Colombo: The law to ban face coverings took effect from Monday in Sri Lanka. The move which came a week after more than 250 people were killed in a series of coordinated attacks on Easter Sunday, has drawn a mixed response. Activists say that the move “violated Muslim women’s right to practice their religion freely”.

President Maithripala Sirisena said on Sunday “The ban is to ensure national security… No one should obscure their faces to make identification difficult.”

All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU), the top body of Islamic scholars in the South Asian island nation has backed the move on security grounds.

However, according to Al Jazeera people had dividing opinions in the Indian island nation. It published views of some people including Muslim women.

33-year-old, Qaanita Razeek, co-founder of Soup Kitchen Sri Lanka which helps the destitute, regardless of race/religion, wearer of niqab, said, while I understand that there is a difference in scholarly opinion about the wearing of the face veil, I made the choice to wear the niqab 16 years ago and asking me to unveil now is like asking to strip me of my identity.

Harshana Rajakaruna, Member of Parliament from the ruling United National Party felt that the majority of the Muslim community are very positive and happy about the ban.

Another Muslim woman a prominent social activist based in Colombo, wearer of hijab says, in the current context, I don’t think there is anything much we can do to show resistance against this ban. However, the worry is the precedent that the law is setting.

Kalana Senaratne, senior lecturer, Department of Law, University of Peradeniya welcomed the banning of the burqa/niqab finding it positive if this marks a shift in Sri Lankan society towards a more secular ethos. However, she said, if the banning is motivated by hate, it would have a very negative impact especially on the Muslim community in the long-term.

She added security cannot be enhanced merely by banning the burqa/niqab. It has to be linked to the broader objective of secularisation of Sri Lankan society, which in turn requires other ethnic and religious groups, including the Sinhala Buddhist majority, to rethink and reform their own communities in more progressive and pluralist ways.

Tehani Ariyaratne, women’s rights activist observed that any ban on the niqab without consultation with those who would be directly affected by it is nothing but a reactionary response by the state, designed to distract from its woeful lack of accountability for the events that have taken place over the last week.

Saying that Muslim women and Muslim women’s rights groups and activists have not been consulted in the process of putting this ban in place, she said this is unacceptable. It is a violation of their right to practice their religion freely, and they should be the principal stakeholders in this discussion.

Hyderabad: in yet another ghastly crime reported from the state’s Yadadri district a second body of a rape victim has been recovered from the same well that had become the centre of locals’ ire.

This well of horror is situated in Hajipur of Yadadri district in Telangana where so far two rape victims bodies have been recovered, TN reports.

Even before residents recovered from the shock of having found the body of a 14-year-old girl, allegedly raped and murdered, from an abandoned well, the body of another girl, aged 18, who had been missing for over 45 days was found last evening from the same abandoned well.

The region locals have set the accused’s house on fire as soon as the news of the second body recovered was made public.

Now the police are looking for clues into the alleged rape and murder of a minor girl whose corpse was found in the well a few days back.

Some people are suspecting this to be the heinous work of the accused rapist-murderer who killed both the victims in a crime spree.
(This is a developing story.)

Dubai: Gaoli Liu is a great fan of the Urdu language. She speaks Urdu, with a tempering of Mandarin. Popularly known by her friends as Zahra, the 37-year-old anthropology scholar has made Pakistan the focus of her academic pursuit. Presently she is hosting a travel show titled ‘Agla station’ (Next station), introducing people to the places around the country.

Gulf News quoted Gaoli as saying: “I had already booked the return ticket at that time, but the idea was very attractive to me. My basic purpose at first was going around Pakistan, especially some of the places where I have never been to, such as Balochistan and the northern areas. The TV programme was also happy to find me because their original idea was simply to get someone who is Chinese and show them the country. They adjusted the programme according to my situation and since I can speak Urdu and also know the regional culture, I became the host and introduced people to Pakistan.”

According to Gaoli, her Urdu skills are still at a basic level, however, she is eager to improve her conversational skills and on the lookout for studying Arabic and Urdu further.

