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Times Top News

Canada PM Calls Snap Election Amid Trade War, Trump's Annexation Threats

by | Mar 23, 2025 | top-stories




Ottawa, Canada:

Canada’s new Prime Minister, Mark Carney, who took over after Justin Trudeau’s ouster, has called for snap election in the country on April 28. The ruling Liberal Party of Canada will be up against the main opposition party – the Conservative Party of Canada.

Prime Minister Carney said he has called for a snap election in order to ensure that his country gets a government with a stronger mandate than the Liberal Party currently has. This is important keeping in mind the trade war with neighbouring United States and President Trump’s repeated threat to annexe Canada to make it the 51st state of the US – which Canadians outrightly reject.

“I’ve just requested that the Governor General to dissolve parliament and call an election for April 28. She has agreed,” Prime Minister Carney said, referring to King Charles III’s representative in Canada, a member of the British Commonwealth.

During the sudden announcement, the prime minister said that Donald Trump “wants to break us, so America can own us. We (Canada) will not let that happen.” Claiming that the threat is serious, he said that to take bold decisions, his country must aim to provide a stronger mandate.

It has been just over one week that Mr Carney’s predecessor, Justin Trudeau, stepped down due to mounting pressure from within his party as well as Canada’s opposition, led by Pierre Poilievre. Mr Carney and an entirely new cabinet were sworn in on March 14.

Canada was origina;;y scheduled to go to polls in October this year.

The Liberal Party, which has been in power for a decade, had slid into deep unpopularity over Justin Trudeau’s leadership. Prime Minister Carney, who replaced Trudeau as prime minister and party leader, will now hope to capitalise on the wave of patriotism across the nation due to Trump’s takeover threats.

President Trump who had repeated called Canada the “51st state” and former PM Trudeau as “Governor” has already imposed heavy tariffs, which experts say, could have a vastly damaging impact on Canada’s economy.

Suddenly, issues such as cost of living, inflation, and immigration no longer are the biggest polling agendas – Trump, tariffs, and saving the nation are.

Donald Trump has said clearly that “I don’t care who wins up there,” he will go ahead with the plans he has.

On April 28, Canadians will elect 343 members of parliament to the House of Commons, an increase of five compared to the 2021 vote, reflecting the country’s growing population. Seats are won based on the first-past-the-post system.

Several parties can run candidates in an electoral district, also known as a ‘riding’. The candidate with the most votes wins, regardless of whether they secured an absolute majority of votes.

If a party wins 172 seats, they secure a majority government. If no individual party wins a majority, the party with the most seats is typically given the chance to form a government, which requires having “the confidence of the house.”

(Inputs from AFP)
 




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See Delhi High Court Chief Justice's Full Report, Documents On Judge Cash Row

by | Mar 22, 2025 | top-stories


Justice Yashwant Varma faces allegations that a huge pile of cash was found at his house


New Delhi:

Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna formed a three-member committee comprising high court judges to conduct an inquiry into allegations against Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma over alleged recovery of a cash stash on the premises of his official residence.

The Supreme Court on its website also uploaded documents into the matter including a report by the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, videos and photos, and Justice Varma’s response to the allegation.

See the full report below:

The Chief Justice of the High Court of Delhi, Devendra Upadhyaya, has been asked not to assign any judicial work to Justice Varma for the time being.




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“Nazi Salute S**t Was Insane”: Musk's Daughter On His Controversial Gesture

by | Mar 22, 2025 | top-stories



Elon Musk’s controversial gesture at US President Donald Trump’s inauguration earlier this year was “definitely a Nazi salute”, his estranged daughter Vivian Jenna Wilson has said. Speaking with Teen Vogue, the 20-year-old said the moment was “insane”.

“The Nazi salute s**t was insane. Honey, we’re going to call a fig a fig, and we’re going to call a Nazi salute what it was. That s**t was definitely a Nazi salute. The crowd is equally to blame, and I feel like people are not talking about that. That crowd should be denounced,” Ms Wilson told the magazine.

