The European Union’s Foreign Affairs chief on Thursday strongly reinforced the bloc’s continued commitment to the international Iran nuclear deal which was recently jeopardised by the US President’s threat to withdraw his country’s participation.

Federica Mogherini was speaking alongside the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany and Britain following a Brussels meeting with their Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in which the diplomats broached the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, an accord that saw Tehran swap much of its nuclear program for a relaxation of the international sanctions that had been imposed previously, Efe reported.

“The European Union has expressed a very clear position on the nuclear deal as it was stated by the 28 European Union members states minister already in October last year and repeated again today: the deal is working,” Mogherini told a press conference.

“It is delivering on its main goal, which means keeping the Iranian nuclear programme in check and under close surveillance,” she added.

The deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, was signed by the US, China, Russia, France, Britain plus Germany and also the EU, ensures that Iran’s nuclear programme remained exclusively peaceful and its continued implementation was crucial to maintaining stability in the region, whilst also offering trade benefits and economic relief to the Iranian people, she said.

The head of foreign policy in Brussels highlighted that the International Atomic Energy Agency, an independent body that answers to the US, has published nine reports confirming that Iran was complying with the nuclear agreement.

However, President Trump has harshly criticized the nuclear deal with Iran, which was signed by his predecessor Barrack Obama in 2015 and was expected to announce a final decision on whether to withdraw Washington’s participation in the pact by mid-Jan.

France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian directly urged the US to stay on track with its commitment to the landmark deal.

“We see no particular reason to disengage in any way from this agreement, as Iran has been seen to respect all the provisions of this agreement,” he said, striking a chord with his German and British counterparts, Sigmar Gabriel and Boris Johnson.

A court on Thursday sent to police custody, till January 17, the three partner-owners of the 1Above pub who were nabbed after a 13-day chase on Wednesday, an official said.

The three are Kripesh Sanghavi, Jigar Sanghavi and Abhijit Mankar who also carried a reward of Rs 100,000 announced by Mumbai Police. They have been booked on various charges including for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

While the Sanghavi brothers were nabbed while on their way to meet a lawyer in a mall in Khar late on Wednesday night on Linking Road, Mankar was nabbed from a hotel in south Mumbai.

They were produced by N.M. Joshi Police before the Bhoiwada Magistrate Court which granted the police custody for a week.

This takes the total number of arrests in the December 29, 2017 pub fire that killed 14 and injured another 55, to six, including two managers of 1Above pub – Kevin Bawa and Lisbon Lopez, and a co-owner of The Mojo’s Bistro, Yug Pathak, son of a former DGP-rank IPS officer K.K. Pathak.

Another partner of Yug Pathak, Nagpur-based businessman Yug Tuli is still absconding and has sought anticipatory bail from a Mumbai court, which is pending disposal.

Besides the six arrests, three others, including hotelier Vishal Kariya, have been arrested for helping and shielding the absconding trio after the blaze in rooftop pubs, The Mojo’s Bistro, 1Above and other establishments in the sprawling Kamala Mills Compound in Lower Parel.

After Kariya’s interrogation on Wednesday, police secured valuable leads leading to the arrests of the 1Above owner-partners.

A probe by the Mumbai Fire Brigade has said that the fire first erupted in rooftop pub The Mojo’s Bistro, spread to the adjoining 1Above and other premises that fateful night.

So far, police have recorded the statements of around 70 witnesses, including the injured and survivors in the pub blaze, other guests and pub staffers.

Two arms dealers were arrested here while trying to sell off arms and ammunition to some unidentified miscreants, police said on Thursday.

M. Ilyas and Abdul Ali were caught on Wednesday night, police added.

The unknown miscreants fled the spot, sensing trouble.

A 7mm pistol loaded with 5 cartridges was recovered from Ilyas while an improvised single-shot firearm along with 2 cartridges was recovered from Abdul Ali.

The pair has been sent to police custody until January 18.

The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear on Friday two separate pleas seeking independent probe into the death of special CBI judge BH Loya, who was hearing the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, in the forenoon, took note of the submission seeking urgent hearing on the plea filed by Maharashtra-based journalist B R Lone for a probe into Loya’s death on December 1, 2014.

Later in the day, another plea filed by Congress leader Tehseen Poonawala on the same issue was mentioned by lawyer Varinder Kumar Sharma for urgent hearing before the bench, which agreed to hear it along with the earlier one.

