Jasprit Bumrah, Smriti Mandhana named ICC Player of the Month for June
Dubai (PTI): Hero of India's victorious T20 World Cup campaign, Jasprit Bumrah added another feather to his hat when he was on Tuesday named the 'ICC Men's Player of the Month for June'.
It was double delight for India as women's team vice-captain Smriti Mandhana was also named the 'Women's Player of the Month' by the global body. Mandhana won her first ICC Women’s Player of the Month after playing a starring role in India’s sweep over South Africa in the ODI series last month.
Bumrah came out on top in the men’s vote from compatriot Rohit Sharma and Rahmanullah Gurbaz of Afghanistan, while Mandhana won the women’s award by overcoming England’s Maia Bouchier and Sri Lanka’s Vishmi Gunaratne.
Bumrah, who bagged 15 wickets to be adjudged the Player-of-the-Tournament in the T20 global showpiece last month, also claimed the Men’s Player of the Month accolade for June, the ICC announced.
"I am delighted to be named the ICC Men’s Player of the Month for June," Bumrah said in the ICC statement.
"It’s a special honour for me following a memorable few weeks spent in the USA and West Indies. We have had a lot to celebrate as a team, and I’m delighted to be able to add this personal accolade to the list."
The 30-year-old was at his dependable best in the USA and Caribbean and bowled at an average of 8.26, at an astonishing economy rate of 4.17.
He joined Virat Kohli (a two-time winner in his own right) as India players to claim the Men’s T20 World Cup Player of the Tournament award.
India were the first team to win the men's T20 World Cup without losing a game all tournament.
Barring a washout against Canada in the first round, the Rohit Sharma-led India went on to win all eight matches they played in the tournament.
"To perform as well as we did at the tournament and lift the trophy at the end is incredibly special, and I will carry those memories with me forever," Bumrah said.
"I wish to congratulate my captain Rohit Sharma and Rahmanullah Gurbaz for their excellent performances in the same period, and I am humbled to have been chosen as the winner."
In the women's game, Mandhana set the tone with a commanding 117 in the first outing in Bengaluru. Despite an early stutter by the hosts in which they fell to 99 for five, Mandhana remained resolute, and benefitted from some lower order resistance to guide India to a formidable score of 265 from their 50 overs, which proved far beyond the Proteas.
Mandhana went one better in the second match, hitting her second successive century and top scoring in a game that saw 646 runs in total. The opener blitzed the South African bowling attack, smashing 136 in 120 balls and in tandem with her captain Harmanpreet Kaur, posted just enough to see off the resurgent visitors.
She came close to sealing a hat-trick of hundreds in the final outing, falling agonizingly on 90 in a stylish effort that ensured India recorded a comfortable victory to close out the series.
During the period, Mandhana recorded 343 runs at an average of 114.33, with a strike rate of over 100, earning her the Player of the Series award.
“I’m really glad to have won the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for June. I’m really happy with the way the team has performed and I’m happy to have contributed.
For us, we won the ODI and the Test series and hopefully we can continue our form and I can further contribute to win more matches for India,” Mandhana said.
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Justice must be seen to be done: Kejriwal on refusal to appear in excise case before HC judge
New Delhi (PTI): Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal has written to Delhi High Court Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, saying he will not appear in the excise case personally or through a lawyer before her, the party said on Monday.
Pointing to a "grave miscarriage of justice", Kejriwal, in a four-page letter, said he has "serious and unreconciled" concerns regarding the matter.
"I have decided that I shall not participate in the further proceedings in this matter, either in person or through counsel. I do not take this step lightly," Kejriwal added.
In his letter, Kejriwal further said that "justice must not only be done, but must also be seen to be done".
"The principle that justice must not only be done, but must also be seen to be done, is among the most sacred assurances that a court gives to a citizen in a democracy," he said.
The assurance cannot be dishonoured by asking the citizen to ignore what "anyone can plainly see" in a case like this, he added in the letter.
The letter also invoked the principles of Satyagraha and the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, with Kejriwal saying that his intent is "strengthening of judiciary and prevent its weakening".
He added that he has given the authority an opportunity to consider and correct what he perceived to be a grave miscarriage of justice.
His earlier plea seeking the recusal of Justice Sharma, which was rejected on April 20, was interpreted as a personal attack, the AAP chief claimed.
"After the said judgment, I am left with the painful and inescapable impression that what I had urged as a lawful plea of apprehension was received and answered as a personal attack upon Your Ladyship and as an assault on the institution itself.
"Those are not, with respect, answers to the case I had brought. They show me that my plea of apprehension has been judicially understood as a personal and institutional affront," he said in the letter.
The letter further noted the leader's belief that it was now "impossible to receive an impartial hearing" in Justice Sharma's court.
Kejriwal also reiterated two grounds cited earlier in his recusal plea.
"First, the issue of Your Ladyship's repeated public association with the RSS's legal front, the Akhil Bharatiya Adhivakta Parishad (ABAP) -- an organisation belonging to the ideological ecosystem of the ruling dispensation," he wrote, further pointing out that Justice Sharma's children "are professionally engaged on multiple advocates' panels of the Union government which happens to be the opposite party in this case".
Reflecting on his personal experience during the proceedings, the former Delhi chief minister expressed concern over the broader implications of his case on public trust in the judiciary, while he said he maintains respect for the institution.
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"When I appeared before Your Ladyship to argue my case, the question in my heart was simple: Will I get justice? Today, with the deepest respect, I must say that the same question has become graver and deeper in my conscience," he said.
This case has now become a matter of widespread public discussion. It is being discussed not merely in legal and political circles, but in homes across the country, the letter read.
Addressing potential criticism, Kejriwal clarified that his remarks should not be interpreted as opposition to the judiciary.
"As I write this, I am also cognisant of the fact that some might portray me as someone 'against' the judiciary. But how can that ever be the case when I have personally received relief from the judiciary, including orders of bail and the present discharge?
"Today, I walk free because of the judiciary. Let there exist no figment of imagination that my present stand is against the institution," he asserted.
Kejriwal further said his respect for the judiciary "remains intact" and he has "unwavering faith" in the Constitution of India.
"My objection is not to the institution of the High Court or the larger judicial system, but only to the continuance of this matter before Your Ladyship (Sharma) under a cloud of grave and unresolved questions and circumstances that have generated grave public doubt in your ability to dispense impartial justice," Kejriwal further wrote in the letter.
He also clarified that his "personal inability" is confined to just this matter.
"I shall continue to appear in matters where these serious and unreconciled concerns do not arise, including matters in which the solicitor general does not appear and matters unconnected with the Union government, the BJP or the RSS," the letter added.
He further said he has made the decision by listening to the voice of his conscience and that he is prepared to bear the consequences.
"I may prejudice my own legal interests. I understand that I may lose the opportunity to advance submissions before this Hon'ble Court and that adverse consequences in law may follow. I am prepared to bear those consequences," the AAP chief said.
He added that he will reserve the right to approach the Supreme Court to appeal against Justice Sharma's decision.