Asked if being vocal about her political views online, especially about her father, took a lot of space in her day-to-day life, she said, “No, it doesn’t. It really doesn’t.” 

Ms Wilson is not concerned about the Tesla CEO but she feels “annoyed” whenever people associate her with Musk.

Ms Wilson, who came out as transgender in 2020, had in 2022 filed a plea to get her name legally changed, for she did not want to be related to her biological father in “any way, shape or form.”

Nearly two years after she filed the petition, Musk talked about her in an interview with Jordan Peterson, asserting  his daughter was “killed by the woke mind virus.” 

Ms Wilson said she was not left with “any room to care anymore.” She even called the Jordan Peterson interview the “most cathartic moment of my entire life by far.” 

“I had all this pent-up energy, I had wanted to speak out for so long after being (essentially) defamed in a book, after being doxxed,” she added.

A few weeks ago, Musk appeared on Joe Rogan’s podcast and addressed the controversy surrounding the alleged Nazi salute, which he performed in front of the Republican crowd. This led to many of his critics accusing him of being a fascist.

“I hope people realise I’m not a Nazi,” Musk said in his defence, noting the gesture he made was in a positive spirit. 




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In Balochistan, Families Not Allowed Into Morgues. Then Bodies Disappear

by | Mar 21, 2025 | top-stories




Quetta, Balochistan:

Amid a spike in abductions and enforced disappearances of Baloch nationals, morgues have been kept out of bounds for local residents who live in fear and uncertainty of their loved ones who are missing.

As bodies lined up over the past week, locals were demanding security agencies to allow them to visit morgues to identify if their missing family members were among those dead. But that was reportedly denied by the Pakistani establishment.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee, a human rights organisation, has been protesting the gross violation of human rights by Pakistan’s military in the war-ravaged region. But they too are facing a crackdown.

After days of protest over “enforced disappearances” of Balochis and for not being allowed to visit morgues as bodies piled up, protesters and local residents reportedly barged into the Civil Hospital in Balochistan’s capital city Quetta. As per local reports, several corpses were taken away by them.

It is not yet known, if these bodies were taken away after identification or not.

The Pakistan Army says the bodies at the morgue were of members of the militant organisation Baloch Liberation Army, which has been carrying out an armed rebellion against Pakistan for its “illegal occupation” of Balochistan.

The BLA had taken an entire train – Jaffar Express – hostage earlier this month, before reportedly releasing women, children, and Baloch passengers, keeping mostly personnel of the Pakistani security forces hostage. Pakistan’s Army had launched a military offensive against them.

To get back the corpses, Pakistan’s security agencies launched a search operation. Raids have been carried out in Sariab Road and Secretariat Chowk areas in Quetta. Three bodies have reportedly been recovered and several people have been arrested.

“Corpses that were taken away were the unidentified bodies of militants who were killed in the military operation following the attack on the Jaffar Express,” said a government official.

Activists of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee also confirmed the incident, saying some of the protesters, which included family members of missing persons, had taken away a number of bodies. “We had been trying to gain access to the morgue for two days to satisfy the missing persons’ family members that the bodies kept there were not of their loved ones,” said a BYC member.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee, led by rights activist Mahrang Baloch, is now under Pak spy agency ISI’s scanner.
 




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National Anthem Plays, Nitish Kumar Talks, Laughs, Fidgets At Sports Meet

by | Mar 20, 2025 | top-stories




Patna:

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar came under opposition attack again after he was caught on camera laughing and talking during the national anthem at a sports event in Patna today. His former deputy Tejashwi Yadav, who has pulled no punches after the Chief Minister ditched his Rashtriya Janata Dal twice, accused him of insulting the state and the nation.

At the  inauguration of the Sepaktakraw World Cup in Patna’s Pataliputra Sports Complex today, Nitish Kumar was caught on camera laughing and talking to IAS officer and Chief Minister’s Principal Secretary Deepak Kumar, who stood ramrod straight next to him on the dais. 

He was seen tapping the officer on his shoulder and trying to get his attention. At one point, all smiles, he folded his palms in a namaskar at someone in the audience.