The report further added that her love story with Pakistan started almost a decade ago. During the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she enrolled as a volunteer and had to learn Urdu to interact with the Pakistani visitors. That is when she was given the name Zahra.

Gaoli is extremely interested in folk culture and meeting different people.

Regarding her nickname Zahra, Gaoli Liu said: “Our Pakistani professor gave me the name Zahra because it is a tradition in China that when you learn a new language, the teacher would give you a name used in that language. Because I like the Z alphabet, I requested the teacher to give me a name that starts with ‘Z’.

Meet Gao Li (Zahra) a Chinese scholar who speaks perfect Urdu. She’s doing a program on a local TV channel these days. 🇵🇰🇨🇳@Zitazahra @zlj517 @CathayPak pic.twitter.com/VoDhf952XU

— Danyal Gilani (@DanyalGilani) April 7, 2019

Mumbai: Actress Kiara Advani gave rap a try and cut her hair short in a video that has got the social media world talking.

On Tuesday morning, Kiara took to Instagram to share a video in which she is seen cutting her long hair while rapping about her hectic lifestyle. She captioned it: “Guilty as charged! Just had to chop it off, been neglecting proper hair care for too long and thought this was the only solution.”

While social media has emerged as the place for millennials to rant, express and share their lives, Kiara chose to do it differently.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw3larIDAeR/

She goes on to rap about being a champ in balancing her traditions and millennial lifestyle, but her hair concerns have got the best of her. Her struggle with time and not being able to oil her hair much seem to be the reason behind this urge to go for a shorter hairdo.

“I love my hair. Who doesn’t, but the constant heat and product that goes into styling my hair for shoot and with my busy schedule I’ve got no time to take care of my hair. Even though I’ve got a modern take on most things in life, I like to stick to certain traditions, especially when it comes to beauty.

“I just couldn’t deal with it anymore, which is why I decided to take matters in my own hands and chopped it off. Let’s see if the new look catches on,” Kiara said in a statement.

While some of her fans loved her new look and called it “cool”, there were others who remarked: “Did you really cut your hair?” and “Is this for real.”

On the film front, the actress will next be seen in “Good News” and “Kabir Singh”.

New Delhi: Following reports of fire at Shastri Bhawan, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi accusing him of “burning” files and said that such acts will not be able save him.

Although there were no reports of any damage since the fire had engulfed some scrap materials and was doused within minutes, Gandhi took a dig at the Prime Minister, whom the Congress accuses of corruption and crony capitalism.

“Modi ji, burning files is not going to save you. Your day of judgement is coming,” Rahul Gandhi tweeted.

Modi ji burning files is not going to save you. Your day of judgement is coming. https://t.co/eqFvTJfDgY

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 30, 2019

“A minor fire had broken out on the sixth floor of Shastri Bhawan around 2.45 p.m on Tuesday, and it was put out within minutes,” a Delhi Fire Services officer said.

According to the officer, the fire broke out at a place where some scrap material had been stored.

Shastri Bhawan houses the ministries of Law, Information and Broadcasting, Corporate Affairs, Human Resources Development and the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals.

London: An Australian-born cricketer who raped a woman he found “dozing” in his teammate’s bedroom was jailed for five years by an English court on Tuesday.

Alex Hepburn, 23, was convicted following an attack that took place during the first night of a sexual conquest “game” he helped set up on a WhatsApp group.

Prosecutors said the former Worcestershire all-rounder had been “fired up” by a contest to sleep with the most women, before carrying out the rape at his flat in Worcester, central England, in April 2017.

Judge Jim Tindal, jailing Hepburn at Hereford Crown Court, said the “immature” cricketer and a former teammate had agreed a “pathetic sexist game to collect as many sexual encounters as possible”.

He added: “You probably thought it was laddish behaviour at the time. In truth it was foul sexism.

“It demeaned women and trivialised rape — a word you personally threw around lightly. Only now do you realise how serious rape is.”

Hepburn’s lawyer, Michelle Heeley, said her client had expressed remorse.

