'When the Chief Fell in Love', to release tomorrow
Mumbai: An unusual fictional romantic novel, "When the Chief Fell in Love: Kashmiriyat, Jamhooryiat, Insaniyat. Hindustaniyat," has sparked a guessing game on its underlying political message, its author Tuhin A. Sinha said here on Tuesday.
Scheduled to be released on February 14, Sinha unveiled the name and covered through social media network and kicked off a raging debate on the content and possibly, a political message, since he is the Bharatiya Janata Party's Mumbai spokesperson.
"The slogan - aKashmiriyat, Jamhooriyat, Insaniyat' was first coined by then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee in 2003 and it struck an instant chord with the people of Jammu & Kashmir. By adding 'Hindustaniyat' to the original slogan, I hope a new perspective is given to the burning issue (of J&K) in the present context," Sinha told IANS.
Giving a sneak peek into the storyline, Sinha said it revolved around the life and travails of Vihaan Shastri, India's young and dynamic defense minister who comes under attack after 20 soldiers are killed during a terror strike in Jammu & Kashmir.
While the country bays for bloody revenge, Shastri battles a strange distraction: Zaira Bhat, the woman he once loved, who suddenly returns to his life after 12 years, amidst a web of extraordinary situations and twisted quirks of fate.
The unfolding scenario is indeed extraordinary and sensitive -- for, he is the country's defense minister, and his long-lost love Zaira is the daughter of none other than the reviled Bilal Mohammad Bhat, Jammu & Kashmir's leading and most wanted, Pro-Pakistani separatist leader.
"The plot revolved around whether Shastri is capable of pulling off this a double coup -- can he win the love of his life and also save Jammu & Kashmir which is on edge," Sinha said.
Sinha's ninth book in his writing career which started in 2006, "When the Chief Fell in Love" (246 pages) is published by Fingerprint Publishing.
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Banjarumale hamlet in Karnataka's Dakshina Kannda records 100 per cent voting
Mangaluru: Banjarumale, an interior hamlet in Belthangady taluk of Dakshina Kannda district, recorded 100 per cent voting in the Lok Sabha election on Friday.
This hamlet has 111 voters and each one of them turned up at the only polling booth, completing voting two hours before polling ended at 6pm.
The hamlet is inhabited by forest dwellers, tribal farmers and collectors of minor forest waste. Despite having no power or transport connectivity, the people survive in the forest using water from the perennial water sources in the hills of the Western Ghats.
To reach their taluk headquarters Belthangady, the people have to travel via Mudigere by bus or walk eight kilometres through the dense forests, but they all made sure to vote.
The district authorities appreciated their spirit.
Anni Malekudia, a resident of the village, told PTI, “We do not complain about the lax facilities. We understand that all the facilities that are given to towns cannot be given to all villages. Nevertheless, that has not deterred us from voting in full numbers. I am sure even if there were 500 voters or more they would have all come to vote.”
In the 2023 Karnataka Assembly election, Banjarumale had recorded 99 per cent voting according to the district polling statistics..
