National
I am being made a scapegoat for the cancelled Test: Shastri

Indian cricket team head coach Ravi Shastri has said that he was being made a scapegoat for the cancelled fifth Test against England at Manchester after he and three other members of the support staff tested positive for Covid-19 days after they attended a book-launch function in London.
The Virat Kohli-led side was on the threshold of creating history in the Manchester Test after beating England at The Oval in London. However, Shastri, bowling coach Bharat Arun, fielding coach R Sridhar and physiotherapist Nitin Patel tested Covid-19 positive after their RT-PCR confirmed the infection during The Oval Test.
A day before the start of the fifth Test, the second physiotherapist, Yogesh Parmar, too tested positive for the virus, which made the Indian cricketers anxious and led to the cancellation of the match.
However, Shastri said that he was getting flak for no fault of his.
“They tried to make it that way (make a scapegoat) but I wasn’t worried because incubation probably takes weeks. There were about 250 people there (for the book launch function) and no-one got Covid from that party. I’ve not got it at my book launch because it was on the 31st (August) and I tested positive on 3 September. It can’t happen in three days. I think I got it in Leeds. England opened up on 19 July and suddenly the hotels were back, lifts were back. No restrictions,” Shastri told ‘The Guardian’ on Saturday.
On whether he regrets going for the book launch, Shastri said, “I have absolutely no regrets because the people I met at that function were fabulous. And it was good for the boys to get out and meet different people rather than constantly being in their rooms. At the Oval Test, you were climbing stairs used by 5,000 people. So to point a finger at a book launch?”
The coach categorically said that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) will not lose money on account of the cancelled fifth Test. The series was keenly poised with India leading 2-1 when the final Test was cancelled.
“The ECB have been outstanding and their relationship with Indian cricket is tremendous. People are talking about the money but I can guarantee the ECB will make that entire amount with interest. I don’t know if it’s a stand-alone Test next year or they give them an extra two T20 games, but the ECB will not lose a penny because of the relationship that exists. In 2008 when we had the [terrorist] blast in Mumbai, England came back and played the Test. We don’t forget that,” averred Shastri.
National
Kill terrorists and show us their bodies, say families of Pahalgam attack victims

Mumbai, April 24: The mortal remains of Santosh Jagdale and Kaustubh Ganbote, who were killed by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, were brought to Pune early Thursday morning.
Chants of ‘Pakistan jala do (burn down Pakistan)’ were raised during Jagdale’s funeral procession. NCP(SP) president Sharad Pawar met the families of Santosh Jagdale and Kaustubh Ganbote and expressed grief.
The Jagdale family, shattered by the brutal killing of Santosh Jagdale, burst into tears. “Today my life has been completely ruined, I cannot see my husband anymore,” said Jagdale’s wife, Pragati Jagdale, while venting out her emotions. She also demanded in front of Sharad Pawar that those terrorists should be shot the same way they killed her husband and others.
Pragati Jagdale further narrated the entire incident. “They (terrorists) had come wearing masks. There was no one there, there should have been an officer or security guard. Further, there was a delay in treatment. They didn’t tell us anything,” she said.
She added that the terrorists did not even spare the horse puller as he resisted and told them that they should not shower bullets on the tourists. “Don’t put people’s lives in danger, people’s lives are being ruined, tell me where I am going to look. My husband is not with me, what should these children do?” she asked in despair.
“I have not been able to see my husband’s face since yesterday. While in Kashmir, we could not see his face; here, too, his face is not being revealed. Terrorists shot my husband in the head. Do something for us. Find and kill those terrorists. Terrorists shot our people in the head and took out the flesh, took out the blood, do the same with them and show us the bodies of the terrorists. Terrorists shot their father in front of the children. The children were crying then. While coming down from there, we fell into the mud. Because of this, I cannot even stand on my feet,” said Pragati Jagdale.
“The local people there also cried for us, they felt bad because everything the terrorists did was against tourists, and they attacked tourists. The officers there also cried for us, they felt bad about what had happened. The lives of family members of 26 people killed in the terror attack have been completely destroyed,” she claimed.
Meanwhile, Kaustubh Lele, who lost his cousins Sanjay Lele, Hemant Joshi and Atul Mone from Dombivli in the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam on Tuesday, slammed the government, asking it to first ensure safety to its citizens instead of making tall claims about becoming a trillion-dollar economy.
“Focus on bringing ‘acche din’ of safety and security in the lives of Indian citizens, then show them the dream of becoming a dollar economy. Stop show-offs, branding and making loud claims. Take adequate steps for the safety of the people,” he said, expressing his anguish. “It is a big loss for three families as they have lost the head of the families. It has created a big vacuum which cannot be filled. Terror attacks are taking place unabated. Now take some concrete and firm steps against terrorism,” he said.
International
Murder of Hindu leader: India slams Bangladesh, says killing follows pattern of systematic persecution of Hindu minorities