In what the judge said was a “brave” victim impact statement, the woman Hepburn attacked described her ordeal as “evil” and a “heinous crime”.

A jury had found Hepburn guilty of oral rape at a retrial earlier this month, but cleared him of a further count of rape relating to the same victim.

The four-day trial at Worcester Crown Court heard the woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, wrongly thought she was having sex with Hepburn’s then county teammate Joe Clarke, a batsman who has played for England’s second-string Lions, after meeting him at a nightclub.

She told jurors she had consensual sex with Clarke, who left his bedroom in the early hours to be sick in a bathroom, where he passed out.

Bokaro: Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu on Tuesday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not being able to fulfil his poll promises with respect to cleaning river Ganga, bringing back black money and Rs 15 lakh promise to common people.

“The Prime Minister has not fulfiled his promise of cleaning river Ganga, bringing back Rs 90 lakh crore black money from abroad and neither did he give Rs 15 lakh to the people,” he said while addressing a rally here in support of Kirti Azad, who recently joined Congress.

“It is written on Kirti Azad, Rahul Gandhi and my face that we are not for sale. Prime Minister calls himself chowkidar but in reality, he is not,” Sidhu added.

Sidhu also questioned PM Modi’s role in Rafale deal, saying, “PM Modi acted as a middleman in Rafale deal.”

Congress pitched former cricketer-turned-politician Kirti Azad from the Dhanbad Parliamentary constituency in the Lok Sabha elections.

Geneva: Nearly half of the glaciers in World Heritage sites will disappear by the end of this century if greenhouse gas emissions continue unchecked, a report said Tuesday.

The new study from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) focused on the 46 World Heritage sites where glaciers are found, including Grosser Aletschgletscher in the Swiss Alps, Greenland’s Jakobshavn Glacier and Khumbu Glacier in the Himalayas.

Using a variety of data and advanced modelling, the authors “predict glacier extinction by 2100 under a high emission scenario in 21 of the 46 natural World Heritage sites where glaciers are currently found,” IUCN said in a statement.

That “high emission scenario” refers to the status quo, where the commitments made under the 2015 Paris climate pact are not met.

Sites likely to see the most severe ice-loss are Los Glaciares National Park in Argentina and Waterton Glacier International Peace Park, which straddles the Canada-US border.

The disappearance of small glaciers in the Pyrenees – Mont Perdu World Heritage site could happen before 2040, according to IUCN projections.

Even if nations deliver on the terms of the Paris agreement, eight of the 46 World Heritage sites analysed in the report will still be ice-free by the year 2100, IUCN added.

“Losing these iconic glaciers would be a tragedy and have major consequences for the availability of water resources, sea level rise and weather patterns,” Peter Shadie, director of IUCN’s World Heritage Programme, said in the statement.

IUCN, widely-known for its “red list” of endangered species, has developed the first ever inventory of the 19,000 glaciers spread across 46 World Heritage sites.

New Delhi: The former employee of the Supreme Court, who has accused Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi of sexual harassment, said on Tuesday that she would no more appear before an in-house committee set up by the apex court to probe her charges as she felt that she is “not likely to get justice”.

The woman, who appeared once before the committee, comprising Justices SA Bobde, Indu Malhotra and Indira Banerjee, said she felt “quite intimidated and nervous” in the presence of the three judges of the Supreme Court.

In a statement to the media, she expressed serious reservations over the panel, saying it was “an in-house committee of sitting judges junior to the CJI and not an external committee as I had requested…”

The woman said during the panel’s hearing on April 26, the judges told her that it was neither an in-house committee proceeding nor a proceeding under the Vishakha Guidelines and that it was an informal proceeding.

“I was asked to narrate my account which I did to the best of my ability even though I felt quite intimidated and nervous in the presence of three Hon’ble Judges of the Supreme Court and without having a lawyer or support person with me,” said the woman.

“I felt I was not likely to get justice from this committee and so I am no longer participating in the 3 Judge Committee proceedings,” she said in the statement.

