Meet Zubair from Puttur who fought off Lashkar-e-Taiba militants in Kashmir

New Delhi, Feb 3: BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde's swipe at Mahatma Gandhi has irked the top party leadership and he may be forced to apologise, party sources said on Monday.

A senior BJP leader said the Karnataka leader's comments were "condemnable" and the party leadership is upset with him.

"The party has conveyed its displeasure to him and asked him to take remedial measure. Any insult to Mahatma Gandhi is unacceptable," he said.

Hegde, a former Union minister, reportedly claimed at an event in Bangaluru that the entire freedom movement was staged with the consent and support of the British, and the independence movement led by Gandhi was a "drama".

He also wondered why the Father of the Nation was called 'Mahatma' (a great soul).

The party leader said the Lok Sabha MP is a "disciplined" member of the party and will do what he has been asked to.

Hegde, known for hardline Hindutva leanings, has a history of making controversial remarks.

Newsroom, Feb 2: American business magnate Bill Gates has congratulated her daughter Jennifer Gates after she announced her engagement to her Muslim boyfriend Nayel Nassar.

“I am completely thrilled! Congratulations, @jenniferkgates and @nayelnassar”, commented the Microsoft boss to her daughter’s surprise Instagram story.

The proposal took place on a ski getaway. "Nayel Nassar, you are one of a kind. Absolutely swept me off my feet this past weekend, surprising me in the most meaningful location over one of our many shared passions," she wrote on Instagram. The pair does have one very significant shared passion - horses.

Nassar, 29, is a showjumper. Gates, 23, has famously grown up an equestrian, and has even competed against Steve Jobs' daughter.

In October, Nassar helped Egypt qualify for Tokyo 2020 - Egypt's first Olympic equestrian qualification in 60 years. He has been jumping since he was 10 years old and has the accolades to show for it - he has taken first place in a number of notable competitions, including the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup.

Nassar was born in Chicago to Egyptian parents and spent many of his formative years in Kuwait, where his well-to-do parents run an architecture and design firm, according to People. He is fluent in English, Arabic, and French.

He moved back to the US in 2009 and graduated from Stanford with an economics degree in 2013 - later, he supported Gates at her own Stanford graduation in 2018.

The couple received well wishes from many notable personalities on each of their Instagram posts, including comments from Bill and Melinda Gates, Georgina Bloomberg, and Eve Jobs.

 

 

 

 

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Happy birthday @nayelnassar, can’t begin to put into words how extraordinary you are. The most compassionate, intelligent, hilarious, supportive, warm, humble human being. Wishing you all the joy in the world today and all the years to come

A post shared by Jennifer Gates (@jenniferkgates) on Jan 21, 2020 at 8:44am PST

Thiruvananthapuram, Mar 20: One more person tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday, taking the total number of cases to 25, as the Left government announced a Rs 20,000 crore financial package to tide over the present crisis being faced by the southern state in the wake of the virus outbreak.

The multi-crore special package includes Rs 500 crore health package, Rs 2,000 crore loans and free ration.

The man who tested positive had returned from Dubai and hailed from the northern Kasaragod district, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters after a COVID-19 review meeting.

He said 65 people were hospitalised on Thursday.

"At least 31,173 people are under surveillance, of whom 237 are in observation in hospitals across the state" he said.

Detailing the financial package, Vijayan said loans worth Rs 2,000 crore would be made available to needy families through all-women network 'Kudumbashree' during April-May.

Rural employment guarantee programmes worth Rs 1,000 crore each will be implemented in April-May, he said.

Social security pension of Rs 1,320 crore, to be given in April, would be distributed this month, he said, adding that 50 lakh people are benefited through the pension scheme.

Those belonging to the below poverty line (BPL) and Anthyodaya, who are not receiving social security pension, would be given Rs 1,000 each, for which Rs 100 crore would be earmarked.

Cutting across APL and BPL families, 10 kg free ration would be given and Rs 100 crore would be set apart for the purpose, he said.

A string of 1,000 low-cost hotels, providing food at Rs 20, would be opened across the state next month, the chief minister added.

The 'fitness' charges of autorickshaws and taxis and one month tax of stage and contract carriages would be waived, Vijayan said.