Researched and collated by: Vagda Galhotra, Sara Varghese, Prafula Grace Busi & Sheya Kurian
Nupur Sharma case: Violent protests, bulldozer derby
Soon after Friday prayers, angry Muslims staged protests across the country to protest her remarks on the Prophet Muhammad—and they continued into Sunday.
In Uttar Pradesh: the rallies turned violent—as people threw stones and set vehicles on fire. Of the 400 arrests made since Friday, 316 alone were in UP. The government’s retaliation was swift. The media advisor to CM Yogi tweeted: “Unruly elements remember, every Friday is followed by a Saturday”—and posted a photo of a bulldozer.
Sure enough, the administration demolished the house of Mohammad Javed—who is a member of the civil society organisation the Welfare Party of India—as is his daughter Afreen Fatima. Both took part in the anti-CAA protests. Most legal experts—including the ex-Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court—say the demolition was illegal. The police, however, claim Mohammed was the “mastermind” behind the protests—and say they’ve recovered “illegal weapons”–-including pistols—from his home.
In Jharkhand: Two teenagers were killed when police opened fire—and the 22 injured include a young man who was shot six times. He claims to have been a mere bystander.
In Maharashtra: AIMIM MP Imtiaz Jaleel declared at a rally: “Agar Nupur Sharma ko phansi dena hai, toh Aurangabad ke isi chauraha ke andar phansi de” (If Nupur Sharma is to be hanged, hang her from this very square in Aurangabad). Party chief Asaduddin Owaisi distanced himself from the remarks, but Jaleel remained unapologetic: “I was called by the Commissioner of Police to the protest spot as the situation was volatile and the crowd temper was high. I had to speak the language of the crowd.” Watch the clip below. (Indian Express)
IPL bidding goes bonkers
The Indian cricket board’s auction for broadcasting and digital streaming rights to the Indian Premier League opened yesterday. The bidding touched Rs 430.5 billion (43,050 crore) just on day one. Disney-Star India, Viacom18 and Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) bid for the TV rights—while Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) bid only for digital rights. Not in the picture: Amazon which was widely expected to take on Ambani-owned Viacom18.
Unnamed sources in the know told Mint that the bidding for streaming was far more aggressive than TV—but the price per game for TV was still higher (Rs 57 crore/match) compared to digital (Rs 48 crore/match). The auction is for the next five-year cycle of the tournament (2023-27) that includes 410 games. Read our previous Big Story to know more about the auction and the bidders. Indian Express and Mint have more details.
Thirty soldiers charged with Nagaland killings
Last December, an Army operation mistakenly targeted a van carrying six coal miners—and killed everyone on board. When villagers rose up in anger, troops opened fire—shooting another seven civilians. A police investigation has determined that the soldiers did not follow Standard Operating Procedure—and “indiscriminate and disproportionate firing” led to the death of civilians in the van, and two others. Point to note: An Army inquiry into the same events concluded the killings were “a case of mistaken identity and error of judgement.” For more on the tragedy, read our Big Story. (Scroll)
Revlon heads for bankruptcy
The iconic cosmetics company is getting ready to throw in the towel—after struggling for years with $3.3 billion in debt and stiff competition. The final nail in the coffin: supply chain disruptions caused by the pandemic—which also resulted in a plunge in demand for cosmetics. (Bangkok Post)
A first case of feline transmission
A new study revealed the first documented case of a cat infecting a human with Covid. A veterinarian caught the disease from a pet cat—who was likely infected by its owners. While the likelihood of such a transmission route remains low, it underlines the importance of avoiding contact with pets when Covid-positive. (New York Times)
Speaking of illness: Justin Bieber revealed that he’s been diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome—which has paralysed half his face. It was triggered by an outbreak of shingles—which, in turn, is caused by varicella-zostar virus: “The virus that causes chicken pox stays dormant in the body until something triggers it, returning in form of herpes zoster.” Bieber has cancelled his shows in Toronto and Washington DC—but there’s no news yet on his planned October tour of India. Watch Bieber’s Insta vid below. If you’ve had chicken pox, you may want to learn more about shingles and Ramsay Hunt here. (Mint)
Coming soon to Amazon Prime
The streaming platform announced its slate for India—and it includes the Karan Johar production ‘Call Me Bae,’ serial killer drama ‘Dahaad’ starring Sonakshi Sinha, Rohit Shetty’s ‘Indian Police Force,’ and Shahid Kapoor and Vijay Sethupathi-starrer ‘Farzi.’ Also on the cards: a new Tamil series ‘Suzhal: The Vortex’ starring Sriya Reddy, Kathir, Aishwarya Rajesh and Radhakrishnan Parthiban. (Mint)
A mystery monkey in Malaysia
A mystery monkey discovered by researchers may be a hybrid of two separate species—a male proboscis monkey (Nasalis larvatus) and a female silver langur (Trachypithecus cristatus). As with pizzlies—a mix of polar bears and grizzlies—this may be a result of habitat destruction. The jungles in Malaysia have been wrecked by palm oil plantations. Why this matters:
“If habitat degradation is indeed to blame, this could mean the adult males of the proboscis monkeys, unable to disperse to other areas to find mating partners of their own species, instead take over silver langur harems, [primatologist] Nadine Ruppert said. ‘Then probably one species might become locally displaced in these patches of low habitat quality, as it will be outcompeted by the more dominant species.’”
The collage below has the hybrid in the middle—while the langur and proboscis monkey are on the left and right, respectively. (The Guardian)
Three things to see
One: Britney Spears married her fiancé Sam Asghari in a ten-minute ceremony—which included a horse-drawn carriage and a custom Versace gown. The main highlight: The dramatic gatecrashing entrance of her ex-hubby Jason Alexander, who livestreamed the intrusion, declaring: “She’s my first wife, my only wife.” Alexander was married to Spears for less than 55 hours in 2004. Below is the wedding video Spears shared on social. (BBC News)
Two: The promo for the new season of ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ takes cheeky aim at the news channels who claimed the new Rs 2,000 notes were embedded with GPS-enabled chips.
Three: McDonald’s withdrew from Russia thanks to US sanctions on doing business with Moscow. The shuttered restaurants have reopened under new ownership and name: ‘Vkusno & tochka’—which means ‘Tasty and that’s it.’ The golden arches have been replaced by this. Also missing: The Big Mac or its equivalent. (Reuters)
Good stuff to check out
On the latest episode of the splainer podcast ‘Press Decode’, the splainer team looks at whether Nupur Sharma is indeed a ‘fringe element’—and the ‘right to repair’ movement. Be sure to head over to the IVM website, Spotify or Apple Podcasts to listen to it.
