Poonam Pandey is alive, appears in cervical cancer awareness video
Mumbai (PTI): "I am here, alive. Cervical cancer didn't claim me," Poonam Pandey said on Saturday, a day after the news of her death from the disease dominated the news cycle and led to intense debate on social media.
It turns out the news of her death was fake, a stunt pulled off by the actor and her team to spread "critical awareness" about cervical cancer.
While many media houses went ahead with the news, PTI in its reporting never confirmed the death.
In a video, posted on her official Instagram page, Pandey said, "I feel compelled to share something significant with you all - I am here, alive."
"Cervical cancer didn't claim me, but tragically, it has claimed the lives of thousands of women who stemmed from a lack of knowledge on how to tackle this disease," the 32-year-old added.
Pandey claimed that she wanted to spread awareness about the disease.
"Unlike some other cancers, Cervical cancer is entirely preventable. The key lies in the HPV vaccine and early detection tests. We have the means to ensure no one loses their life to this disease...
"Let's empower one another with critical awareness and ensure every woman is informed about the steps to take. Together, let's strive to put an end to the devastating impact of the disease and bring #DeathToCervicalCancer," she wrote.
On Friday, the actor's team made the shock announcement on Instagram that Pandey, a model, influencer and sometime actor known for her bold statements and appearances, had died of cervical cancer.
When contacted for the confirmation of the death, the actor's publicist said she died in her hometown but was not forthcoming with details about her battle with the disease as well as when and where she passed away.
Pandey is not new to such publicity stunts. She hit the headlines in 2011 by declaring that she would strip if India won the cricket World Cup.
The post on her Instagram page on Friday read, "Deeply saddened to inform you that we have lost our beloved Poonam to cervical cancer. Every living form that ever came in contact with her was met with pure love and kindness."
"In this time of grief, we would request for privacy while we remember her fondly for all that we shared," the statement read.
The doubts began soon after with several Instagram followers saying the news could well be fake because she was last seen only three days ago in Goa and frequently before that as well.
Some also questioned the timing of the news of her death as it came a day after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the government's plans to focus on vaccination against cervical cancer for girls aged 9 to 14 as part of her interim Budget 2024.
Later in the day, PR agency Picture N Kraft released a statement, saying, "This is to place on record that we have received a call from her family member this morning regarding her sudden demise (as posted on her official Insta id). We are waiting for further information."
Her death was condoled by her "Lock Upp" co-contestant Faruqui and host Kangana Ranaut.
Pandey, who made her Bollywood debut in 2013 with "Nasha", also featured in little known films such as "Love Poison", "Malini & Co" and "Aa Gaya Hero". She also participated in two popular reality shows, "Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi 4" in 2011 and "Lock Upp" in 2022.
In November 2020, she and her husband were arrested for shooting an objectionable video and allegedly trespassing on government property in Goa.
Before that, in May 2020, she was booked for violating Covid norms in Mumbai.
Cervical cancer is the second most common in women in India and makes up for close to 18 per cent of the new cancer cases, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), WHO's cancer agency.
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BJP slams Cong over internal quota for SCs, alleges injustice done to several communities
Bengaluru (PTI): The BJP in Karnataka on Saturday attacked the Congress government over its decision on internal reservation for Scheduled Castes, alleging injustice to several communities and questioning the intent behind the revised quota formula.
Karnataka BJP president B Y Vijayendra and BJP MP Govind Karjol criticised the government led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, accusing it of delay, dilution of quota, and lack of commitment to social justice.
The Cabinet on Friday cleared a revised internal reservation formula for Scheduled Castes within the overall 15 per cent quota, paving the way for long-pending government recruitment.
The Cabinet approved 5.25 per cent reservation each for the "right-hand groups" and "left-hand groups", and about 4.5 per cent for other Scheduled Castes, including nomadic communities.
"The Congress government in Karnataka, led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, has committed a historic betrayal and stabbed the Scheduled Castes in the back," Vijayendra said.
In a post on 'X', the Shikaripura MLA alleged that the government had delayed the distribution of reservation among Scheduled Castes for nearly two-and-a-half years despite a Supreme Court order, before classifying them into A, B and C categories in a Cabinet decision.
He said the previous BJP government had increased reservation from 15 per cent to 17 per cent, but the present dispensation had reduced allocations.
"The quota for Category 'A' has been reduced from 6 per cent to 5.25 per cent and for Category 'B' from 5.5 per cent to 5.25 per cent, thereby causing grave injustice," he said, adding that allocations meant for several communities had been merged into Category 'C' and reduced to 4.5 per cent.
"Instead of the justifiable 5.5 per cent, the quota has been reduced to 4.5 per cent- amounting to a betrayal of these communities as well," he said.
He further claimed that despite there being no stay order, the state government had filed an affidavit agreeing to reduce reservation from 17 per cent to 15 per cent.
"As a result, the Scheduled Caste reservation has been brought down from 17 per cent to 15 per cent," he said.
Alleging inaction on employment, Vijayendra said the government had wasted two-and-a-half years of valuable time in the name of internal reservation despite lakhs of vacancies, and termed the recent recruitment assurance as misleading.
He added that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar will pay a price for the alleged injustice.
Meanwhile, addressing a press conference at the BJP state office, Karjol questioned the internal reservation mechanism adopted by the Cabinet.
The former Deputy Chief Minister said the Justice H N Nagamohan Das committee had recommended 17 per cent internal reservation and the government had reduced it to 15 per cent.
He questioned whether repeated assertions on social justice and equitable distribution were mere rhetoric, and accused the chief minister of misleading the public to retain power.
Terming the decision "arbitrary justice", Karjol said, "There were the Sadashivayya report, the Justice H N Nagamohan Das report, and even the Cabinet sub-committee report under former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai. There was also a Supreme Court order. Ignoring all of these, the government has delivered arbitrary justice."
He maintained that the previous BJP government had increased reservation scientifically to 17 per cent based on a report by then Law Minister J C Madhuswamy, and alleged that, despite promises made in 2013 and after returning to power in 2023, Siddaramaiah had failed to implement internal reservation.
Accusing the chief minister of attempting to create divisions among SC sub-castes and pushing the issue into courts, Karjol urged him to stop this deception.
