Four gifts for the festive season

Splainer almost never goes on sale except during this time of the year. So we hope you will take full advantage of our big discounts—available until November 7. Here are four wonderful deals for you:

• Gift friends, colleagues and relatives an annual subscription at a whopping discount. It now costs only Rs 1000. Click ‘Gift a friend’ on our ‘subscribe’ page.
• Add 12 months to your own subscription by heading over to the ‘subscribe’ page—and hitting renew.
• Use your magical referral link—available in every daily email and your account page—to offer a free month to anyone you want. 
• That same link also offers that sweet Rs 500 discount on our annual subscription.

Want a bulk Diwali discount? If you plan to gift splainer to a bunch of people in your organisation or family, be sure to email us at talktous@splainer.in.

Say hello to pricey IPL ‘babies’

Lucknow and Ahmedabad now have Indian Premier League teams of their own—and together they cost an eye-popping Rs 127.15 billion (12,715 crore). That’s how much the RP Sanjeev Goenka Group (RPSG) and Singapore-based private equity firm Irelia paid for them. That’s 3X the base price set when bids were invited. For comparison: The most valuable IPL team Rajasthan Royals is currently valued at Rs 18.5 billion (1,850 crore). Mint has more on why the big buy makes good business sense.

Aryan Khan arrest: The latest update

For more context for the latest developments, check out our explainer here.

One: Independent witness Prabhakar Sail has filed an affidavit claiming that the Narcotics Control Bureau’s zonal director Sameer Wankhede was part of a plot to extort money from Shahrukh Khan. The NCB failed in its attempt to get Sail’s testimony squashed in a special court. All eyes are now on Khan’s High Court bail hearing on October 26. (Indian Express)  

Two: The Narcotics Control Bureau has ordered a vigilance probe into the allegations of corruption levelled against zonal director Sameer Wankhede. (Quint)

Three: Adding to Wankhede’s woes, NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik tweeted out what he claims is Wankhede’s birth certificate. The name on it: Sameer Dawood Wankhede—which is different from the one recorded in his official records. Wankhede is furious at the violation of his privacy—and the attempt to drag in his dead mother who was Muslim. Yes, it’s getting very, very ugly (The Print)

Alec Baldwin shooting: The latest update

Last week, the actor accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins with a prop gun on a movie set. The latest revelation: Crew members were using prop guns for live target practice—“with real ammunition that may have accidentally been left in the weapon when it was handed to Baldwin.” And more people are stepping forward to reveal the production team’s “flippant” attitude toward safety. Associated Press has more on the call to ban guns entirely, and switch to computer-generated effects. (Times UK)

The ugly aftermath of India-Pak contest

Fourteen Kashmiri students were assaulted at engineering colleges across Punjab—by gangs of students predominantly from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. See an example below:

It isn’t clear what triggered the attacks, but Al Jazeera’s report contains this bit:

“‘But it was suicidal to do so in Punjab,’ said Nasir Khuehami, the national spokesperson of Jammu and Kashmir Students’ Association, referring to Kashmiris celebrating Pakistan’s win. ‘They are a minority in mainland India and the celebrations were stupid. Knowing that your life is in danger, it wasn’t a wise step.’”

Also a target: Bowler Mohammad Shami who has been on the receiving end of a tsunami of hate after India’s loss. He has been labeled a “traitor,” a “sell-out” and a “Pakistani.” Former cricketers like Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar and Irfan Pathan have spoken out in his defence. The silence from his captain, team mates and management is deafening. 

About that BLM moment: Virat Kohli explained why the team took the knee before the India-Pakistan game: “That was communicated to us by the management. The Pakistan team agreed to pay their tribute towards the same cause, and then we accepted our side of things, as well. Yeah, that's how it was decided.” In other words, it wasn’t a gesture that came from the players. (The Telegraph) 

Meanwhile in Kashmir: In the aftermath of the spate of civilian killings (explained here), security forces have a new safety measure: Taking out the doors of auto-rickshaws. The drivers are distraught: “No one will board my auto as it is cold outside and it will not be possible to earn for me.” (Free Press Kashmir)

Greenhouse gas levels are spiralling

A new UN report shows that the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is at record levels—hitting 413.2 parts per million. This spike is way higher than the average rate of increase in the past decade. FYI: Greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, methane etc trap heat and contribute significantly to global warming. (Reuters)

Tata’s big ecommerce plan

Tata Sons plan to invest $2 billion to build a super-app called TataNeu—which “is designed as a single-point digital doorway to the Tata group’s various consumer offerings, including healthcare, food and grocery, financial services, fashion and lifestyle, electronics, over-the-top services, education and bill payments.” It will roll out next year. (Mint)

Canceling its big plan: Paypal which announced that it will not be acquiring Pinterest after all. (Mint)

Also betting big on apps: Rajnikanth’s daughter Soundarya Vishagan who unveiled her social media app HOOTE. Think of it as an audio version of Twitter where people can share 60 seconds of live audio recordings. (NDTV)

Covid scare in China

China is grappling with fresh outbreaks caused by the Delta variant—and there have been over 130 cases since October 17. As a result, the government has imposed a series of Covid safety restrictions, and the Wuhan and Beijing marathons have been postponed. FYI: the daily new cases in India as of Monday is 14,306. (The Guardian)

A beagle testing horror

In a rare moment of cross-party unity, Democrats and Republicans have taken on government funding for projects that use beagles to test experimental drugs. The main target in the row: Covid guru Dr Anthony Fauci who heads the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Why everyone is furious: 44 beagle puppies were deliberately infected with parasites:

“Our investigators show that Fauci’s NIH division shipped part of a $375,800 grant to a lab in Tunisia to drug beagles and lock their heads in mesh cages filled with hungry sand flies so that the insects could eat them alive. They also locked beagles alone in cages in the desert overnight for nine consecutive nights to use them as bait to attract infectious sand flies.”

Reminder: Beagles have been used to test pesticides in India. We have laws banning animal testing for cosmetics but not drugs and other products.

The DDLJ musical you needed?

Bollywood’s biggest romcom is getting a reboot as a Broadway musical—and will hit the stage in September 2022. It will be produced by Yash Raj films along with a team that includes Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani and Nell Benjamin—of ‘Legally Blonde’ and ‘Mean Girls’ fame. (New York Times)