Vidarbha claim 2nd successive Ranji title, beat Saurashtra in final
Nagpur, Feb 7: Defending champions Vidarbha won the 85th Ranji Trophy title, beating Saurashtra by 78 runs in the summit clash here Thursday.
Set a target of 206, Saurashtra folded for 127 in 58.4 overs, giving Vidarbha their second title triumph in the country's marquee first-class tournament.
Left-arm spinner Aditya Sarwate was the star for Vidarbha, claiming six wickets in his 24 overs in the second innings. He had picked up 5/98 in the first innings.
Star batsman Cheteshwar Pujara, who played a stellar role in India's maiden Test series triumph on the Australian soil last month, could not come good for Saurashtra and was dismissed cheaply in both the innings.
Brief Scores:
Vidarbha: 312 and 200
Saurashtra: 307 and 127 all out in 58.4 overs (Vishvaraj Jadeja 52, Aditya Sarwate (6/59).
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Right to vote under threat, must be made fundamental right: Cong's Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged on Thursday that the right to vote is under threat and the time has come when it should be made a fundamental right for citizens.
Speaking with reporters, Ramesh lashed out at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, saying the Election Commission (EC) has never been as compromised as it has been under him.
"The rot started under his predecessor. This man is a player and not a neutral observer," the Congress leader said, slamming Kumar.
Kumar is completely compromised and has become a player in elections, he alleged.
"Home Minister Amit Shah had talked about three Ds -- detect, delete and deport. So we want to know how many non-Indian citizens have been detected, how many have been deleted and how many have been deported," Ramesh said, adding that the right to vote is now under threat.
On opposition parties submitting a fresh notice in the Rajya Sabha, seeking to move a motion for the CEC's removal, the Congress leader said they will continue to make efforts for Kumar's removal as he is "compromised".
Ramesh also batted for the right to vote to be recognised as a fundamental right.
"I believe that the time has come that the right to vote should be made a fundamental right. It is a statutory right, it is not a fundamental right. Fundamental rights are justiciable," he said.
The former Union minister said this was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, but it was eventually decided that it should be made part of the Constitution.
B R Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram had warned that in the future, governments might try to disenfranchise voters, he added.
"Once and for all, include the right to vote as a fundamental right for Indian citizens," Ramesh asserted.
