Barrister Varun Ghosh became the first-ever India-born member of Australian parliament to take oath on Bhagavad Gita. Ghosh from Western Australia has been appointed as the newest senator after the legislative assembly and the legislative council chose him to represent the Australian state in Senate. “Fantastic to have you on the team,” PM Anthony Albanese posted on X. Ghosh, a lawyer from Perth, previously worked as a finance attorney in New York and as a consultant for the World Bank in Washington, DC. He returned to Australia in 2015. His political stint began when he joined Labor Partyat the age of 17.
Truck driver charged with drug trafficking
An Indian truck driver from Canada has been charged with “intent to distribute controlled substances” after he was caught attempting to bring an estimated Canadian dollars 8.7 million worth of cocaine into the US, according to a media report. Gagandeep Singh was caught by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers after a border canine found the suspected cocaine at a Windsor-Detroit border crossing. The discovery was made on February 5 at an outbound customs inspection at the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit, according to court documents obtained by CTV News.
Miss Japan renounces title over affair
The Ukrainian-born winner of this year’s Miss Japan beauty pageant and the contest’s organisers say she has renounced her title after a magazine published an article about her affair with a married man. Karolina Shiino was crowned Miss Japan on Jan 22, setting off renewed public debate over what it means to be Japanese in a country where homogeneity and conformity are still valued. A weekly reported last week that Shiino had been in a relationship with a doctor who is married. After admitting about the relationship, she apologized and said she was in a state of shock and fear over the report and panicked. The office of the Miss Japan organizers said Shiino's renunciation of the title was accepted and the slot for the 2024 winner would remain empty.
Top post for Indian origin in Australia
Indian-origin employment lawyer Giridharan Sivaraman has been appointed Race Discrimination Commissioner by the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC). Sivaraman is currently the Chair of Multicultural Australia, and a Principal Lawyer at Maurice Blackburn where he is head of the firm’s Queensland Employment Law department. According to the AHRC, he has run numerous state and national race discrimination cases and led the pro bono compensation scheme for underpaid 7-eleven workers, many of whom came from migrant backgrounds. In addition, he provides advice and legal representation in all areas of employment law.
54 buried alive in Philippines landslide
The death toll from a massive landslide that hit a gold-mining village in the southern Philippines has risen to 54 with 63 people still missing, authorities said. The landslide hit the mountain village of Masara in Davao de Oro province after weeks of torrential rains. Davao de Oro’s provincial government said that 54 bodies had been recovered. At least 32 residents survived but 63 remained missing, it said. Among those missing were gold miners who had been waiting in two buses to be driven home when the landslide struck and buried them. The search operation has been hampered by poor weather and fears of more landslides.
Care home worker arrested for assault
A 32-year-old Indian-origin personal support worker (PSW) has been arrested for allegedly assaulting an 89-year-old male resident at a care home in Vaughan, Canada. Suman Soni, has been charged with two counts of assault that occurred on January 29 and February 2, 2024, stated the York Regional Police. After investigation, police learnt an 89-year-old male resident was assaulted by a PSW on two occasions, stated in a police press release. The Canadian Police believe that there are more victims.
Kamath’s death ruled suicide
The death of 23-year-old Purdue University student Sameer Kamath in Indiana has been ruled a suicide, a release from the US county coroner’s office said. Sameer Kamath, whose body was found at Crow’s Grove Nature Preserve in Williamsport, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, Warren County Coroner Justin Brummett said, citing preliminary autopsy reports. A forensic pathologist’s autopsy was performed on Kamath’s body on February 6. “Thorough extensive investigation by the Warren County Coroner’s Office in conjunction with multiple other local and federal agencies, we are now able to release a preliminary cause and manner of death,” the release said.
Ukraine gets new military chief
President Volodymyr Zelensky replaced Ukraine’s popular army chief with his ground forces commander, a huge gamble at a time when Russian forces are gaining the upper hand nearly two years into their war. The shakeup ushering in a new military leadership follows months of speculation about a rift between Zelensky and army chief General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, who many Ukrainians see as a national hero. “As of today, a new management team takes over the leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” Zelensky said. He named Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi as the new head of the Armed Forces.
Meta removes Insta & FB a/cs of Khamenei
Meta has removed Instagram and Facebook accounts run on behalf of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after criticism over his support for Hamas after its Oct 7 attack on Israel that sparked the months-long war still raging in the Gaza Strip. Meta, offered no specifics about its reasoning. However, it said it removed the accounts “for repeatedly violating our Dangerous Organisations and Individuals policy”. “We do not allow organisations or individuals that proclaim a violent mission,” the policy states. That includes those designated as terrorists by US government.
Houthis say 17 fighters killed in US attacks
A total of 17 Houthi fighters were killed in US strikes, the Iran-backed Yemeni rebel group said through its official media, following public funerals in the capital Sanaa. “The bodies of a number of martyrs of the nation and the armed and security forces who were martyred as a result of the bombing of the American-British aggression were carried through Sanaa in a solemn funeral procession,” Houthi official media said, listing their names. The US confirmed that its military had conducted a number of strikes against missile launchers as Houthi fighters prepared to launch them against commercial shipping and US warships. The Iran-backed rebels, who control much of war torn Yemen including the port of Hodeida, have been targeting shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden in a campaign they say is in support of Palestinians in Gaza.