Deepak Kumar was seen pulling at the Chief Minister’s sleeves to get him to stay still. 

Earlier, Mr Kumar had walked off the dais when the national anthem was announced and went to shale hands with the participants. 

As the video of the anthem went viral, the opposition lost no time to flood social media with criticism. 

“At least please do not insult the national anthem, Hon’ble Chief Minister. You insult youth, students, women and elderly people every day. Sometimes you clap on Mahatma Gandhi’s martyrdom day and mock his martyrdom, and sometimes you clap on the national anthem!” read a post by Mr Yadav on X, formerly Twitter. 

“PS: Let me remind you that you are the Chief Minister of a big state. You are not mentally and physically stable even for a few seconds and your being in this position in such an unconscious state is a matter of great concern for the state. Do not insult Bihar like this again and again,” he added.

Mr Yadav’s father Lalu Yadav also posted the video on X. The caption read, “India will not tolerate insult to the national anthem. People of Bihar, is there anything left now?”

Mr Kumar and his party are yet to respond on the matter. Sources in Mr Kumar’s Janata Dal United indicated that to avert a possible row in the state assembly over this, the Chief Minister can tender an unconditional apology tomorrow.

Union minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, Nitish Kumar’s ally in the NDA, has hit back.

“People who are insulting the country including Bihar are raising questions on the Honorable Chief Minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar,” read his post on X. 

“I would like to tell such people that Lalu Ji and Company had made the name of our state “Bihar” an abuse but it is Nitish Kumar Ji who gave respect to Bihar on the international platform. On one hand, people of Bihar shudder at the memory of Laluji’s rule, on the other hand, Nitish Kumar was Bihar’s favourite yesterday, is so today and will remain so in the future too. Nitish Kumar is the honour of Bihar,” he added.

This is not the first faux pas by the Chief Minister on a solemn occasion. On January 30 this year, he was caught clapping after paying floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi on his death anniversary.
 






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“Regret Moving Out Of Noida”: Corporate Worker Lists Issues With Bengaluru

by | Mar 20, 2025 | top-stories


The water quality is poor, and there’s “less private space per individual,” they added. The noticeable divide between North and South Indians “can be seen every day.”

They found Bengaluru’s high population density overwhelming compared to the wider, more open spaces in Noida. “I really regret moving out of Noida,” they said.

The post ends with a word of caution for others considering a similar move: “Give yourselves some time and think” is it worth moving.”

The worker also firmly believed that Noida was the “best Tier-1 city to work in,” despite its pollution.

Posts from the noida
community on Reddit

The Reddit post has sparked debate among users.

One user said that they moved from Bengaluru to Noida to be closer to their parents and believed it was the best decision. “I think the only thing I miss are my friends in Bengaluru. Else, I feel moving to Noida was the best decision I took. Saved a lot of money and stress. People say Noida is unsafe but I feel much safer in Noida as compared to Bengaluru,” wrote the user.

Another user shared their struggles with feeling unwelcome in Bengaluru due to regional biases. “Racist remarks made it very tough for me to feel accepted within my own country. It felt like a constant reminder of how I’m from the ‘inferior’ cow belt part of the country and felt people looked down on me. I only speak English, so I’m sure it’s not a language problem. It felt like I could buy a house in Bengaluru but I could never call it home,” commented the user.

Describing Bengaluru as the “most unplanned city” in this country, one user said, “There is nothing that works right there, roads, flyovers, metros all in a chaotic loop. Obviously, the only upside of living in Bengaluru is the weather.”

There was also a comment from a local resident, who agreed with the city’s infrastructure struggles, attributing them to rapid but unplanned growth. “As a Bangalorean, agree with your decision to leave. It’s a smaller city and yes rapidly developing hence unplanned, sorry you felt discriminated.” The user also added that it’s just a few people whose actions tarnish the reputation of the entire community.

Overall, the worker’s experience highlights the importance of considering a number of factors before relocating for a job. While many cities have great career opportunities, they may not suit everyone’s preferences, reinforcing the need to weigh salary hikes against quality of life.




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