Vijay Shankar suffers injury scare, skips training
Southampton: All-rounder Vijay Shankar is the latest to suffer an injury scare in the Indian camp after being hit on toe on Wednesday during a rain hit training session and was forced to skip Thursday's session.
During Wednesday's training, a Jasprit Bumrah yorker hit Shankar flush on his toes and he was apparently in pain. However a team source informed PTI that there's nothing to worry as of now.
"Yes, Vijay was in pain but it has subsided by the evening. Hopefully, there's nothing scary," the source said.
On Thursday, Shankar was seen walking around in slippers with a slight limp. Later he tried jogging wearing gym trainers but gave up after half a lap. He then did some basic exercises as others took part in usual fielding drills as well as net sessions.
Shankar is one of the designated No 4 batsmen in the Indian line-up although he is being used as a floater. Shankar is also a handy medium pacer who got a couple important wickets against Pakistan including skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed.
With Shikhar Dhawan already ruled out of the tournament due to thumb fracture and Bhuvneshwar Kumar out for two games due to hamstring strain, Shankar's injury will only increase tension for the team management.
As of now Bhuvneshwar will not be bowling for eight days and will only be in contention for the England game (June 30) in Birmingham.
The team management, just like in Dhawan's case, is confident that Bhuvneshwar will be available during the business end of the tournament.
While the team management and the BCCI dilli dallied in giving a proper picture with regards to Dhawan's injury, they are still maintaining that it is a left hamstring stiffness and not a tear for Bhuvneshwar.
In case of hamstring tear, there will be very little chance of comeback for Bhuvneshwar in the World Cup. Bhuvneshwar was also seen doing a bit of short strides and jogging but didn't take part in the nets.
While Khaleel Ahmed, the stand-by pacer is with the team, in worst case scenario if Bhuvneshwar has to be replaced, the team management can fall back on veteran Ishant Sharma as he is also on the list.
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Fascism will not be allowed to enter through the back door of vote rigging: CM Siddaramaiah
New Delhi: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday asserted that fascism would not be allowed to enter India “through the back door of vote rigging” and called upon citizens to collectively defend the country’s democratic foundations.
Speaking after participating in an anti–vote rigging protest organised in New Delhi, Siddaramaiah said the gathering was not merely a political demonstration but a stand to protect Indian democracy. “We have come to the heart of our republic not as Congress workers or voters, but as protectors of Indian democracy,” he said.
Emphasising the importance of the right to vote, Siddaramaiah said it was the most sacred right guaranteed by the Constitution and the very foundation of democracy.
“Through voting, a farmer shapes the future of his children, a worker safeguards his dignity, a youth realises dreams, and a nation expresses its collective will,” he said.
He accused the BJP-led Union government of attempting to undermine this right through what he termed systematic vote rigging, including the alleged misuse of the special revision of electoral rolls. “This power is being stolen repeatedly,” he alleged.
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Warning against authoritarian tendencies, Siddaramaiah said history had shown that dictatorship does not begin with violence but with the misuse of institutions and manipulation of democratic systems.
“Across the world, authoritarian regimes pretend to protect democracy while quietly subverting it. This is what the BJP is doing today,” he charged.
He alleged that the ruling party was controlling institutions, intimidating electoral machinery, distorting voter lists, suppressing voter turnout in opposition strongholds, and misusing money and power. “This is not mere maladministration. Vote rigging is an attack on the very idea of India,” he said.
Siddaramaiah further claimed that governments formed through “stolen votes” could not be considered democratic.
“Such regimes survive through fear, fraud and distortion of the people’s mandate,” he said, adding that vote rigging posed the biggest threat to the republic since Independence.
Praising Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Siddaramaiah said he had shown exceptional courage in exposing alleged irregularities in voter lists, booth-level manipulation and “systematic, organised vote rigging” across several states, including Karnataka, Haryana and Bihar.
Referring to Karnataka, Siddaramaiah cited Mahadevpura and Aland constituencies as examples highlighted by Gandhi. In Mahadevpura, he said, thousands of allegedly fake and fraudulent voter entries and discrepancies in electoral rolls pointed to a narrow BJP victory. In Aland, he said, attempts were made to remove the names of legitimate voters ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections.
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He noted that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) had recently filed a chargesheet accusing seven persons, including a former BJP MLA and his son, of attempting to delete the names of around 6,000 voters in Aland.
“This is a significant legal step in the fight against vote rigging,” he said.
Siddaramaiah concluded by stating that the fight against vote rigging was rooted in constitutional morality, Ambedkarite thought and the core principle of democracy. “Sovereignty belongs to the people, not to any party, regime or those who seek to steal elections,” he said.