Loya had died of cardiac arrest in Nagpur on December 1, 2014, when he had gone to attend the wedding of a colleague’s daughter.

The issue came under the spotlight in November last year after media reports quoting his sister fuelled suspicion about the circumstances surrounding his death and its link to the Sohrabuddin case.

Poonawala, in his plea, said the circumstances revolving around the death of the judge were “questionable, mysterious and contradicting”.

“It is the submission of the petitioner that the judges are bestowed with the duty to protect the Constitution and uphold the majesty of rule of law. The judiciary, if not protected, may be unable to fulfil its duty towards public at large. In cases where prima facie material is available to investigate, it is absolutely necessary to order an inquiry,” the Congress leader said.

The other plea filed by the journalist submitted that a fair probe was needed into the mysterious death of Loya, who was hearing the sensitive Sohrabuddin encounter case in which various police officers and BJP president Amit Shah were named as parties.

A PIL seeking probe into the judge’s death has also been filed before the Bombay High Court on January 8 by the Bombay Lawyers’ Association.

In the encounter case, the BJP President along with Rajasthan Home Minister Gulabchand Kataria, Rajasthan-based businessman Vimal Patni, former Gujarat police chief P C Pande, Additional Director General of Police Geeta Johri and Gujarat police officers Abhay Chudasama and N K Amin have already been discharged.

A total of 23 accused, including police personnel, are currently facing trial for their involvement in the alleged fake encounter of Sohrabuddin Shaikh, his wife Kausar Bi and their associate Tulsidas Prajapati in Gujarat in November 2005.

The case was later transferred to CBI and the trial shifted to Mumbai.

Pakistan has not done enough to eliminate safe havens for terrorists on its soil, new US Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster said on Thursday even as he described India as “a leading power in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond”.

“I don’t think we can have civilian security in Afghanistan and Pakistan if Pakistan does not contribute positively to that,” Juster said in response to a question after delivering his first policy address on “India-US Relations: Building a Durable Relationship for the 21st Century” organised by the US Embassy and the Carnegie India think tank.

He said the major reason behind the suspension of US security assistance to Pakistan “is because we feel they have not done all that they could to try and eliminate terror sanctuaries in Pakistan that are contributing to the unrest in Afghanistan”.

“We have made it clear we will not tolerate terrorism, cross-border terrorism or any form of terrorism or safe havens of any type.”

Juster said that the US works closely with India in various ways, including information sharing, that are related to terrorism beyond just what is happening in Afghanistan.

He also lauded India for its role in the reconstruction and development of Afghanistan and said both India and the US have a shared interest in the stability and security in Afghanistan and its long-term growth both and also to prevent it from being a haven for terrorist organisations.

Stating that both India and the US bring different capabilities to this process, he said: “We feel India has made a substantial investment in the economic development of Afghanistan, be it a hydroielctric plant, be it training in India of Afghan military personnel and students. And we would like to see India continue that economic development assistance.”

In his address, the Ambassador shared values and common interests inform the vision of both India and the US for the Indo-Pacific region, encompasses the world’s largest and fastest-growing economies and its most populous nations.

“As the U.S. National Security Strategy recognizes, India is a leading power in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond,” he stated. “For India and the United States, the Indo-Pacific is vital to the security and prosperity of our people as well as others.”

Juster said that both India and the US want to together ensure a free and open region, where the rule of law and democratic principles are reflected in a rules-based order; promote respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity; guarantee freedom of navigation, overflight, and commerce, and other lawful uses of the sea; ensure that territorial and maritime disputes are resolved peacefully, consistent with international law; promote economic connectivity through private sector-led growth, free and fair trade, the use of responsible debt-financing practices, and the transparent development of infrastructure; and together, want to preserve regional stability and security, prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and eliminate the scourge of terrorism.

“The US-India strategic partnership is designed to strengthen both countries and to have a beneficial impact on this region,” he emphasised.

Juster, an old India hand who played a key role in the India-US civil nuclear agreement, said that “it is now time to make sure that the strategic partnership is a durable partnership”.

“The longstanding commitment of the United States to a free, secure, and open Indo-Pacific has underpinned the stability and remarkable economic rise of this region — to the benefit of all of us,” he stateed.

