National News
Goa CM Pramod Sawant reverses ban on priests visiting homes for Ganesh Chaturthi puja
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has scrapped his government’s Covid SOPs for the upcoming Ganesh Chaturthi season issued by the state administration, saying he does not agree with a specific guideline which bars priests from visiting homes to offer puja on the festive occasion.
The Congress on Wednesday slammed the BJP-led coalition government for the confusion ahead of the state’s most important Hindu festival, especially at a time when Covid cases have witnessed an increase in the neighbouring state of Maharashtra.
“I personally do not agree with some of the guidelines that were issued in the SOP, especially the one stopping priests from going to individual households for puja. Ganesh Chaturthi is the most important festival in Goa and such rituals are an integral part of it,” Sawant said, while announcing his decision to scrap the SOPs.
“While the expert committee may have suggested such curbs, I have asked the administration to withdraw the SoP immediately. Chaturthi must be celebrated with full fervour while taking all the necessary precautions, given the pandemic,” Sawant said.
The SOPs had urged families to use technology and social media platforms to perform puja on their own.
“The priest shall be prohibited [from] performing Ganesh Pooja by going to individual households, they may perform online pooja. Also the families should be encouraged to perform self puja using various technological means like YouTube, WhatsApp, etc,” the now cancelled SOPs also previously said.
The SOPs earlier issued by the state government had said that Ganesh Chaturthi ‘aartis’ and other allied programmes should be held via the online mode instead, especially when it came to public celebration of the festival, which the now-scrapped SOP said should be “preferably encouraged to conduct ‘Aarati’, ‘bhajan’, ‘kirtan’ and other religious programmes through online mode… or any other electronic media, instead of cultural programmes”.
The SOPs also said that organisers of public Ganesh celebrations “should give priority in organizing health camps including blood donation camps and through these programmes IEC activity may be carried out on corona, malaria, dengue and other diseases”.
The SOPs had also urged families to immerse the Ganesh idol — at the end of the festivities — in their own houses, instead of the standard custom where worshippers move out in groups to immerse Ganesh idols at the nearest water body like a lake, river or sea.
“However, if it is not possible, then only immersion should be carried out at the nearest immersion point. No processions shall be allowed while bringing the idols to the immersion point. No gathering after the immersion will be allowed,” the SOPs had said.
The Congress in Goa has slammed the government for the faux pas.
“Such an important SOP, connected to the majority of people who follow Ganesh Chaturthi in Goa. Such SOPs not passing through the CM is doubtful. Such a situation arises when the Goa administration is being run by bureaucrats,” party spokesperson Trajano D’mello said.
“In my opinion, this has been done essentially to divert the hurt feelings of every citizen of the state, due to the high prices that they are not in a position to celebrate with the same pomp and enthusiasm that Ganesh is celebrated all these years,” D’Mello added.
Crime
Seven injured in Haryana gang war outside police station

Chandigarh, Aug 6: In a brazen daylight indiscriminate firing in front of the police station in Dadri city of Haryana on Thursday, seven people, who were riding on an SUV car, received injuries, police said.
Three assaulters fled on foot by waving revolvers.
Prima facie the police believed the crime was linked to a gang war, although the attackers, who fired at least 30 shots, are yet to be identified.
A video of the crime was surfaced, showing injured men sitting in the bullet-riddled SUV car.
The injured have been referred to the PGI in Rohtak in a critical condition.
The cause of the crime is yet to be ascertained.
The gunfire sound triggered panic in the area.
Seven people riding Scorpio car were seriously injured.
According to eyewitnesses, the firing was so sudden that there was a stampede-like condition among passersby.
As the information received, the police reached the spot and the injured were rushed to the Civil Hospital of Charkhi Dadri for treatment.
After first-aid, all the seven injured were referred to PGI Rohtak in critical conditions.
The injured have been identified as Ankit of Charkhi Dadri, Kirtiman of Hisar, Suraj, Ankit of Bhiwani, Sunny of Hisar, Krishan of Mahendragarh and Amit of Fatehgarh.
A forensic team took possession of the evidence at the spot.
Footage from CCTV cameras installed in the vicinity is also being scanned to identify the attackers, an Investigating official said.
Preliminary investigation by the police revealed that the three miscreants came on a bike.
The accused positioned the bike in front of the Scorpio car and forced him to stop it following which they opened fire.
The firing caused a stampede and chaos at the spot.
The Superintendent of Police and other senior officers reached the spot as the incident was reported.
The police have cordoned off the entire area.
With the help of the forensic team, evidence, bullet shells and other important clues found from the spot are being seized and they are being examined.
National News
Row erupts over revocation of permission for Rahul Gandhi’s student event in UP; Cong cries foul