The woman had told the committee that she had lost hearing in one ear completely due to “stress” and as a consequence, she was “unable to hear, sometimes, the instructions that were being dictated by Justice Bobde to the court official as a record of my statements before the committee.”

She added that “the committee declined my request for video recording” of the committee proceedings. “I was also clearly told that no lawyer/support person could be present with me during the committee hearing.”

She claimed that the committee instructed her orally not to disclose the proceedings of the committee to the media and “not share the proceedings with her lawyer Vrinda Grover.”

The committee was formed after the woman levelled allegations against the Chief Justice reportedly in a letter to 22 judges of the Supreme Court.

Rachakonda (Telangana): Police on Tuesday arrested an alleged serial killer who allegedly raped and murdered three minor girls.

“Officials of special operation team of Rachakonda along with local police nabbed Marri Srinivas Reddy, resident of Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district,” said police commissioner Mahesh Bhagwath.

On April 25, a resident of Hajipur village had lodged a police complaint in the case of his 14-year missing daughter. A special operation team was later formed by the police commissioner in the case which has nabbed the alleged serial killer.

The 14-year old girl was on her way back home when the accused gave her lift and took her to a secluded spot, the official said.

“During his interrogation, the accused has confessed that he is a habitual sexual offender. He has confessed to having raped and killed three minor girls since 2015,” said the police official.

The accused is alleged to have raped and killed three minor girls in the outskirts of Hajipur village and hidden the evidence by dumping their bodies in a well, added the police official.
Police reportedly recovered victims’ clothes, school bag and ID cards from the scene of offense.

Colombo: Dr. Zakir Naik, Islamic preacher is the “wanted person” in India in connection with his alleged terrorist activities. He is at present residing in Malaysia in order to escape arrest.

After Sri Lanka blasts which took the lives of many persons, the largest cable operators of the country, “Dialogue” and “LT” have stopped telecasting Zakir Naik’s Peace TV.

It may be mentioned that Peace TV is already banned India and Bangladesh.

It is alleged that those who were arrested in bomb blasts in Sri Lanka were influenced by Dr. Zakir Naik’s discourses. Some of them informed that they used to listen to audio and video clips of Dr. Zakir Naik.

Lucknow: Chairman of UP Shia Central Wakf Board, Mr. Wasim Rizvi made a surprising statement yesterday. He said that if Mr. Modi fails to become PM of India, he would immolate himself in front of Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

It may be mentioned that he issued a statement that he is getting threats from the staunch Muslims that they would kill him.

Mr. Rizvi further told that if Mr. Modi meets with defeat, there won’t be any other way left for him except to commit suicide. He said that he has always been supporting nationalism rising above religious level.

Mr. Rizvi alleged that conservative Muslims are threatening by saying, “Let Modi meet with defeat, we will cut you in pieces”. Reacting on it, Mr. Rizvi said that instead of getting killed by any terrorist or anti-national, it is better to commit suicide.

It may be mentioned that Mr. Wasim Rizvi has been hitting the headlines of most of the newspapers for making anti-Muslim and controversial statements.

Hyderabad: A heartbreaking incident took place in the outskirts of Hyderabad City. A Muslim girl got married to a Hindu boy. Such incidents are a matter of grave concern for the Muslim community which is going astray from Islamic teachings.

As per the details, the Muslim girl got married to her Hindu beau in a temple located at Malkajgiri. The parents of the girl came to know about the marriage only when police informed them that their daughter got married to a Hindu boy and asked them if they have any objection.

The parents of the girl alleged that the relatives of the boy forced their daughter to get married in a temple. They also alleged that the sub-Inspector of Police, Malkajgiri did not listen to their plea.

It was reported that police did not pay heed to the plea of the parents since both the boy and the girl are major and they have entered into wedlock at their will. In such a case, it is the duty of the police to help the couple.

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Wednesday called for a ban on the use of burqa as it threw its weight behind a similar plan being mulled by the Sri Lankan government in the wake of the Easter terror strikes which claimed over 250 lives.

