Pankaj Advani bags record 28th World Billiards title
New Delhi, Nov 9: Ace Indian cueist Pankaj Advani clinched a historic 28th world title, seventh in a row, defeating England’s Robert Hall 4-2 at the IBSF World Billiards Championship in Doha on Saturday.
Advani’s winning streak had begun in 2016 and has also survived two years (2020, 2021) of vacuum created by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Hall took an early lead in the opening frame, but the Indian rallied to reach the magic 150 first. He then delivered an astonishing unfinished 147 break in the second frame, leaving Hall stunned. The third frame was a masterclass in tactical brilliance from both finalists.
Advani emerged victorious in the cerebral duel, positioning himself just one frame away from making history.
However, Hall refused to bow out quietly, crafting a flawless 151 break in the fourth frame to keep his hopes alive.
The fifth frame saw Hall on fire once more, delivering another stunning 154 break to level the pressure on Advani.
But the Bengaluru man elevated his game in the sixth frame with a crucial century break. After a series of strategic safety exchanges, the Indian maestro crossed the finish line.
“It feels amazing to be on a winning streak of world billiards titles. It wasn’t easy though. The competition was tough.
“When I was not in full flow, it was my brother Shree, a sports psychologist, who came to the rescue. He helped me stay in the present and kept the scoreboard ticking. This win is for my country and family,” said Advani.
Score (Final): Pankaj Advani (India) beat Robert Hall (England): 151(71)-94(87), 151(147)-0, 150-84, 74(74)-151(151), 6-154(154), 152(105)-46.
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BharatPe fraud case: Delhi HC quashes lookout circular against Ashneer Grover, wife
New Delhi, Nov 12: The Delhi High Court has ordered cancellation of a lookout circular (LOC) issued against Ashneer Grover, the former MD of payment app BharatPe, and his wife Madhuri Jain Grover, noting that the FIR lodged against them over allegations of cheating and forgery has already been quashed.
Justice Sanjeev Narula passed the order on Monday after the court was informed that another bench of the high court quashed the FIR on the same day.
The FIR was quashed by Justice Chandra Dhari Singh after considering a plea moved by the Grovers stating that they have arrived at a settlement with the fintech company.
In his order, Justice Narula said, "Although the copy of the order (quashing the FIR) is not available as of now, the aforenoted fact is not disputed by the counsel for the parties.
"In light of the fact that the underlying FIR has been quashed, the LOC issued by respondent No. 3 (Bureau of Immigration), in the opinion of the court, will not survive."
The LOC was issued by the Bureau of Immigration at the instance of Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in view of the investigation against the Grovers in the cheating and forgery FIR.
The court was hearing a plea moved by Grover and his wife Madhuri Jain Grover seeking quashing of the LOC issued against them in connection with the investigation into the cheating and forgery case.
"Accordingly, the present petitions are disposed of with a direction to the respondents to cancel the LOC against the petitioners in their records," the court noted.
Earlier, the Grovers claimed that they were informed about the LOC for the first time when they were detained at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here on November 16, 2023, while they were scheduled to travel to the US.
After being detained, they were informed that the LOC was operational from November 6, 2023.
In May last year, the EOW filed an FIR against Grover, his wife Madhuri, and others under eight sections of the Indian Penal Code, including 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating and dishonesty), 467 and 468 (forgery), and 471 (using forged documents as genuine) for an alleged Rs 81 crore fraud after a complaint was lodged by BhartPe, the fintech unicorn.
In its complaint, BharatPe alleged that Grover and his family caused damages to the tune of Rs 81.3 crore through illegitimate payments to bogus human resource consultants, inflated and undue payments through pass-through vendors connected to the accused, sham transactions in input tax credit and payment of penalty to GST authorities, illegal payment to travel agencies, forged invoices by Madhuri, and destruction of evidence.
Madhuri was the head of controls at BharatPe before she was fired in 2022 after a forensic audit revealed several irregularities.
Subsequently, Grover resigned as the chief executive officer of the fintech firm in March 2022.
