QWrap: ‘Kaala’ Dog Offered Crores; Haryana’s Diktat for Athletes

Video Editor: Sandeep Suman

1. Breaking Views: Pranab’s RSS HQ Visit Bigger News Than His Speech

Former President Pranab Mukherjee’s speech at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters in Nagpur on Thursday, 7 June, will go down as one of the most talked about speeches by a public figure in recent times.

Mukherjee chose to take a diplomatic stance and remained steadfast about his views on patriotism, nationalism and secularism.

My biggest takeaway from the episode was that Mukherjee’s visit to Nagpur still makes bigger news than the content of his speech. By inviting a veteran Congress man, the RSS wanted to send out a message. What is it? The Quint’s Sanjay Pugalia explains.

(Watch the full video here)

2. ‘Kaala’ Movie Review; Fans Offer Crores for Rajini’s Dog in the Film

Mani, the street dog that featured in Rajinikanth’s latest movie ‘Kaala’ is winning hearts all over. The movie released on 7 June but Mani garnered a strong fan base ever since the poster, featuring him, was released.

PA Ranjith selected Mani from 25-30 other dogs. He didn’t want a German Shepherd, a Lab or any other fancy breed,” said Simon, professional trainer.

Simon has even received an offer of a whopping Rs 2 crore for the ownership of Mani from people all over the world but he has refused to part with him.

(Watch the full video here)

Planning to watch Rajinikanth’s ‘Kaala’? Watch RJ Stutee’s review here.

3. No Credible Source to Modi’s Cong-Pak Collusion Remark: PMO on RTI

In the run-up to the Gujarat elections, PM Modi had accuse Mani Shankar Aiyar of plotting his death in collaboration with some bigwigs in Pakistan.

Congress worker Saket Gokhale had sought an RTI from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on 12 December 2017, regarding the allegation. Typically, a response should come within 30 days, but Gokhale finally heard from the PMO almost six months later, on Thursday. The response said : "While information sought does not form part of records held by this office, it may be noted that inputs received from multiple channels, including formal and informal, form the source of PM’s statements".

(Read the full story here)

4. Haryana Govt Holds Diktat on Athletes’ Income

The Haryana government has issued a diktat instructing athletes employed by the state to deposit a part of, or all of their income, to a state sports council, ANI reported on Friday, 8 June.

The notification that governs the participation of sportspersons in "professional sports or commercial endorsements" puts forward two conditions on income.

One, that "one-third of the income earned by the sportsperson from professional sports or commercial endorsements will be deposited with the Haryana State Sports Council (sic)".

And two, that sportspersons "treated on duty with the prior approval of the competent authority while taking part in professional sports or commercial endorsements, the full income earned by the sportsperson on this account will be deposited with the Haryana State Sports Council".

After backlash, CM Manohar Lal Khattar demanded relevant files from the sports department and put the order on hold till further notice.

(Read the full story here)

5. Without Water, India is Already Living in the Apocalyptic Future

Do you like watching movies that are about the apocalypse? You know, the ones where humans battle it out for their basic needs. Well, good tidings, you’re living in the future already. A future without water.

Cape Town in South Africa is not the only place that is going to run out of water soon. A few years from now, your own city may run dry. You can no longer take water for granted. With temperatures soaring across India, the country is becoming drier and we are staring at a severe water crisis.

According to a study by Asian Development Bank, India will face a 50 percent water deficit by the year 2030, and may very well deal with this crisis by importing water. That is, if other countries don’t run out of water themselves.

(Watch the full video here)