Harmanpreet only Indian player to get picked in WBBL overseas draft
Melbourne (PTI): Women's team captain Harmanpreet Kaur was the only Indian player to get picked in the WBBL overseas draft, being retained by Melbourne Renegades here on Sunday.
A total of 18 Indian players, including Yastika Bhatia, Jemimah Rodrigues and Deepti Sharma, among other figured in the inaugural Women's Big Bash League overseas draft but just one -- Harmanpreet -- got picked.
Placed in the platinum category, Harmanpreet was retained by the Renegades along with Hayley Matthews of the West Indies.
Harmanpreet performed remarkably for the Renegades during the 2021-22 season, scoring 406 runs in 12 innings at an average of 58.00 and a strike rate of 130.96, including three half-centuries and a top score of 81 not out.
She was also effective with the ball, taking 15 wickets at an economy of 7.45, with best figures of 3 for 22.
Harmanpreet had made her WBBL debut with Sydney Thunder in 2016-17.
Speaking on Harmanpreet's retention, Renegades head coach Simon Helmot stated, "I'm so pleased we got both of them (Harmanpreet and Hayley) and I'm looking forward to them working with us again this year.
"It was a tough decision -- do we go Harmanpreet at pick three, or do we go Hayley? Fortunately, it worked out for us that Harmanpreet was still available in the second round, so we could still get her as a Platinum pick."
Harmanpreet's long list of domestic franchise T20 teams include Lancashire Thunder, Supernovas, Manchester Originals and Trent Rockets (The Hundred) and Mumbai Indians (Women's Premier League).
The WBBL overseas draft also included Indian players such as Harleen Deol, Hurley Gala, Richa Ghosh, Mannat Kashyap, Amanjot Kaur, Veda Krishnamurthy, Shikha Pandey, Shreyanka Patil, Sneh Rana, Meghana Sabbineni, Meghna Singh, Renuka Thakur, Pooja Vastrakar and Radha Yadav.
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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.
