Portrait News

CBI vs CBI: Major relief for bribery-accused Rakesh Asthana, court accepts clean chit The CBI special court at Rouse Avenue Complex on Saturday accepted the central investigation agency’s clean chit to former special director Rakesh Asthana and DSP Devender Kumar, while taking cognizance of the CBI’s chargesheet against Manoj Prasad. Special CBI Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal said in his order there wasn’t sufficient material against public servants – Rakesh Asthana and Devender Kumar. The court order is a major relief for Rakesh Asthana, who has claimed since day one that a “fabricated” FIR was filed against him at the behest of...

Enraged at Nirbhaya convicts mocking justice system, need to stop this: Smriti Irani NEW DELHI: Union minister Smriti Irani said on Saturday she was “enraged” that the death-row convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape case were making a “mockery of justice” by their delaying tactics and asserted that urgent steps were required to stop it. “We need to go a step forward, especially with regard to the conviction rates… what we saw in the Nirbhaya case and it is happening. “The fact that rapists can throw caution to the winds, the fact that they can laugh in the face of justice...

Bill Clinton Explains Monica Lewinsky Affair as ‘Managing My Anxieties’ Former President Bill Clinton, recalling the sex scandal that led to his impeachment in 1998, says in a new documentary series that his extramarital affair with Monica S. Lewinsky was a way of “managing my anxieties.” The four-part documentary series, “Hillary,” which was released on Friday on Hulu, focuses on Hillary Clinton’s life, her marriage to Mr. Clinton and her unsuccessful campaign for president in 2016. In the series, Mr. Clinton, 73, is asked by the director, Nanette Burstein, why he engaged in an affair with Ms. Lewinsky, then a White...

‘Right talking’ critics hate those doing right things: PM Modi NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday hit out at ‘right talking’ critics of his government’s decisions such as the new citizenship law and scrapping of special status for Jammu and Kashmir, saying they have hatred for people who walk the path of ‘doing the right things’ and break the status quo. Speaking at the ET Global Business Summit, he said the global economy has been going through a difficult phase but the fundamentals of the Indian economy are strong and policies are clear that will aid in reaching...

‘Was a political conspiracy’: Nitin Gadkari speaks out on timing of Delhi riots Union Minister Nitin Gadkari says he feels there was a political conspiracy behind the Delhi communal violence to defame India during US President Donald Trump’s two-day visit. He added that an inquiry into the riots was ongoing and the conspirators will be punished by the government after it is complete. “Now things are coming, that there is a conspiracy, political conspiracy, in Delhi riots to defame this country, it is very unfortunate, the probe is going on, the truth will come out and whatever the peoples (sic)...

Manmohan Singh: Former PM says India situation ‘grim and morose’ “The current situation is very grim and morose,” he wrote in a sharply critical op-ed in The Hindu newspaper. The article comes in the wake of the most violent riots to take place in capital, Delhi, in decades. Mr Singh also referred to slowing growth and the possibility of a coronavirus outbreak. More than 50 Indians have died in recent religious riots sparked by clashes over a controversial citizenship law in Delhi. “The India that we know and cherish is slipping away fast. Wilfully stoked communal tensions, gross economic mismanagement and an external...

Congress MLA Hardeep Dang resigns, says ‘was repeatedly ignored’ by CM Kamal Nath Congress MLA Hardeep Singh Dang, one of the three Congress legislators who was incommunicado for the last couple of days, resigned Thursday saying that he was hurt as he was “repeatedly ignored” by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath and other ministers. Calling Dang, an MLA from Suwasra in Mandsaur city, as “the only casualty so far,” the Congress party has said they will come out with an official response to the letter of resignation marked to Vidhan Sabha Speaker and Chief Minister by Dang. Source: The...

Goldman Consumer Banking Chief in running for HDFC Bank CEO role Harit Talwar, the head of Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s consumer-banking business, is in the running for one of India’s top banking jobs. HDFC Bank Ltd., India’s largest private-sector lender, has held talks with Talwar for the top role, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The bank has been looking for a new leader to replace Aditya Puri, one of the longest-serving banking chiefs in India, whose term ends in October. Source: The Economic Times

The failed escape: Sheikha Latifa’s doomed flight from Dubai Three years ago, in secluded corners of a sprawling mall in Dubai, Sheikha Latifa, the daughter of the emirate’s ruler, plotted with close friend Tiina Jauhiainen to escape her father’s clutches. Their eventual plan was like a plot from a movie: Latifa disguised her appearance as the pair fled Dubai by car to the coast, took a dinghy and rode jet skis to a waiting boat which was to take the princess and her companion to freedom. But it failed. They were captured off the coast of India after an operation...

‘Growth in 3 phases’: Bhavish Aggarwal on Ola’s plan to go public in India SoftBank-backed ride-hailing firm Ola is planning to go public in the next few years and it is aiming to do it in the India market, confirmed Ola co-founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal. He said the focus of the firm has always been on building sustainable, self-sufficient, profitable and long-term institutions. “Our India business is in a strong position, we are doing the same in other countries also. The next logical step is for us to list in the public markets; we are an Indian domicile, unlike some of our peers,...