It said that the ban – something similar which the party has proposed in the past — “has already come in Ravana’s (Sri) Lanka, when will it be implemented in Ram’s Ayodhya — this is our question to (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi.”

“This restriction has been recommended as an emergency measure to ensure the security forces do not encounter difficulties in identifying anybody. People wearing face-masks or burqas could pose a threat to national security,” said the Sena in an editorial in the party mouthpieces, “Saamana” and “Dopahar Ka Saamana”.

It said “no Mahatma Phules or Shahu Maharajs” were born among the Muslims nor were allowed to become, which has worked to the advantage of whimsical elements like Shahabuddin, Azam Khan, Owaisi brothers and Abu Asim Azmi.

If such religious practices or traditions interfere with national security, then it must be ended immediately, and “Modi will have to do it now”.

“This work will require as much daring as a ‘surgical strike.’ The Sri Lankan President had done it by overnight banning burqa or veils or face-covers of any types in all public places. This is a work of great courage and restraint exhibited by (Sri Lanka) President Maithripala Sirisena,” lauded the Sena.

It accused that many Muslims have not understood the true meaning of their religion (Islam) and they have confused it with traditions and customs like burqa, polygamy, triple talaq and resistance to family planning, the edit added.

“When any voice is raised against these practices, immediately there are cries of ‘Islam is in danger’, and it seems religion takes precedence over nationalism among Muslims. Muslim women have been sporting burqas/veils under the wrong impression that it is a Quranic tenet,” the Sena said.

It pointed out that there have been bans on both burqas for women and beards for men even in Muslim countries like Turkey in the past, especially when Kamal Pasha suspected that these were being misused for carrying out anti-national activities, “proving (burqa-beard) are basically not linked with Islam”.

The Sena said the country (Sri Lanka) which has just been liberated from the LTTE’s terror is now in the grip of Islamic terror like India, and others like the UK, France, New Zealand.

But it lamented that the kind of tough measures being adopted by other countries were still lacking here especially since areas like Jammu and Kashmir were being destroyed by the same Islamic terrorists.

Akshay Kumar’s interview with PM Narendra Modi became memes and comedy, which people on the internet mined assiduously for laughs.

Shyam Rangeela made a hilarious Comedy video about Akshay interview with Narendra modi.

New Delhi [India]: Government-owned Indian Oil Corporation has increased price of a subsidised liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) 14.2 kg cylinder by 28 paise in New Delhi and 29 paise in Mumbai from Wednesday.

The non-subsidised rates have been increased by Rs 6 per cylinder in both metros.

A non-subsidised LPG cylinder will now cost Rs 712.5 in New Delhi, Rs 684.50 in Mumbai, Rs 738.50 in Kolkata and Rs 728 in Chennai.

Subsidised LPG rates now stand at Rs 496.14 per cylinder in New Delhi, Rs 499.29 in Kolkata, Rs 493.86 in Mumbai and Rs 484.02 in Chennai.

Indian Oil is the country’s largest fuel retailer which supplies LPG under brand Indane.

Currently, LPG consumers in the country have to purchase the fuel at market prices. The government subsidises 12 cylinders of 14.2 kg each per household in a year by providing subsidy amount directly in the bank accounts.

This subsidy amount depends on changes in the average international benchmark LPG rate and foreign exchange rate.

Hyderabad: A police constable in Telangana’s Sangareddy district killed his female colleague and set her body ablaze over a failed relationship, police said on Wednesday.

Mandarika was strangulated by Prakash near Venkatapuram village late on Monday. He later poured petrol on the body and set it on fire.

The woman constable’s father Sadanandam approached the police on Tuesday as she did not return home after duty. After a case was registered during interrogation, Prakash admitted to killing Mandarika.

Prakash, already married, fell in love with Mandarika while serving at Sangareddy police station a few months ago. The affair had continued even after they were transferred to two different police stations.

Mandarika was putting pressure on Prakash to marry her and they had a fight over the issue. He then planned to eliminate her. He took her out in a car late on Monday and strangulated her.

New Delhi: ‘Girls wearing should be raped’ is the opinion of this biased woman who has literally asked men at a restaurant to rape a group of women wearing short skirts.

