Raja Jon Vurputoor Chari, an Indian-American with family roots in Hyderabad, is one among 11 NASA graduates who have completed the initial astronaut candidate training and have been shortlisted for mission assignment. To become an astronaut was 42-year-old Raja Chari’s childhood dream. Chari’s father, Srinivas Chari, moved to Wisconsin in the 1970s for further education, during which he met his future wife Peggy Egbert, an American nurse at the university. They both got married in 1976. Having been born and brought up in the US, Raja did not forget his roots and describes his travels to Hyderabad as a kind of a pilgrimage. Raja did his engineering from the Air Force Academy and went to MIT for a master’s in aeronautics.
Sikh Uber driver in US racially abused, strangulated
A Sikh Uber driver in the US was racially abused and strangulated by a passenger, a media report said. The incident took place in the coastal city of Bellingham, Washington, on December 5 when the Sikh driver picked Grifin Levi Sayers. The police arrested and booked 22-year-old Sayers on suspicion of second-degree assault and a failure-to-appear warrant for fourth-degree assault. According to police records, he was released on $13,000 bail the next day. The driver told the police that Sayers took the cab to make some purchases and then returned to the pick-up location. It was at this point that the passenger became abusive and grabbed the driver by his throat and squeezed it violently. He also made racial comments about the driver’s ethnicity. The driver somehow managed to get out of the cab and made a 911 call. When the police arrived, they were able to locate Sayers nearby and arrested him. Hate crimes against Sikhs in the US have always been on the radar for civil rights and minority groups.
Actor Martin Sheen recites Tagore at climate protest
Hollywood veteran Martin Sheen recited Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s famous poem “Where the Mind Is Without Fear”while participating in a climate change protest in Washington. Sheen was part of ‘Fire Drill Fridays’ the weekly protests against climate change, started by veteran actor Jane Fonda. Lauding Fonda for the campaign, Sheen said, “Clearly, the world will be saved by women. Thank God they outnumber us men.” In the video of his speech, the actor then referred to the verse from Tagore’s collection of poems, “Gitanjali”.
Pak passes bill to meet FATF requirements
Pakistan Parliament has passed a bill for the exchange of information and criminals with countries to meet a key requirement of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which has placed the country on the Grey List for an extended period till next month. The FATF had warned that Islamabad would be put on the Black List if it did not comply with the remaining 22 points in a list of 27 questions. Under the Mutual Legal Assistance (Criminal Matter) Bill 2019, the government would be able to make mutual legal assistance request to a country to “inquire about the location and identification of witnesses, suspects... and offenders” and may transfer the person in custody of Pakistan.
Pak Senate OKs bill to extend Bajwa’s tenure
Pakistan’s Senate has cleared the three bills concerning the tenure of the three services chiefs of the armed forces - the chief of army staff, the chief of air staff and the chief of naval staff - and the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff committee, a day after the National Assembly passed them. Senate is the upper house of Pakistan’s parliament. With this, parliament has now fixed the tenure of the three services chiefs and that of the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff committee at three years each on appointment, which may be extended by the government up to a period of three years. The upper age limit for all the four has been set at 64. The opposition-dominated Senate passed the bills in no time with the support of two main opposition parties - Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). The bills now require formal assent of the president. The bills were approved by the Senate’s standing committee earlier.
15 killed, 20 hurt in Quetta mosque blast
At least 15 people were killed and 20 others injured following a powerful blast inside a mosque in Quetta, Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province. The nature of the explosion, which occurred inside the mosque in Ghousabad neighbourhood, was not immediately known, reports said. DSP Amanullah was among the 15 people killed in the incident, Quetta DIG Abdul Razzaq Cheema said. Law enforcement agencies have cordoned off the area. An emergency has been declared at all hospitals in the area. TV footage showed debris and shattered glass spread on the floor of the mosque. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the blast. Pakistan military’s media wing ISPR said that troops of the Frontier Corp Balochistan have reached the site and were carrying out joint search operation with the police.
Lanka PM to visit India next month
Sri Lankan prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa will visit India next month, following an invitation from Indian counterpart Narendra Modi. During his two-day official visit, the premier will be accompanied by a limited number of delegates in keeping with his and President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s policy of undertaking foreign tours to that effect. The premier will visit New Delhi to hold cordial discussions with his Indian counterpart over a wide range of issues and later depart to Varanasi and Tirupati. Sources said President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had extended an invitation to Prime Minister Modi when the former undertook an official visit to New Delhi last November. Premier Rajapaksa is expected to extend this invitation.
Bangladesh arrests top Sufi singer
A top Bangladeshi Sufi folk singer was arrested under a controversial internet law that critics say is used to stifle free speech after alleged anti-Islam comments triggered protests. Shariat Sarker, 40, was detained in Mirzapur, police chief Saidur Rahman said. A cleric filed a case against Sarker over comments made at a show in December, and he was arrested under the Digital Security Act for “hurting the religious sentiment of Muslims.” Sarker could face up to 10 years in prison if found guilty.
Stampede kills 56 at funeral
A stampede broke out at a funeral for Major General Qassim Suleimani killed in a US airstrike, and at least 56 people were killed and more than 200 were injured as thousands thronged the procession, Iranian news reports said. The stampede took place in Kerman, Suleimani’s hometown, as the procession began, said the semi-official Fars and ISNA news agencies, citing Pirhossein Koulivand, head of Iran’s emergency medical services.
