vaccinate its population against COVID-19. Today, 90 per cent of adults have taken both doses and 95 per cent of adults have taken at least one dose, he added.

Clean energy

Speaking on climate change, a topic close to his heart, he said, "We had an ambitious target of 10 per cent ethanol blending in petrol. We achieved it five months before the target. India is now ready for progress, for development, and for the fulfillment of its dreams."

Climate change is not just an issue of government policies in India. The youth of India is investing in electronic vehicles and other similar pro-climate technologies. Sustainable climate practices are becoming a part of the lives of ordinary people of India today, Modi said.

"India has shown how well a democracy is delivering in such a vast and so diverse country. The way crores of Indians have achieved big goals together, it is unprecedented," he continued.

Cleanliness is a lifestyle

Continuing on the vein of cleanliness, he said, "Today cleanliness is becoming a lifestyle in India." The youth of the country consider it their duty to keep the country clean. Today the people of India are confident that their money is being honestly spent for the improvement of the country. They have realised that corruption does not pay and that's why tax compliance too has been increasing rapidly in the country.

Modi in Germany

Earlier in the day, Modi received a grand welcome from the Indian diaspora at the Hotel in Munich on Sunday where he will be staying during his trip.

"Bharat Mata ki Jai" slogan reverberated at the hotel premises as people from the Indian diaspora cheered and waved their flags seeing the Prime Minister.

Modi arrived in Munich today to attend the G7 summit where he will hold meetings with G7 and partner countries and will hold discussions on issues ranging from environment, energy, to counter-terrorism. He was welcomed by a Bavarian band on his arrival in Munich.

On the sidelines of the Summit, Modi will hold bilateral meetings with leaders of some of the participating countries.

"Besides participating in @G7 discussions on climate, energy, food security, health, gender equality and more, PM will also hold several bilateral meetings on the sidelines," the MEA said.

The G7 Summit invitation is in keeping with the tradition of strong and close partnership and high-level political contacts between India and Germany.

After attending the G7 Summit, the prime minister will be travelling to United Arab Emirates (UAE) while coming back to India on 28 June, 2022, to pay his personal condolences on the passing away of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the former UAE President and Abu Dhabi Ruler. He will also congratulate Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on his election as the new President of UAE.

This will be Modi's first meeting with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan since his election as the new President of the UAE and the Ruler of Abu Dhabi.

With input from agencies

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Teesta Setalvad produced in Ahmedabad court; crime branch demands 14-day custody

Teesta Setalvad, who was produced before the court on Sunday in connection with a case against her NGO, which gave baseless information about the 2002 Gujarat riots to the police, alleged that her arrest was illegal and she was driven from Mumbai to Ahmedabad in a car to intimidate a "human rights lawyer".

'Abuse of power'

She called her arrest an "abuse of power" alleging that she was not allowed to speak to her lawyer.
She was making her statements in the metropolitan court of Ahmedabad where she was produced by the Gujarat police crime branch.

"The ATS barged into my house without any warrant, snatched my phone and pushed me. Look at this wound they inflicted on me. They brought me to Ahmedabad Crime Branch at 6 am," she said in the court.

"They came in at three and it was only after my lawyer came that they showed me an FIR. Is arresting on the basis of an FIR legal? Why wasn't I served a notice? I was detained illegally from 3 pm to 10.30 am. Why was I driven down in a car by ATS from Mumbai to Gujarat? To intimidate me? To intimidate human rights lawyers is okay? This is an abuse of power. My detention and arrest is illegal," Setalvad alleged.

Alleging "fear for life", she questioned why ATS was sent for arresting her in an alleged forgery case.
"I fear for my life. I have been roughed up, and abused...why should ATS be sent for what is a forgery case? Is this the new norm? I should be given bail. I am a human rights activist. This is a political case. I am cooperating and will cooperate with all legal investigations and queries," Setalvad said.

'Accused not supporting investigation'

"Former IPS officer RB Sreekumar was arrested yesterday and Teesta Setalvad was arrested today. Forging of evidence and hindering of evidence will be looked into. We will produce both the accused in the court by 3 pm," Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Chaitanya Mandlik said earlier on Sunday.

"The accused are not supporting us in the investigation. We are demanding 14 days of custody. Teesta will be produced in front of the Magistrate and all her statements will be recorded there. We are getting the documents arranged from various sources," said the DCP.