“The United States will remain committed to this region — as we are to the rules-based international order — because our future is inextricably linked to it.

“We welcome India’s leadership with us in this venture — as partners bolstered by conviction and working with like-minded nations on a regional architecture to ensure that the Indo-Pacific — in the words of Secretary of State Tillerson — is increasingly a place of peace, stability, and growing prosperity, rather than one of disorder, conflict, and predatory economic policy.”

In his address, Juster also touched upon the five pillars that can provide the framework for durable partnership between New Delhi and Washington: defence and counter-terrorism; economic and commercial relations; energy and environment; science, technology and health; and regional cooperation.

Vacant posts in city government hospitals have become a new flashpoint between Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, with both blaming each other for the delay in making appointments.

On Thursday, Baijal told Kejriwal that he was surprised that the Chief Minister has raised questions regarding filling up of vacant posts with retired personnel as Kejriwal himself had chaired a meeting wherein the decision was taken.

Baijal was referring to a letter by Kejriwal earlier this week, in which the latter said that 2,169 posts were lying vacant in hospitals as there were not enough retired personnel available.

Kejriwal also said that the decision to fill the posts only with retired personnel was taken with Baijal’s approval and that the elected government was kept in the dark about the decision.

“I am surprised as to why the hiring was limited to retired people… I would also be grateful if necessary directions are issued to all officers to stop hiding files from the elected government,” Kejriwal wrote.

On Thursday, Baijal wrote back to the Chief Minister, expressing his surprise over his letter.

“The proposal for engagement of retired employees against existing vacancies was moved by the Health and Family Welfare Department in pursuance of directions of the Chief Minister, in the meeting convened under his chairmanship on August 8, 2017. The minutes of that meeting were also issued by the CM Office. Therefore, it is surprising that the Chief Minister has now raised questions regarding the filling up of vacant posts with retired personnel,” a statement from Baijal’s office said.

Baijal also said that the appointment of retired people was an interim measure whereas regular recruitment is the only sustainable solution.

In a tweet, Kejriwal also urged the Lt Governor to approve two schemes on doorstep delivery of services and quality healthcare for all, which have been submitted for Baijal’s reconsideration.

India pacer Jasprit Bumrah who made his Test debut in the series opener against South Africa at Cape Town, on Thursday said it’s good to face new challenges.

Bumrah said he is relishing the challenges posed by the wickets and the conditions which he was unfamiliar with before making it to the Test squad.

“It’s always challenging when you come to a new country. The wicket is different, weather is different. So it’s always good to face new challenges and when you play more and more you get to know the wickets and conditions,” Bumrah told reporters here.

India lost the first match by 72 runs and are trailing 0-1 in the three-match series but the right-arm pacer said the team is focussed on correcting the mistakes and prepare accordingly.

“We are not focussing on the result because when ever we look far ahead we drift away from the plan,” Bumrah said.

“We are taking each day at a time and take it forward from there. We are focusing on our preparations, as far as the wicket is concerned, I have not played over here but there is a lot of bounce in the wickets at the nets.

“We are looking to adapt to it and rectify the mistakes that we did in the first Test and go forward,” he added.

Reacting to many cricket experts suggesting that Bumrah could be the X-factor during the South Africa tour because of his bowling action, the Gujarat seamer said: “I dont think about these things. I just wanted to be here and it is always a dream to play Test with all these players.”

“Now I’ve played a Test and hopefully go and play more,” Bumrah added.

After a brief break due to FA Cup action, the Premier League is back to enthral us again and Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers are scrambling to get their teams in order before the deadline.

We are well and truly in the business end of the season and as the stakes get higher on the pitch for teams of the English top-flight, the same applies to the millions who partake in its virtual counterpart.

Don’t miss: Chelsea, Arsenal cancel each other out in 1st leg

A second wildcard is now available, but one must know on whom your hard-money must be spent and The Statesman is at hand with a concise article ahead of Gameweek 23.

Must read: Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino bids tearjerking farewell to Philippe Coutinho

The indicators are:

Teams in BOLD are top 4 contenders.

Prices (in £ million) marked in Green indicates a rise in Base Price.
Prices (in £ million) marked in Red indicates fall in Base Price.