New Delhi, Aug 6: The withdrawal of permission for Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Chhatron ki Goonj’ event, slated to be held in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj, has snowballed into a major controversy with many Congress leaders calling out “shameful” conduct, allegedly at the behest of the BJP government in the state.
Rahul Gandhi was set to address a gathering of students at KP Ground on August 8, but the venue permission has been revoked just two days before the scheduled address. The Kayastha Pathshala Trust, which owns the KP Ground, cancelled the permission citing ‘unsafe conditions’ in light of incessant rains and also a court order.
However, a string of Congress leaders cried foul over the abrupt cancellation of the venue, accusing the BJP of crushing dissent and throttling democracy.
UP Congress chief Ajay Rai saw a “BJP design” in disrupting Rahul’s ‘Chhatron ki Goonj’ events across the country and claimed that the ruling dispensation was making futile attempts to block the LoP’s dialogue with students.
“First Kota (Rajasthan), then Dehradun (Uttarakhand), and now Prayagraj – the BJP government is making futile attempts everywhere to stop this historic dialogue between the youth and Rahul Gandhi,” he said on X.
He asserted that the programme will go on in Prayagraj and also made a fervent appeal to students and examination aspirants to reach the city on the day.
Many Congress MPs and leaders reacted to the cancellation of permission for Rahul’s much-publicised students’ event venue, with Priyanka Gandhi Vadra telling scribes in a one-liner, “Don’t know what they are afraid of”.
Congress MP Vivek Tankha, speaking to scribes on Parliament premises, said, “This amounts to throttling democracy” and questioned the government’s approach in upholding democratic values.
Another Congress MP, Imran Pratapgarhi, called out the “shameful” conduct and slammed the administration over attempts to stop students’ engagement.
“What could be more shameful than this? You are afraid of a students’ programme. You are unwilling to engage with students yourselves, and when the Leader of Opposition goes to interact with them, you cancel the permission for the programme,” he said.
Samajwadi Party MP Iqra Hassan called the move “unconstitutional”, saying, “In a democracy, everyone has the right to go anywhere, and preventing someone from doing so only reflects the weakness of the government.”
Crime
Atiq Ahmed son Abaan dies in UP road accident on way to meet jailed brother

Lucknow, Aug 6: Former Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Atiq Ahmed’s youngest son Abaan Ahmed died in a fatal car accident on Thursday, said multiple reports.
The deadly mishap happened on the Jhanshi-Kanpur national highway in Uttar Pradesh while Abaan was on his way to meet his brother, imprisoned in extortion and other cases. Their vehicle apparently crashed into a highway divider, leaving the vehicle in ruins.
Preliminary findings suggest rash driving as the reason behind the deadly crash. The images and visuals that surfaced from the accident site show the scale and intensity of the crash. The car’s front portion was completely wrecked in the collision, as the car purportedly hit a road divider.
Abaan Ahmed, the youngest son of the slain gangster-turned-politician, was said to have been behind the wheel during the mishap, and he was accompanied by four other associates. Abaan and one of his aides died in the severe accident, while three others are said to be seriously injured.
The accident occurred when Abaan and his associates were going to meet his jailed brother Ali Ahmed, who is currently incarcerated in a Jhansi prison.
The car met with an accident near the Poonch area on the highway. The police and local administration swung into action after getting information about the fatal crash, and they shifted the critically injured to a nearby hospital. The doctors declared Abaan Ahmed, along with one other, dead on arrival, while three others were administered initial medical aid and subsequently referred to Maharani Laxmibai Medical College.
The police team reached the accident spot and was investigating the reasons behind the fatal accident. The two dead bodies have also been taken into custody and sent for post-mortem.
According to police, over-speeding and rash driving led to loss of control and are believed to be the key reasons behind the fatal accident.
Abaan Ahmed was the youngest son of Atiq Ahmed, while his elder brother Ali Ahmed is currently lodged in Jhansi jail over involvement in multiple cases.
Ali has been in prison in an extortion case. He is an accused in the February 2023 killing of Umesh Pal, the key witness in the BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case.
In 2023, Atiq Ahmed and his brother, Ashraf, were shot dead by three men posing as journalists, as police were taking them for a mandatory medical checkup. The entire episode was beamed live on television, leaving many shocked and appalled over the gruesome murder in full media glare.
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