Thousands of Muslims women join anti-CAA stir in Karnataka
Bengaluru, Dec 26: Anti-CAA protests refused to die down in Karnataka with thousands of Muslim women taking the centre-stage on Thursday holding protests here and at Shivamogaa and Kalaburagi.
The women staged a protest at Eidgah Grounds in Shivamogga holding the national flag, banners and placards declaring their opposition to CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) and NRC (National Register of Citizens).
A similar protest was held in front of the Bengaluru's town hall that was attended by large number of Muslim women.
At Kalaburagi, protesters, mostly women, staged a demonstration from Jagat Circle to Deputy Commissioner's (DC) office shouting slogans against the CAA.
Anti-CAA protests and demonstrations have also been held in Mysuru, Bagalkot and Dharwad, among other places.
Hundreds of protesters had taken part in an agitation in Dharwad, organised by "progressive organisations", which was attended by senior Congress leader and former MP V S Ugrappa.
Police had made elaborate security arrangements so that no untoward incidents take place.
At Mysuru's Town Hall grounds too, thousands of people staged a protest called by several Muslim organisations, amid tight security.
Holding national flags, the protesters demanded the withdrawal of CAA as they said it was anti-democratic.
At Bagalkot, hundreds of protesters staged a march till DC office. The protest was called by 'Bagalkote Muslim Unity' and other "progressive organisations".
Anti-CAA protests had reached its peak in the state last week, with it turning violent in Mangaluru, resulting in the death of two in police-firing.
The CAA says members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities, who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014, and facing religious persecution there, would not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship.
The Act says refugees of the six communities would be given Indian citizenship after residing in India for five years, instead of 11 earlier.
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England sticking with Key, McCullum and Stokes despite Ashes humbling
London (AP): England is not sacking anybody following the 4-1 Ashes loss in Australia.
A review of the tour by the England and Wales Cricket Board, announced within hours of the final match in January, was concluded on Monday. Firing people would “be the easy thing to do,” ECB chief executive Richard Gould said but he insisted, "This is not the time to throw everything out."
Managing director Rob Key, coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes kept their jobs after the best England side to go to Australia in 14 years lost the Ashes in 11 days with two games to spare.
“Moving people on can sometimes be the easy thing to do. That's not the route that we're going to take,” Gould said. “I've seen the driving ambition and determination that we're lucky enough to have within our leadership group to take the lessons from the Ashes and move forward.”
Gould previously was the chief executive of Bristol City soccer club and said the ECB would not follow the same route as soccer's hire-and-fire culture.
“Cricket is a very unique sport in that it takes a team of leadership ... it's not like football where there's a single point of failure or success with a manager," he said. He added the ECB would not “select or deselect management based on a popularity campaign.”
The main criticisms of England's tour were poor preparation, player misbehavior, and selection mistakes.
At a press conference at Lord's, Gould and Key said McCullum and Stokes have not had a “bust up,” they did not want McCullum to “completely change” but “to evolve,” the behavior of some players was “unprofessional,” there will be more consequences for underperforming, and a commitment to “better long-term planning” ahead of major test series.
Some changes were already implemented for the Twenty20 World Cup, where England reached the semifinals. Gould implied that performance saved McCullum.
Key acknowledged that England supporters would be disappointed to see the management team go unpunished.
“I know people want punishment and that people then should be sacked for that,” Key said. “That doesn't mean we don't feel like we've gone through some serious pain: Brendon, myself, Ben. It's been as tough a time as I think I've had.”
