Munawar Faruqui announces new show, to perform in Kolkata
Mumbai, Dec 19: Stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui, who was last month denied a nod to hold a show in Bengaluru amid protests by some right-wing outfits, is set to perform in Kolkata in January.
The comedian took to Twitter on Saturday evening and shared a link to book tickets for his two-hour comedy act "Dhandho", to be held on January 16.
According to online ticket booking platform BookMyShow, the tickets -- priced at Rs 799 -- were "filling fast".
In November, Faruqui was under fire after the Bengaluru Police denied permission to his stand-up comedy show in the city amid protest by Hindu right-wing outfits, who alleged that he had hurt the Hindu sentiments in one of his shows.
The 29-year-old comic had said his show -- which had sold more than 600 tickets -- was cancelled in the wake of the "threats to venue vandalism". The proceeds from the show were supposed to be donated to late Kannada star Puneeth Rajkumar's charitable organisation.
Faruqui also claimed that 12 of his shows were called off in the last two months because of the threats to the venue and audiences.
"My name is Munawar Faruqui. And that's been my time, you guys were (a) wonderful audience. Good bye, I'm done," he had tweeted.
A few days later, stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, a vocal critic of the government, also said his shows, scheduled to be held in Bengaluru, were cancelled after the organisers received threats.
Earlier this year, Faruqui had spent a month in jail at Indore after a BJP MLA's son lodged an FIR in January accusing the comedian of hurting religious sentiments through his show.
https://t.co/kzhqp4leyn pic.twitter.com/uXFfcGA3ik
— munawar faruqui (@munawar0018) December 18, 2021
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Five killed as moving bus catches fire in Lucknow
Lucknow (PTI): Five people, including two children, were killed when a private bus caught fire in the Mohanlalganj area here early Thursday, police said.
They said the incident occurred around 5:00 am on Kisan Path, a major roadway on the outskirts of Lucknow.
According to sources, the bus was carrying 80 passengers.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (Mohanlalganj) Rajneesh Verma said the bus was en route to Delhi from Begusarai in Bihar when it suddenly caught fire.
"Initial investigation suggests that the fire may have started due to a short circuit in the bus' gearbox," Verma told PTI.
Most of the passengers were asleep when the fire started. It spread rapidly and five passengers -- two women, two children and a man -- were unable to get out in time and died. Several other passengers sustained injuries and have been taken to a hospital for treatment, police said.
According to eyewitnesses, the flames were visible from almost a kilometre away. The bus did not come to a halt immediately after the fire broke out, the eyewitnesses said.
Firefighters reached the spot promptly and managed to control the blaze within half an hour.
Police found that the emergency exit door of the bus failed to open, which led to passengers sitting in the rear getting trapped inside.
According to authorities, a probe to determine the exact cause of the fire is underway.
