Bhavinaben Patel enters quarterfinals of Paralympics TT, becomes first player to do so
Tokyo, Aug 27: Bhavinaben Patel on Friday became the first Indian table tennis player to enter the Paralympic quarterfinals with a dominating win over Joyce de Oliveira of Brazil in the women's singles Class 4 event at the Tokyo Games here.
The 34-year-old Indian beat her Brazillian opponent 12-10 13-11, 11-6 in a Round of 16 contest that lasted 23 minutes.
She will meet Borislava Peric Rankovic of Serbia in the quarterfinals later in the day.
Athletes in Class 4 category have fair sitting balance and fully functional arms and hands. Their impairment may be due to a lower spinal-cord lesion or cerebral palsy.
"My strategy was to play more towards the body of my opponent and that was what my coach told me. I executed my plans," Patel said after the match.
"My next opponent is world number two, so I have to really focus on my game and hope to win the match."
Earlier, the Indian had entered the Round of 16 after winning one match and losing the other group game.
She is the only Indian left in the fray in the table tennis competition after compatriot Sonalben Manubhai Patel lost both her group matches on Thursday to bow out.
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Allahabad HC orders probe into 'reinstatement' of teacher in UP's Barabanki
Lucknow (PTI): The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Friday ordered a probe by the special task force (STF) into alleged irregularities in the rejoining of a teacher at City Intermediate College in Barabanki, observing that the reinstatement appeared to be prima facie illegal.
The court also directed the recovery of the salary paid to the teacher during the disputed period.
A bench of Justice Rajeev Singh passed the order on a petition filed by the college management committee. The court expressed doubts over the roles of the District Inspector of Schools (DIOS), Barabanki, the college principal and the teacher concerned and hence, directed a detailed inquiry into the matter.
Taking note of alleged manipulation of records and misleading submissions, the court ordered the immediate transfer of the Barabanki DIOS to ensure a fair probe. It also directed the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against the then joint director of education of the Ayodhya division.
In its order, the court found that the teacher, Abhay Kumar, was initially appointed as an assistant teacher in 2018 but joined an Eklavya Model Residential School in Chhattisgarh as a lecturer in June 2024 without obtaining permission from the management. His subsequent request to retain the lien was rejected.
Despite this, he was allowed to rejoin the Barabanki College in September 2025 on the directions of the joint director of education and the DIOS, and was even paid the salary for October 2025. The court termed the rejoining "wholly illegal" and lacking any legal basis.
The bench also expressed concern over lapses in communication within the education department and directed the Uttar Pradesh chief secretary to ensure that official orders are communicated through email and WhatsApp as well, to prevent disputes.
The matter is next listed for hearing on May 28 when a compliance report is sought.