He further said that as of now the investigation is at a primary level and later strict actions will be taken once the investigation is done.

"We have done the medical check-up, and the due process was followed by the Crime Branch. The investigation is at a primary level, strict actions will be taken once the investigation is done. We have the primary affidavits and documents submitted by accused," he added.

Earlier in the day, Setalvad was taken for a medical checkup at Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad.
"They have done my medical. I have a big bruise on my hand. This is what the ATS did to me. They are taking me to the magistrate's court," said Teesta Setalvad had said after the medical checkup.

'Move abhorrent to democratic rights of citizens'

Meanwhile, the Left parties have strongly opposed the arrest of Setelvad. The CPI(M) has alleged that the move is "abhorrent" to democratic rights of citizens.

In a statement, the CPI(M) alleged that Setalvad's arrest is an "ominous threat" to all democratic minded citizens not to dare to question the role of the State or the government under whose regime communal violence takes place.

"This is abhorrent to democratic rights of citizens. However, the action of the Gujarat administration in her arrest has been enabled by the questionable verdict of the three-member Bench of the Supreme Court which has made the complainant into the accused...," the statement said.

On Saturday, Gujarat Anti-terrorism Squad (ATS) team detained Setalvad from Mumbai in connection with a case on her NGO and later in the night she was taken to Ahmedabad.
The Gujarat ATS team took Teesta Setalvad to the Santacruz police station on Saturday.

The action came after Union Minister Amit Shah in an interview with ANI said that Teesta Setalvad-run NGO gave baseless information about the 2002 Gujarat riots to the police.

"I have read the judgement very carefully. The judgement clearly mentions the name of Teesta Setalvad. The NGO that was run being run by her - I don't remember the name of the NGO- had given baseless information about the riots to the police," Amit Shah, in an exclusive interview, told ANI.

The Supreme Court had on Friday, dismissed as "devoid of merit" an appeal by Zakia Jafri in a plea challenging SIT's clean chit to the then chief minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi and others in cases related to the riots. Zakia Jafri is the widow of former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri who was killed in the riots.

With input from agencies

Also read:

Gujarat ATS hands over Teesta Setalvad to Ahmedabad crime branch

Activist Teesta Setalvad arrested by Gujarat anti-terror squad in Mumbai

2002 Gujarat riots: Amit Shah lauds SC verdict, takes jibe at Congress' satyagraha over ED questioning Rahul Gandhi

2002 Gujarat riots: Guj police register FIR against Teesta Setalvad, former IPS officers RB Sreekumar, Sanjiv Bhatt

Former ISRO scientist welcomes the arrest of retired IPS officer RB Sreekumar by Gujarat Police

2002 Gujarat riots: SC upholds SIT clean chit to PM Modi, dismisses Zakia Jafri's plea

No evidence of ‘larger criminal conspiracy’ on part of State in 2002 Gujarat Riots, says SC; rejects Zakia Jafri's plea

Firstpost Podcast: What is the Zakia Jafri case?

Victory of truth: Yogi Adityanath on SC verdict in Gujarat riots case

 



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Emergency era atrocities failed to shake Indians’ faith in democracy, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the 90th episode of his monthly radio programme, Mann Ki Baat at 11 am on Sunday. The prime minister expressed his happiness over the inputs for this month's Mann Ki Baat. A few days back, Modi had urged people share ideas for the programme either on the MyGov or NaMo applications.

Here are the top highlights of today's episode:

Emergency era

Speaking on the Emergency era, Saturday marked its 47th anniversary, the prime minister lauded those who resisted the Emergency and said that it was the democratic mindset that eventually prevailed. He asked people to remember it while they celebrate Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav this year.

During the Emergency imposed in 1975 attempts were made to "crush democracy" in India, Modi said, adding that it is difficult to find another such example in the world where people defeated a "dictatorial mindset" through democratic means.

"During the Emergency, all rights were snatched away. Among these rights was the right to life and personal liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. At that time, attempts were made to crush democracy in India, the country's courts, every constitutional institution, press, everything was brought under control," Modi said.

He said censorship was so stringent that nothing could be published without approval. "I remember, when famous singer Kishore Kumar ji refused to praise the government, he was banned, he was not allowed on radio," the prime minister said.

Despite several attempts, thousands of arrests and atrocities on millions, the faith of Indians in democracy could not be shaken, he asserted.

