Tag: goa

  • Is Sania Mirza going to contest India’s Lok Sabha elections?

    Is Sania Mirza going to contest India’s Lok Sabha elections?

    Indian media has reported that Indian National Congress party is thinking about pitting famous tennis player Sania Mirza against All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi from Hyderabad in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The proposal came from former Indian cricket captain and Congress leader Mohammed Azharuddin.

    During a meeting held on Wednesday, the Congress Central Election Committee (CEC) discussed candidates for various states including Goa, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Daman and Diu. It is believed that Sania Mirza’s name was also discussed in this meeting.

    Experts suggest that Congress wants to use Sania Mirza’s popularity and fame to regain support in Hyderabad’s elections.
    The last time Congress won in Hyderabad was in 1980 with K S Narayan as the MP.

    Mohammed Azharuddin proposed Sania Mirza’s name for candidature, as there’s a close family connection between the two. Mohammed Asaddudin, the cricketer’s son, married Sania Mirza’s sister, Anam Mirza, in 2019.

    Azharuddin competed in the recent Telangana legislative assembly elections but lost to Bharat Rashtra Samithi’s (BRS) Maganti Gopinath from the Jubilee Hills constituency by more than 16,000 votes.

    For this Lok Sabha election, BJP has chosen Madhavi Latha as its candidate, and BRS has put forward Gaddam Srinivas Yadav.
    The elections for the 543 parliamentary constituencies will happen in seven phases, starting on April 19 and ending on June 1.

  • ‘Of course’: Bilawal confirms he shook hands with Indian FM but no bilateral engagement held

    ‘Of course’: Bilawal confirms he shook hands with Indian FM but no bilateral engagement held

    Pakistani Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who just wrapped up his visit to Goa, said that he did shake hands with his Indian counter partner S. Jaishankar at a dinner that was held in an unofficial capacity.

    During an interview with India Today, Bilawal said, “In all our unofficial engagements we always shake hands and we had dinner conversations amongst other foreign ministers but we did not hold a bilateral engagement.”

    Earlier, when both ministers greeted each other in front of the media they didn’t shake hands and this created headlines in India.

    Clearing up the confusion, Bilawal said that his aim to visit India was to attend Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). “Unless India reviews the action it took on August 5, 2019 (abrogation of Article 370), Pakistan is not in a position to engage bilaterally with India.”

    When pointed out by a journalist that “Pakistan can’t sponsor terror directed against India”, the minister, taking a jibe at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said “This wolf whistling around the word terrorism which is ultimately an Islamophobic wolf whistle not only to whip up Hindu sentiment in India but also to brow beat Pakistan, that might be election strategy for some but not effective terrorism strategy”

    The Pakistani foreign minister said the country wishes to quell terrorism “not because India said it or the Indian government said so, but because we want to end this menace”. He said terrorism has caused the “largest number of casualties” in Pakistan among any of the other SCO countries.

    “India will have to explain what Kulbhushan Jadhav, a state actor, a navy commander, was doing in Pakistan carrying out terrorist attacks on Pakistani soil. Does that not come under cross-border terrorism?” he asked.

    Bilawal also reminded Indian Journalist Rajdeep Sardesai that Pakistan is the only country on Earth that has completed two Financial Action Task Force (FATF) objectives.

    He said that it is not productive for India to continue accusing Pakistan of sponsoring terror activities.

    Pointing out that India violated bilateral agreements and international agreements on Aug 5, 2019, by revoking the special status of Jammu Kashmir, Bilawal Bhutto also mentioned the 2007 Samjhauta Express bombing where around 70 people, mostly Pakistanis, were killed. “We are yet to see any justice,” he reminded Sardesai.

    He repeatedly said that both India and Pakistan have different perspectives on terrorism, adding that Pakistan is “willing to engage with any concerns that India might have but India will also have to address our concerns.”

  • Here is what Bilawal Bhutto said in his address at SCO Foreign Ministers meeting in India

    Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari addressed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Minis­ters (CFM) in India, Goa on Friday.

    During his address, the young minister who is leading Pakistan’s delegation, talked about climate change, importance of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan, poverty alleviation and Pakistan’s commitment to multilateralism among other things.

    Bhutto started his address by reiterating Pakistan’s strong commitment to SCO saying,“There couldn’t be a more powerful indication of the importance that Pakistan attaches to the SCO than my presence here in Goa for this CFM”.

    Bilawal also talked about eradicating the menace of terrorism. “Let’s not get caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring.”

    Bilawal reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to multilateralism for maintaining international peace and harmony.

    “A peaceful and stable Afghanistan is a key not only to regional integration and economic cooperation but also to global peace and stability,” said Bilawal while talking about the importance of peaceful and stable Afghanistan.

