Pulwama terror attack: Kohli postpones Indian Sports Honours
New Delhi : Star cricketer Virat Kohli has postponed the RP-SG Indian Sports Honours, which was to take place on Saturday, as a "mark of respect" to the CRPF personnel martyred in the Pulwama terrorist attack.
On Thursday, at least 40 CRPF paramilitary troopers were killed in a terror attack while several others are battling for their lives following what is being termed as the deadliest terrorist strike in three decades in Jammu and Kashmir.
Indian Sports Honours is an initiative of Virat Kohli Foundation and RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group.
"The RP-SG Indian Sports Honours has been postponed. At this heavy moment of loss that we all find ourselves in, we would like to cancel this event that was scheduled to take place tomorrow," Kohli wrote on his twitter handle Friday night.
The sporting fraternity, including Kohli, had joined the country in condemning the dastardly attack. The batting mainstay annually rewards excellence in sports and nurtures promising athletes through his foundation.
"The RP-SG Indian Sports Honours that was supposed to happen tomorrow night has been postponed by Virat as a mark of respect to the CRPF jawans who were martyred at Pulwama by a tragic terror attack," the foundation said in a statement.
"The who's who of entertainment and sports industry were supposed to be present for the award ceremony. Every partner and all the sportstars and delegates associated with this award have been informed and communicated with(,) stating that hosting an event was unacceptable at this moment when India is mourning the death of its jawans."
An explosive-laden SUV rammed into one of the buses in the CRPF convoy at Awantipora town in the Pulwama district.
Condolence messages have been pouring in for the family of the deceased CRPF soldiers since the news of the attack broke out.
The foundation, an organisation dedicated to assisting the underprivileged sections of society, provides scholarships to promising young athletes, as well as individuals and initiatives that have promoted sport at the grassroot level.
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Women BJP MLAs protest against opposition in UP assembly premises
Lucknow (PTI): Women BJP MLAs held a protest in the Vidhan Bhawan complex before the one-day special session of Uttar Pradesh assembly, slamming the opposition for defeating the passage of a bill, which would have led to implementation of the Women's Reservation Law, in the Lok Sabha.
This followed another demonstration by Samajwadi Party MLAs, who alleged that the BJP was misleading public in the name of women's reservation.
The women BJP legislators assembled in front of Chaudhary Charan Singh's statue in the assembly premises, holding banners inscribed with the slogan "Insult to Matrushakti (women's power), India will not tolerate it". The protesting members entered the main hall of Vidhan Bhawan carrying the banners.
Participating in the protest, the state Minister for Women Welfare and Child Development, Baby Rani Maurya, told reporters that all opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, had opposed the women's reservation, a stance for which they would have to pay a heavy political price.
"On this issue, all of us women stand united. We will ensure that we secure our reservation," she said.
BJP MLA Ketki Singh remarked that their protest represents the collective outrage of millions of women across the state.
Singh asserted that the opposition has betrayed women by creating hurdles in the path of women's reservation. The current demonstration is merely the beginning, and very soon, women from every street, intersection and household will join the protest movement, she said.
Minister Vijaylakshmi Gautam said, "We strongly condemn the despicable act committed by the Samajwadi Party and the Congress in an attempt to hold back 'half the population' (women). Their action was directed against the very bill that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had introduced to empower and strengthen Nari Shakti (women's power), and which he strived to pass expeditiously."
Uttar Pradesh assembly is holding a one-day special session on Thursday. During the session, the government is set to move a censure motion against the opposition parties over their failure to pass the Constitution Amendment Bill, which would have led to implementation of the Women's Reservation Act, in the Lok Sabha.