"The democratic values ingrained in us since centuries, the spirit of democracy that flows in our veins, ultimately triumphed," Modi said. Through democratic means, people of India got rid of the Emergency and restored democracy, he said. "It is difficult to find an example like this in the world of defeating the dictatorial mindset through democratic means," Modi said.

Achievements of the people of India

  • Highlighting the achievements in the space sector, Modi said in the past few years, several important work related to the space have been done and one of them is the creation of an agency named In-Space.
  • He lauded players' performance in the recently held Khelo India Youth Games. He also applauded Neeraj Chopra for winning a silver at Paavo Nurmi Games in Finland.
  • He paid tribute to veteran Indian Women’s cricketer Mithali Raj, who recently retired from international cricket. “I wish Mithali all the very best for her future.”

COVID-19

The prime minister encouraged the citizens to get the precaution dose as cases continued to surge across the country. He reiterated that safety measures, such as wearing of masks, washing hands etc must be practiced.

Recap

In the 89th episode, the prime minister expressed his pride that the number of Unicorns in the country has reached the hundred mark. Modi had said the total valuation of these Unicorns is more than 330 billion dollars, which amounts to more than 25 lakh crore rupees.

PM Modi said 44 Unicorns came up last year and 14 more were formed in three to four months this year. He stated that even during the pandemic, Indian start-ups have been creating wealth and value. The average annual growth rate of Indian Unicorns is more than those of the US, the UK and many other countries.

Mann ki Baat

Mann Ki Baat is an Indian radio programme hosted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which he addresses the people of the nation on the last Sunday of every month.

Meanwhile, Modi on Sunday departed for Germany to attend the G7 Summit, scheduled from 26-27 June, where he will hold meetings with G7 and guest countries and exchange views on contemporary issues. He  will also travel to UAE.

With input from agencies

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Saturday, 25 June 2022

Youtube India joins 'Resignation Letter' trend, here's how internet reacted

Putting in your papers in an organisation is not an easy task. While many organisations expect a formal mail regarding the same, a new trend seems to be picking up on social media - the trend of short and funny resignation letters. Joining the bandwagon is Youtube that shared a hilarious resignation on Twitter.

Check out the post here:

The handwritten letter read, "To whomsoever it may concern, chaliye khatam karte hain (Let’s end this now)," The tweet was captioned saying, "Nice resignation letter."

Bajaj Capital joined in on the fun and replied by sharing another hilarious resignation letter.

Youtube responded to it by writing, "Yeh bhi theek hai."

Reacting to the YouTube’s tweet, a social media user wrote, “We all gotta use it.”

Another user re-tweeted YouTube's post and said, "Saying goodbye is hard, especially when you have to say it in the form of a resignation. YouTube India has come up to the rescue of all such professionals and shared an example of a 'nice resignation letter'."

"Legend," said a user.

A user even thanked the social media platform for telling him what he should write in his resignation letter.

However, YouTube India's tweet is not the only post that got everyone talking on the internet. Recently, Harsh Goenka, chairman of RPG Enterprises, also shared a picture of one such short resignation letter that went viral. But it wasn’t a letter the business tycoon received but was posted by him for fun.

Last week, another man’s leave application went viral after his manager shared the letter and said that the man had wanted the off to attend an interview. The leave was approved and the junior even thanked his manager for being “able to get such a great opportunity”.

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Telengana BJP files case against Ram Gopal Varma over tweet on Droupadi Murmu

Telangana BJP on Friday lodged a case against film maker Ram Gopal Varma for his alleged unsavoury comments against National Democratic Allaince’s candidate for Presidential election Droupadi Murmu.

On 22nd June, Ram Gopal Varma tweeted, “If DRAUPADI is the PRESIDENT who are the PANDAVAS? And more importantly, who are the KAURAVAS?”

Pandavas and Kauravas were from the royal family of Hastinapur as described in Mahabharata and Draupadi was married to the Pandavas.

Reacting to the tweet, BJP leader Gudur Narayana Reddy, filed a complaint at the Abid Road Police Station, accusing him of disrespecting the SC and ST community.

In his complaint, Reddy said Varma’s tweets were highly derogatory and insulting a senior tribal woman politician.

The film maker later apologized on his Twitter handle. He wrote, “This was said just in an earnest irony and not intended in any other way. Draupadi in Mahabharata is my favorite character but since the name is such a rarity I just remembered the associated characters and hence my expression. Not at all intended to hurt sentiments of anyone.”

With inputs from agencies

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