Yes, the video of this woman making this request has gone viral and is reported from Nukkadwala restaurant on Sohna Road, Gurgaon near Delhi.

The video isn’t about just this biased woman or the incident but it shows the shallowness of our societies standards regarding women’s clothing.

Offended by one of girl’s dress length, this woman is heard saying in the video: “Hello guys, this lady wants to wear short dresses to encourage all to see them. All the ladies wear (these) short dresses, or are naked… to (get) rape(d).”

The incident happened when the girl identified as Shivani Gupta, along with her friends, was at the restaurant.

Here Shivani was allegedly abused by the lady in the video above for wearing a “short dress”.

“Today my friends and I were harassed by a woman at a restaurant for me wearing a short dress. This middle-aged woman you’ll see in the video addressed seven men at the restaurant to rape us because she felt we deserved it for wearing short clothes and bashing her unsolicited opinion,” Shivani writes on her FB profile.

Watch the video here:

It was when her friends tried to defend her, the lady launched a rant against all of them, ‘slut shaming’ the girl, instead told them that they “deserve to get raped” and what next? the lady is also asking the men in the room to rape ‘women like them’.

Well at some point, another woman steps in to defend the girls and furiously says: “You have no right to tell her what to wear.”

A verbal spat between the two ladies and girls begin. To their shock, another voice from the background asks “Why do women in burkas get raped, then?”.

Though Shivani took to Twitter to show how biased men, women are of this Indian society, her video was removed from Instagram hours after posting it.
Thousands of comments supporting Shivani poured in as soon as she posted the video.

Hyderabad: Rising public anger against an alleged rapist and murderer of three girls and a prostitute resulted in the burning down of his house in Hajipur village in Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district.
According to police the villagers who were upset over the reports that accused M Srinivasa Reddy, a mechanic, had raped three girls, laid siege to his house and burned down the thatched shelter in front of his house. They also ransacked the house.

Reddy had reportedly three teenage girls—Kalpana, Maneesha and Shravani—and later killed them. He hid their bodies in an abandoned village well.

He was arrested on Tuesday. Fearing reprisal attacks his relatives had already fled the house earlier.

Following the burning down of the house, Rachakonda Police Commissioner Mr Mahesh Bhagwat deployed additional force in the village. The police had earlier retrieved two bodies from an abandoned well in the village. They are looking for the body of his first victim, Kalpana, who went missing four years ago. His second victim— Maneesha — was missing for the last two months. The third victim – Shravani – was missing since last week.

“Members of the special operation team of Rachakonda along with local police nabbed Marri Srinivas Reddy,” said Commissioner Bhagwath. On April 25, a resident of Hajipur village had lodged a complaint with the police that his 14-year-old daughter was missing. The police commissioner formed a Special Operations Team and handed over the case to them.

The young girl was on her way back home when the accused offered to give her a lift on his motorbike to her home. Instead, he took her to a secluded spot and raped her, the police said.
“During his interrogation, the accused has confessed that he is a habitual sexual offender. He has confessed to having raped and killed three minor girls since 2015,” said the police official.

San Francisco: WhatsApp is improvising the app for its billion users as this social messaging app is coming with whole new features for businesses as well.

Not only the Facebook F8 developer conference was expected to be one of the biggest tech events to look forward to but the instant messaging app WhatsApp has got some good news for small businesses.

The instant messaging app has been testing the payments feature in India for now with WhatsApp for Businesses already launched and running in India which allows businesses to have their own profiles on the platform with contact information.

While we still have to wait to access the WhatsApp payment method, the new feature will allow these businesses to display their entire product catalogs as well. This new feature is expected to help small businesses which have no official website or high-end domains.

The product catalogs shall be visible on the WhatsApp Business profiles within the app which enables customers to browse through them.

FB CEO Mark Zuckerberg while addressing the Facebook’s F8 developer conference said the payments option is currently being tested in India along with some other countries and soon shall the feature will be released without revealing the time or date of the official launch.