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Essential HuffPost
In a shocking incident in Madhya Pradesh, a 19-year-old woman voluntarily chopped off her tongue and offered it to the Hindu goddess Kali. Reportedly, Aarti Dubey, who is an undergraduate student, dreamt that the goddess wanted her tongue in exchange for the fulfilment of her dreams.
Actress Alia Bhatt, who was recently critically-acclaimed for her acting in Udta Punjab, went out of her way to promote Akshay Kumar's upcoming film Rustom. The actress donned the iconic yellow sari and a frilly blouse that actress Raveena Tandon wore in the song 'Tip tip barsa paani' from the film Mohra (1994), which also starred Akshay Kumar. She then proceeded to emulate Tandon's seductive moves before hilariously saying: "Mujhe kya dekh rahe ho, jaake Rustom dekho na!"
Huffington Posteditor-in-chief Arianna Huffington announced on Thursday that she will step down from the company she co-founded 11 years ago to build Thrive Global, a new lifestyle, health and wellness site.
Main News
Haryana BJP leader Brijpal Teotia was critically injured when he was attacked by an AK-47-wielding assailants. Reportedly, the assailants attacked Teotia's SUV on Rawali road, off NH-58 on Thursday. Police have said that the number of attackers was about four. Five others, including four private gunners of Teotia, were also injured and admitted to Sarvodaya Hospital in Ghaziabad. Teotia, who took at least five bullets, was later taken to the Fortis Hospital, Noida.
Under attack over atrocities against Dalits, the government has said the states should take strict action against anti-social elements indulging in activities like cow protection as it pitched for a united fight against the "perverted mindset". "Some anti-social elements are indulging in nefarious activities in the name of cow protection...I appeal to all state governments to take strict possible action against them," Home Minister Rajnath Singh said in the Lok Sabha while replying to a discussion on atrocities on Dalits.
Prakash Javadekar, the Minister of Human Resource Development, has agreed to give up the government's role in appointing the chairman of the Board of Governors (BoG) at all IIMs. The move came just months after his predecessor Smriti Irani rejected a panel of corporate stalwarts recommended by IIM-Ahmedabad for the chairman's post.
Off The Front Page
Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan was detained at Los Angeles airport by the immigration department on Friday. The actor vented out on Twitter saying: "I fully understand & respect security with the way the world is, but to be detained at US immigration every damn time really really sucks [sic]".
Sushma Swaraj, the Minister of External Affairs, tweeted an adorable photo of herself with her husband Swaraj Kaushal, when they bumped into each other in the parliament. While the photo of the couple standing hand-in-hand earned many awws and aahs on social media, her tweet itself, which said, "Together after many years..." started a slew of questions. Swaraj clarified that, they were together at home, but not in parliament anymore.
Dengue cases in West Bengal have crossed the 2,000-mark in 2016 so far, and the official death count is at 14, said a new report. While 132 fresh dengue cases were detected in the state between Tuesday and Wednesday, 286 more persons were diagnosed with the disease till Thursday.
Opinion
All parties will meet on 12 August to talk about Kashmir. But are they prepared to hear the Kashmiris, asks Muzamil Jaleel in The Indian Express. "Like in 2010, wholesale mutton dealers will show up, shikarawallas will be rowed in and apple growers will be brought. Voices palatable to New Delhi will be told to spell out their requirements, while a few bureaucrats-turned-civil society members and former Ikhwanis-turned-politicians known to New Delhi's dialogue circuit will be shooed in. This time, though, the ground has shifted," he says.
The stand-off over Dalits' claim to participate in the Badrakaliamman temple's annual festival in Kallimedu, a village near Vedaranyam in Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu, is part of a pattern. It is high time the rule of law is established and justice prevails, says an editorial in The Hindu. "In the first instance, Dalits assert themselves to a right over social space, a demand often framed in the language of religion. The locally dominant caste refuses to acknowledge it, and depending on the local balance of power and the prevailing political situation (read the party in power and its predominant support base), the demand is either contained or it flares up. If the Dalit leadership is sagacious it builds supra-local support and seeks help from a Dalit party. In a bid to attract attention, a threat to convert to Islam is issued. The local dominant caste cares little for this demand — and may in fact see it as a resolution to their immediate fears — but this scares the wits out of those with a vested interest in the maintenance of a religious status quo," it says.
The retail loan segment is not quite in the danger zone yet, but there is some cause for concern, says an editorial in Mint. "Retail loans are a broad category. They include housing loans, vehicle loans, consumer durable loans, credit card outstandings, personal loans and educational loans. Default rates are usually low in most of these categories. Consumer debt in India is also low by international standards, at less than a tenth of gross domestic product. But these macro realities should not be used to mask specific problems. First, the growth in retail loans is being powered by personal loans that are most sensitive to default. Second, the growth in household debt may be concentrated in specific categories rather than across the economy, as was the case during the microfinance crisis as well," it says.
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