  • BBZ is going to India next month for the Shanghai Cooperation Org

    BBZ is going to India next month for the Shanghai Cooperation Org

    In a major diplomatic development, Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari will be visiting India to attend Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) which is set to take place on May 4-5 in Goa, India, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch has confirmed.

    The minister is going to India at the invitation of the country’s External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

    Pakistan is currently preparing for the meeting.

    It is pertinent to mention that Bilawal’s visit to India will be the first by a Pakistani foreign minister in nearly 12 years. In 2011, the then-top Pakistani diplomat, Hina Rabbani Khar, now Bhutto-Zardari’s deputy in the foreign ministry, visited India.

    If Bilawal’s visit goes as per plan, it is likely that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will visit India too for the summit, reports Express Tribune.

    ​Bilawal also attended the last meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers held in July last year in Tashkent.

    The SCO is a regional political and security bloc whose members include Russia, China, India and Pakistan.

  • Is marriage on the cards for Vijay Varma and Tamannaah Bhatia?

    Is marriage on the cards for Vijay Varma and Tamannaah Bhatia?

    Love is brewing between Bollywood actors Vijay Varma and Tamannaah Bhatia, as the duo was spotted indulging in PDA on their Goa vacation during the New Year’s evening. Videos of them ringing in the New Year with kisses are going viral on social media.

    For the New Year’s Eve 2023 party, Tamannaah wore a pink dress, whereas Vijay donned a white shirt and pants. The duo clicked pictures with fans too. In viral videos, people were doing a countdown to midnight to celebrate the New Year wherein Vijay and Tamannaah gave each other a kiss.

    Tamannaah Bhatia and Vijay Varma caught kissing in Goa on New Year's Eve; videos go viral of the new rumoured couple

    The two of them have been seen together on several occasions. They attended last year’s Vogue India fashion event, were seen at Diljit Dosanjh’s concert in October, and event at the cinemas watching a film together.

    While the Indian media is abuzz with their potential wedding in 2023, other media reports suggest that they will take more time before they take their relationship to the next level.

    The couple was spotted

    Tamannaah and Vijay Varma return to Mumbai after partying in Goa. Watch - India Today

    Meanwhile, on the work front, Vijay will next star in The Devotion Of Suspect with Kareena Kapoor Khan while Tamannaah will be seen in Bholaa Shankar.

  • Hindutva activists attack, terrorize Muslims during Ramazan

    A mob of Hindutva activists has been attacking and terrorizing the Muslim community in different parts of India during the holy month of Ramazan.

    Disturbing videos have been shared on the Microblogging site, Twitter in which extremist Hindus are making hate speeches against the Muslim community in Hyderabad, Gujarat, Karnataka, Goa, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Bengal.

    On the occasion of the Hindu festival, Ram Navami in Hyderabad, a rally was taken out in which the Hindu extremists were singing a hatred song against Muslims, which says, ” Saare Bharat ko Hindu Rashtra banana hai ( We need to turn India into a Hindu country)” which goes on, “Jo Ram ka naam na le usko Bharat se bhagana hai (Whoever do not take RAM name, they have to go from India”. The song was targetting minorities, especially the Muslim community living in India.

    In Himmat Nagar, Gujarat, the miscreants involved in the Ram Navami procession targeted mosques, dargahs, and shops.

    In Goa, a Hindu mob tried to enter a mosque who were intended to attack Muslims. The Hindu mob accused Muslims that someone from the mosque threw stones at the Ram Navmi procession.

    Communal violence also erupted in Bengal, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Karnataka, during the Hindu festival of Ram Navmi procession and the police have banned large gatherings in some areas.

    Riots during Ram Navami procession in Khargone, MP. The Ram Navami procession entered the Muslim locality Kazipura and raised slogans, stone-pelting.

    A bangle shop of a Muslim family was set on fire by the Hindutva activists during the celebration of Ram Navami.

  • Young Russian star Alexandra Djavi found dead in Goa, was sexually assaulted in 2019

    Young Russian star Alexandra Djavi found dead in Goa, was sexually assaulted in 2019

    Russian model and actor Alexandra Djavi was reportedly found dead at her residence in Goa on Friday, August 24.

    The Kanchana 3 star was found hanging in her rented flat in Siolim village of North Goa, she was under depression after she broke up with her boyfriend.

    In 2019, she had filed a police complaint against a Chennai-based photographer who was later arrested on charges of sexual harassment.

    As per the police, the actor’s boyfriend was living with her in the same apartment and had gone out when she died. Her body was kept in a mortuary while they were waiting for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Russian Consulate to conduct the autopsy.

    Meanwhile, a lawyer, Vikram Varma, the Goa representative of the Russian Consulate in Mumbai, urged the police to conduct a probe into the “possible role” of the Chennai-based photographer in the woman’s death.