Bachchan KBC case

Allahabad, Jan. 28 (PTI): Allahabad High Court today dismissed a petition accusing Amitabh Bachchan of making a “derogatory” remark “with malicious intent” about the Quran in a September 2011 episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati.

The petition, filed by a Jhansi resident, contended that Bachchan’s using “racha gaya” (composed) in context of the Quran was “a serious offence” as the holy book was “neither written nor created by anybody, rather it… (was) revealed by Allah Himself”.

But the court said: “To say ‘racha gaya’ does not necessarily imply that the Quran was written by some person. The phrase can also imply that the Holy Book was composed by Allah Himself, which is another way of saying that it is a revealed scripture.”

Fish crunch

Panaji (PTI): Goa is facing fish shortage as a strike by fishing trawler owners to protest diesel price hike entered the third day on Monday. Over 1,200 trawlers are anchored since Saturday. Fish markets, too, will be closed on Tuesday, All Goa Fishermen’s Federation president John Mendes said.

Rat in dinner

Banda (PTI): Nine students of a government residential school in a village in Uttar Pradesh’s Banda fell ill after a dead rat was allegedly found in the dinner served to them on Sunday. The children are better now, doctors said.

Chickenpox

Salem (PTI): A chickenpox outbreak among some nurses at a government hospital in Salem has prompted authorities to send about 500 of them on a week’s leave. The dean of the hospital said they would manage the situation with available staff.

Liquor term

Dubai (PTI): A Saudi Arabian court has sentenced two Indians to one year in prison each and flogging for illegally manufacturing and selling liquor in the country, where alcohol is strictly prohibited. The court has also ordered the duo to be deported after serving their sentence.

Dad bites kid’s nose

Bikaner, Jan. 28 (PTI): A 36-year old man allegedly bit his 5-month old daughter’s nose, lip and cheek in a fit of rage last week, police said.

Bahadur Singh was drunk when he had a spat with his wife. He first beat up his 3-year-old daughter and then bit his younger daughter. Neighbours rescued the baby and took her to a hospital. Medical experts have suggested plastic surgery for the baby’s face.

Duronto pass

New Delhi (PTI): The Indian Railways has decided to allow freedom fighters with complimentary passes to travel in Duronto trains with their companions. Lifetime passes are issued to freedom fighters receiving pension from the government for free travel in trains. These passes were not valid in Duronto trains launched in 2010.

Rhino killed

Kaziranga (PTI): Poachers killed a rhino and removed its horns in Kaziranga National Park on Monday, officials said. Forest guards heard gunshots near a camp in the Burapahar range of the park after midnight and found a dead male rhino with its horns removed. One person has been arrested.

Ayodhya land

New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday said status quo ordered on 67 acres adjacent to the disputed Ayodhya site should not be disturbed during excavation activity in the vicinity. “We are hopeful that this status quo will continue,” the bench said.

Runner wish

Fatehgarh Sahib (PTI): Centenarian marathon runner Fauja Singh, who was honoured at a school in Punjab, wishes he could run with the Prime Minister. Fauja, also called the “Turbaned Tornado” said: “I may be an illiterate ...but now I have a book written on me. Is it not great?”

Pak cemetery

Islamabad (PTI): Hindus in Rawalpindi have requested authorities to provide land for a cemetery as existing burial sites are filled to capacity, a report has said. The low-caste leaders, who bury their dead, claimed the allotted sites were unsafe as they were close to a Pakistan air force base.