Entertainment

[ad_1] NEW DELHI: Delhi HC issued an interim order Friday directing Oscar-winning composer A R Rahman and a production house to deposit Rs 2 crore after it found that a song in a Tamil movie was "not just inspired but is identical" to Shiva Stuti - a landmark rendition composed by renowned classical singers, Junior Dagar brothers.Justice Prathiba M Singh directed Rahman and Madras Talkies to add credits for the late Dagar brothers in song Veera Raja Veera in movie Ponniyin Selvan 2 on online platforms and pay his kin Rs 2 lakh as costs.The order came on a suit by Ustad Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar, whose father Nasir Faiyazuddin Dagar, and uncle N Zahiruddin Dagar were the song's original composers. Faiyaz alleged copyright infringement by Rahman and the production house."This court holds that the impugned song is not merely based […]

[ad_1] Trousers of 20 victims pulled down, unzipped Trousers of 20 men were pulled down to find out faith before they were killed, find officialsNEW DELHI: The trousers of around 20 victims of the dastardly Pahalgam attack - all males - were found unzipped or pulled down by the team of officials that carried out the first examination of the 26 lifeless, bullet-riddled bodies, in what is being seen as a confirmation that terrorists had established the faith of the tourists before killing them.A team comprising officers of the Army, J&K police and J&K administration found to their horror that clothing from the lower body of 20 of the 26 victims had been forcibly dislodged, with their pant zippers undone, pants pulled down, exposing their underwear or private parts. The victims' kin were possibly too much in shock to have […]

[ad_1] In a move to challenge the Trump administration's efforts to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in public schools, 19 states filed a federal lawsuit on Friday. The lawsuit, filed in Massachusetts by Democratic attorneys general, seeks to block the Department of Education’s directive, issued on April 3, which threatened to cut federal funding if states did not comply with civil rights laws and reject what the federal government deemed "illegal DEI practices."The directive required states to certify their compliance by April 24, including gathering signatures from local school systems confirming their adherence. However, the plaintiffs, attorneys general from 19 states, argue that they will not abandon policies designed to ensure equal access to education and that their prior certifications of compliance with the law stand.“Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives are legal efforts that help students feel safe, […]

[ad_1] The attack in Pahalgam left 26 dead and several injured. (AP photo) TOI corresponded from Washington: The United States on Friday urged India to hunt down the Islamist terrorists who murdered 26 Hindus in Pahalgam amid continued American support for New Delhi despite Islamabad raising alarm about an all-out war if India acted to eliminate terrorists in Pakistan. "We are with you and support you as you hunt down those responsible for this heinous attack," US Intelligence czar Tulsi Gabbard said in a statement that minced no words, calling it an "Islamist terrorist attack, targeting and killing 26 Hindus." Gabbard, who is a Hindu-American, was following up President Trump phone call to Prime Minister Modi in which he pledged "full support" to India to bring the perpetrators to justice.Trump has previously said, in the aftermath of the Pulwama terrorist […]

[ad_1] SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir police said on Friday they have detained a person after a video widely circulated on social media showed a woman tourist complaining that he had asked her about her religion. This tourist also claims she had seen the terrorists while on a mule ride two days before the attack and that an overheard phone conversation had frightened her.Police identified the detainee as Aiyaz Ahmad Jungal of Gohipora Raizan Ganderbal district, north Kashmir and said he was a pony service provider at Thajwas Glacier, Sonamarg. The suspect was subjected to sustained interrogation, police said, adding they were trying to ascertain whether this suspect had any connection to the Pahalgam terror attack.A tourist from Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, posted a video on social media claiming she had met the suspected terrorists while on a mule ride in Pahalgam […]

[ad_1] JAMMU: Lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha has called a special J&K assembly session on April 28 over the Pahalgam terror attack following advice from the Omar Abdullah-led govt.The move came on a day when Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi met Sinha and was urged to take effective steps to bring the Pahalgam attackers to justice. The Omar-led National Conference (NC) govt had on Wednesday requested Sinha to call the special session. That was a day after the attack.“I, Manoj Sinha, Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, in exercise of powers conferred upon me under section 18(1) of Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, do hereby summon the Assembly to meet at Jammu on April 28, 2025, at 10.30 A.M. All members are requested to kindly attend,” the LG’s official order stated.The assembly had wrapped up its […]

[ad_1] SRINAGAR: Kashmir’s chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq returned to Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid to deliver his Friday sermon after restrictions of over a month, condemning the Pahalgam massacre and paying tributes to the victims.Mirwaiz and the others observed a minute’s silence in solidarity with the relatives of all those who lost their dear ones in the terror attack.Mirwaiz reminded his audience that the authorities had put him under house arrest ahead of previous Friday prayers in the past month. “Sadly, during this time, we had to witness a terrifying attack, which has left our hearts bleeding. The manner in which a carnage was carried out, more than two dozen people killed after ascertaining their identities and in front of their families, is shocking and chilling beyond belief,” Mirwaiz said.The chief cleric recalled the 1990 day when his father was shot […]

[ad_1] JAMMU: Security forces on Friday intensified search operations to track down terrorists believed to be hiding in forest areas, with multi-layered cordon in six districts of Jammu division — Rajouri, Poonch, Reasi, Udhampur, Kishtwar and Kathua.Meanwhile, the Army paid tributes to Havildar Jhantu Ali Sheikh of 6 Para of the Special Forces, who was killed in a gunfight with terrorists in Dudu-Basantgarh area of Udhampur on Thursday. The joint search operation by the Army, J&K Police and CRPF to track down three terrorists, who managed to escape during the firefight, continued on the second day on Friday, said an official.Sources said combing operations were also underway in the Chatroo area of Kishtwar, Triyath area of Rajouri district, adjoining areas of Chan Roriyan in Kathua district and Lasana in Poonch district. A security review meeting chaired by divisional commissioner Ramesh […]

[ad_1] The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) on Friday claimed responsibility for a deadly roadside bomb attack in Quetta that killed ten Pakistani military personnel and injured three others.The blast occurred in the Margat area on the outskirts of the Balochistan capital, targeting a vehicle reportedly belonging to a bomb disposal squad. According to The Balochistan Post, the device was a remote-controlled improvised explosive device (IED).Soon after the blast, the BLA released a video showing the attack in a remote and hilly area.While police at first reported four deaths, the BLA later said in a statement that ten soldiers were killed and the vehicle was completely destroyed.“Freedom fighters targeted a Pakistani Army convoy with a remote-controlled IED in Margat. The vehicle was destroyed, and all 10 soldiers on board were killed,” said BLA spokesperson Jeeyand Baloch.This attack is part of a […]

[ad_1] MUMBAI: International students will be able to breathe easy, at least for now, as the Trump administration appears to have backtracked on the abrupt, unlawful SEVIS termination of hundreds of international students.Immigration attorneys are reporting that since Thursday evening, Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) records have been quietly reinstated for a large number of international students across the US, including those students who are not involved in lawsuits filed to challenge termination of their records.According to attorneys, news is pouring in from the international student community and from educational institutions of a terminated status suddenly becoming ‘active’. In many cases, Designated School Officers (DSOs) have informed students of the reactivation of their SEVIS records.For instance, ‘The Daily Californian’, an independent, student-run newspaper which covers the UC Berkeley campus and Berkeley city, has reported: “At UC Berkeley, 12 […]