New Delhi, April 19: India on Saturday issued a sharp condemnation of the abduction and brutal killing of Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a prominent Hindu community leader in northern Bangladesh, calling it part of a “pattern of systematic persecution” of minorities under the country’s interim government.
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal voiced India’s grave concern, stating that the incident reflects an alarming trend of targetted violence against Hindus and other minority groups in Bangladesh.
“We have noted with distress the abduction and brutal killing of Shri Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a Hindu minority leader in Bangladesh. This killing follows a pattern of systematic persecution of Hindu minorities under the interim government, even as the perpetrators of previous such events roam with impunity,” Jaiswal said in a post on social media platform X.
He added, “We condemn this incident and once again remind the interim government to live up to its responsibility of protecting all minorities, including Hindus, without inventing excuses or making distinctions.”
India has previously expressed similar concerns over rising attacks on minorities in Bangladesh, but this latest incident has drawn particular attention due to Roy’s prominence in the Hindu community.
Roy, who served as the Vice-President of the Biral unit of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, was abducted from his residence in Dinajpur district on Thursday evening. According to police and family accounts, he received a phone call around 4:30 p.m., after which four unidentified men arrived on motorcycles and forcibly took him to Narabari village. He was reportedly assaulted and later found unconscious. He was rushed to a hospital in Dinajpur, where he was declared dead on arrival. His wife, Shantana Roy believes the attackers used the call to confirm his location before carrying out the abduction.
Opposition leaders in India also slammed the shocking incident in the neighbouring country.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge highlighted that religious minorities, especially Hindus, are being persecuted in Bangladesh.
“Attacks on other religious minorities are also continuing. Recently, the Chief Advisor of Bangladesh made a very condemnable and disappointing comment about the northeastern states of India. The persecution of religious minorities in Bangladesh, human rights violations, and the attempt to erase the memories of the 1971 Liberation War are efforts to weaken the relationship between India and Bangladesh. From 1971 till today, India has always wished for peace and prosperity for all the people of Bangladesh. This is in the best interest of the subcontinent,” he said.
Maharashtra
ICC, BCCI, ECB and CA to bankroll plan to support Afghan women cricketers: Report

Mumbai, April 16: The International Cricket Council’s (ICC) plans to support the exiled female cricketers from Afghanistan will be bankrolled via contributions by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the Cricket Australia (CA), a report claimed on Wednesday.
The initiative to assist Afghanistan’s displaced women cricketers, which will include coaching and mentorship, “will be constituted through a dedicated fund,” and it will be fully funded by the ICC and the three boards.
An ICC spokesperson confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that the fund will not include any contribution from the Afghanistan Cricket Board. The ACB will continue to receive its full amount from the ICC.
The ICC has recently announced that it will put in place a plan to support women cricketers exiled from Afghanistan after the Taliban took control of the country and banned the participation of females in sports and disbanded the teams.
“Last year, the prospect of ring-fencing an amount for women’s cricket from the ACB’s portion of the ICC’s revenue distributions was discussed but that plan did not come to fruition. The ACB is the only Full Member board that does not field a women’s team, and is not able to because of the severe restrictions on women’s rights after the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021,” the report claimed.
The report also said, the ICC’s latest plan to engage with Afghanistan’s female cricketers neither amounts to official recognition nor does it clear the path for Afghanistan to field a women’s team, as such a team can only be ratified by the ACB. Instead, the ICC hopes to work with Afghanistan’s female cricketers to provide them with both access to the game and funding for further education.
“The ICC does not select a team for Afghanistan. Rather, we are committed to addressing the complexities of the issue and finding a solution that fits within the ICC’s legal and constitutional framework,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying in the report.
The report also confirmed that the ICC’s initiative will not be limited to the 19 Afghan cricketers resident in Australia but, “the plan is to include all displaced Afghan women cricketers regardless of their location.”
The ICC has so far not clarified on what will the Afghanistan women cricketers in exile do after getting coaching and mentorship from this fund.
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