Arrest warrant against Nissan ex-chair’s wife
Tokyo prosecutors issued an arrest warrant against the wife of Nissan’s former chairman, Carlos Ghosn, on suspicion of perjury, adding to the couple’s legal troubles in Japan. The move against Carole Ghosn, who is not in Japan, followed her husband’s flight to Lebanon last week while he was out on bail awaiting trial for alleged financial misconduct. Details on the allegations against Carole Ghosn were not immediately available. Japanese officials have said anyone caught helping a fugitive escape will face legal consequences. Carole Ghosn was banned from meeting with her husband while he was out on bail because she was seen as someone who might help his escape.
Child found dead in undercarriage of plane
A child aged around 10 was found dead at a Paris airport in the undercarriage of a plane that had come from the Ivory Coast city of Abidjan, a source close to the inquiry said. The Air France Boeing 777 had taken off from Abidjan and landed at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport. Air France said a “clandestine passenger” had died, without giving the age of the person. “This shows a major failing of security at Abidjan airport,” an Ivorian source said.
Warne's cap auction raises $1 mn for bush fire victims
Australian cricketer Shane Warne's baggy green cap has made more than 1 million Australian dollars ($685,000) at auction to aid those affected by wild fires across the country. When bidding closed, the famous cap that is given to each Australian test cricketer on their debut was sold for $1,007,500. Australia's Commonwealth Bank was later revealed as the buyer. It plans to take the cap on a national tour to raise additional funds for fire-ravaged communities before it becomes a permanent exhibit at the Bradman Museum. Proceeds will go to the Australian Red Cross bush fire appeal.
Oscars to go without a host for second year in a row
The 2020 Oscars ceremony in February will again have no host, the head of ABC Television Entertainment said. “Let me confirm it now. Together with the Academy (of Motion Pictures), we have decided there will be no traditional host again this year,” Karey Burke, president of ABC Entertainment, said. The 2019 Oscars was the first in 30 years to have no host and saw the audience on broadcaster ABC rise to 29.6 million Americans, breaking a four-year trend of falling viewership for the live ceremony.
Teen survives 30 hours alone in snowy mountains
A California teenager who survived nearly 30 hours alone in the snowy Utah mountains said he kept himself awake with phone alarms, built a snow cave for shelter and held a beaded bracelet that had been gifted to him to keep his hopes up. Nicolas Stacy-Alcantara, 17, was visiting Utah to see an ex-girlfriend and decided to go for a day-long hike in relatively mild weather last week, he said. The teen was flown out of the canyon by helicopter to University of Utah Hospital, where he has been treated for frostbite on his feet.
Spoon-bending celeb applies for Downing Street job
Spoon-bending celebrity psychic Uri Geller, 73, has applied for a job in the British government in response to an advert for “misfits” and “weirdos”, saying no other candidate would possess his powers. British PM Boris Johnson’s most senior adviser, Dominic Cummings, advertised government jobs for “assorted weirdos” in a recent blog post, complaining that the civil service did not have enough genuine cognitive diversity. In a cover letter beginning “Dear Dom”, Geller said his career as an entertainer has been the “perfect mask” for his work in espionage.
Theron, Hayek named as possible HW witnesses
Actresses Salma Hayek, Rosie Perez and Charlize Theron were among the people that a judge said might be called as witnesses or mentioned in testimony during the rape trial of movie producer Harvey Weinstein. The actresses’ names appeared on lists of possible witnesses provided to the judge as jury selection started in State Supreme Court in Manhattan.
Musk does a ‘cringe’ dance on stage
Elon Musk celebrated the first deliveries of Chinese-made Model 3 electric Tesla cars by performing an unusual dance on stage in front of government officials and employees in Shanghai. A clip of the dance, which includes a Walk Like an Egyptian move, was shared by the 48-year-old on Twitter with the caption: “At Tesla Giga Shanghai NSFW!!” Online reaction to the impromptu dance was mixed, ranging from “this is quite good”, to “cringe”.
German faces court for scratching hundreds of cars
A German man went on trial for allegedly inflicting damage worth €930,000 ($1 million) on 642 cars, but prosecutors say he may have damaged twice as many vehicles. The 26-year-old is believed to have been behind a spate of attacks on cars between February and April 2018, a spokesman for a state court said.
Cyprus gives Briton suspended jail term
A British teenager accused of faking a gang-rape allegation was given a suspended sentence by a court in Cyprus in a case which has prompted a rare rebuke from Britain and protests from activists. The 19-year-old has said she was coerced into withdrawing her complaint that she was raped in July by a group of Israeli youths in Ayia Napa, a holiday resort. She was convicted on December 30 of public mischief after the court found she had filed a fake report about being sexually assaulted. The woman was sentenced to four months in jail, suspended for three years.
Man wakes up to find burglar sucking his toes
Authorities in Florida are looking for a man suspected of breaking into another man’s home and sucking on his toes as he slept. The victim awoke on Christmas Eve to find the burglar at the foot of his bed. Police said the suspect told the man he was there “to suck toes” when he told him he didn’t have any money.