MP: Villager turns 'padman', promotes menstrual hygiene

Mumbai, Jun 9: Actor Sonu Sood, who has been arranging transport for migrant workers stranded in Mumbai and has faced criticism from the Shiv Sena for "enacting a political script written by BJP", was stopped outside the Bandra Terminus in Mumbai by police from meeting labourers.

A Mumbai Police official said the actor was stopped by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) when he reached the station on Monday night to meet some labourers, and added that they have not received any complaint so far in this connection.

The migrant labourers were supposed to take the Shramik Special train from Bandra Terminus to Uttar Pradesh.

Mumbai's Nirmal Nagar police station's senior inspector Shashikant Bhandare told news agency PTI that "The actor was stopped by the RPF, not by us. He wanted to meet labourers who were going to their native place. We have not received any complaint regarding this till now."

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday wondered whether the BJP propped up Sonu Sood to "offer help" to migrant workers from north India stranded in Maharashtra amidst the lockdown, with the political motive to show the Uddhav Thackeray government in poor light.

In his weekly column 'Rokhthok' in Shiv Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana', Sanjay Raut questioned the sudden rise of "Mahatma" Sood on the social scene of Maharashtra during the lockdown.

Mr Raut also referred to an alleged "sting operation" against Sonu Sood ahead of the 2019 general elections, saying he had agreed to promote the BJP-led government at various platforms through his official social media accounts.

However, later that day Chief Minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray lauded Sonu Sood's initiative to arrange buses for stranded migrant workers.

The actor met Uddhav Thackeray at the latter's residence 'Matoshree' in suburban Bandra on Sunday night.

On Monday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh backed Sonu Sood for his work for stranded migrant workers, and questioned the Maharashtra government's criticism of the actor.

Mumbai, Mar 21: Ever willing to rally behind Narendra Modi, Bollywood celebs pitched in to drum up support for the Prime Minister's idea of a 'Janata curfew' on Sunday to minimise social interaction and slow down the spread of the coronavirus in India.

Narendra Modi floated the idea yesterday of people staying indoor from from 7 am to 9 pm on Sunday to break the chain of the virus transmission.

Shah Rukh Khan tweeted, "It's imp 2 reduce social interaction 2 minimum. Self Quarantine. The idea of #JanataCurfew on Sunday is a means to this end & we should continue this concept at a personal level as much as we can & more. We need to ‘slow down time' to arrest the virus spread. Be safe & healthy all."

He added a video message later, asking his fans to not panic. "I appeal to all people to avoid public places and to avoid commuting by trains and buses if not absolutely necessary. The next 10 to 15 days are extremely crucial. To fight this crisis the government and the citizens have to put up a strong joint front.

"So I appeal again please do not panic and please be careful about misinformation. And please follow the instructions and guidelines issued by the state government," Shah Rukh said in his video message.

Tamil actor-politician Kamal Haasan it was time to take extraordinary measures to fight the virus.

"I stand in full solidarity with our Prime Minister's call for #JanataCurfew. In this extraordinary situation, we have to take extraordinary measures. It's a disaster that has befallen on us and by staying united and indoors, we can Stay Safe," he said.

Yesteryears actress Madhuri Dixit Nene added her bit.

"It's time to understand our social responsibility & follow the guidelines. Let's show gratitude to all the people who have been working round the clock for us by observing the #JantaCurfew on 22nd March. Do your part. Stay safe to keep others safe," she posted on Twitter.

Actor Shahid Kapoor said more or less the same thing.

Legendary Lata Mangeshkar extended her support to the 'Janta Curfew' called by Modi and also hailed the decision of Maharashtra chief Uddhav Thackeray to shut down workplaces from Friday midnight till March 31.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for Janata Curfew and I support this. Also I laud the decisions taken by Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. I urge everyone to support this and overcome this crisis," Mangeshkar tweeted.

"Request everyone to stay home and adhere to the #JanataCurfew on the 22nd of March from 7am to 9pm. Let's all fight this together! @narendramodi #IndiaFightsCorona," Ayushmann Khurrana tweeted.

"Request everyone to stay home and adhere to the #JanataCurfew on the 22nd of March from 7am to 9pm. Let's all fight this together!," he said, tagging PM in his tweet.

Last night, actor Kartik Aaryan took to social media to deliver a ''Pyaar Ka Punchnaama'' style monologue about the importance of social distancing in fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

Celebrities such as Amitabh Bachchan, Karan Johar, Akshay Kumar and Hrithik Roshan also took to social media to applaud Prime Minister''s statement on Janata curfew.

Meanwhile, several top stars of the industry, including Bachchan, Akshay, Ajay Devgn, Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan, Madhuri, Ranveer Singh recorded a special video to spread awareness about the novel coronavirus.

The one minute fifty second long video, an initiative by Rohit Shetty Picturez in collaboration with Maharashtra government, features actors appealing to citizens to tread with caution and safety amid the pandemic.

Chennai, Feb 5: Income Tax sleuths on Wednesday raided top Tamil film actor Vijay's residence here besides conducting simultaneous searches at several premises linked to a film production house, movie financier and distributors in connection with suspected tax evasion.

The searches, which began in as many as 38 locations in Tamil Nadu, were still on and unaccounted cash of about Rs 25 crore was seized from the premises of a Tamil film financier who had faced allegations of intimidation and arm-twisting to recover money, official sources told PTI.

Also, several documents indicating substantial tax evasion has been seized, sources added.

Vijay, who was away in Cuddalore district for a film shoot, was apprised by authorities about the searches and he was en route to his residence here, they said.

So far nothing has been recovered from the actor's house and the inmates were cooperating with authorities in conducting the searches, sources said.

Raids were also on in the premises of the production house that had made Vijay's hugely successful recent Tamil movie 'Bigil.'

Further details are expected after completion of searches which is likely to continue tomorrow.

The State police has been providing security for carrying out the searches.