Goalkeepers

Heurelho Gomes

Team: Watford
Fixtures: Southampton (H), Leicester (A), Stoke (A), Chelsea (H) and West Ham (A)
Price: 4.5
Score: 61
Ownership: 2.2%

Why yes: Against a Southampton side that have found goals hard to come by of late and are without the services of Charlie Austin (suspended), the Hornets should be able to register a shutout. Watford are due a clean-sheet and are playing a team that seem to be in free-fall at the moment. Overall fixtures look decent.

Why no: Marco Silva’s men have lost four of their last five games of late and their defensive record hasn’t been great this season, which is attested by the fact that they have conceded 40 goals in 22 games. Plenty of goalkeepers in this low price-range even that are better long-term picks.

Defenders

Chris Smalling

Team: Manchester United
Fixtures: Stoke (H), Burnley (A), Spurs (A), Huddersfield (H) and Newcastle (A)
Price: 5.3
Score: 49
Ownership: 2.0%

Why yes: United seem to have broken out of the rut they were in towards the end of 2017 and after a warm weather training camp in Dubai this week, will be raring to go against the manager-less Potters. The Red Devils have been keeping things tidy at the back of late and with their forward line firing again, now’s the time to stack up on their players. Smalling is the cheapest confirmed starter from United’s back-four.

Why no: Phil Jones (£5.7 m) is a worthwhile option, as is goalkeeper David de Gea (£5.9 m). Picking multiple players from United’s defence isn’t the worst strategy, but then your max limit of three players from a club would be exhausted.

Javier Manquillo

Team: Newcastle United
Fixtures: Swansea (H), Man City (A), Burnley (H), Crystal Palace (A) and Man United (H)
Price: 4.4
Score: 43
Ownership: 1.0%

Why yes: Swansea may have appointed a new manager, but the Swans will not be able to transform overnight and an improving Magpies side should be able to keep them at bay. Rafa Benitez’s side have a decent defence and if your’e looking for a bargain defender, Newcastle’s Manquillo is the guy for you.

Why no: Their attack leaves a lot to be desired, which in turn creates unnecessary pressure for the defence often. The Magpies’ fixtures aren’t the best.

Midfielders

Anthony Martial

Team: Manchester United
Fixtures: Stoke (H), Burnley (A), Spurs (A), Huddersfield (H) and Newcastle (A)
Price: 8.0
Score: 86
Ownership: 2.4%

Why yes: While the fuss is all about Jesse Lingard right now, Martial’s actually been quite impressive of late. The pacey Frenchman is now a confirmed starter and has a massive differential, with a majority of FPL managers flocking towards Paul Pogba and the aforementioned Lingard. Stoke’s defence is quite porous and don’t be surprised if Martial nabs a double-figure haul this gameweek. Apart from the Spurs clash, the resurgent Red Devils have pretty routine fixtures ahead.

Why no: Lingard (£.6.3 m) is a far more cost-effective option while Paul Pogba (£7.9 m) starts with more regularity than Martial as well. Romelu Lukaku is a good pick in the forwards’ department and having several United attackers in your FPL squad isn’t the best stratagem as Jose Mourinho’s men are unlikely to return to their free-scoring ways.

Wilfried Zaha

Team: Crystal Palace
Fixtures: Burnley (H), Arsenal (A), West Ham (A), Newcastle (H) and Everton (A)
Price: 6.9
Score: 63
Ownership: 5.6%

Why yes: Zaha’s been in fine fettle of late and is a solid mid-price option for your midfield. Palace may be up against high-fliers Burnley in Gameweek 23, but don’t underestimate Roy Hodgson’s unit, who came within a whisker of breaking Manchester City’s unbeaten record. Zaha’s pace and trickery sees him win a number of set-pieces and often he turns a game on his head.

Why no: With the previously mentioned Lingard in such spectacular form, most FPL manager will find it difficult to pay more for a player that are expected to be battling relegation.

Forwards

Andre Gray

Team: Watford
Fixtures: Southampton (H), Leicester (A), Stoke (A), Chelsea (H) and West Ham (A)
Price: 6.3
Score: 56
Ownership: 1.7%

Why yes: This gameweek’s first wildcard pick, Gray’s been back among the goals of late. Against a stuttering Southampton side at home, Watford’s record-signing should find plenty of joy. At the very least, a fine third-choice forward.

Why no: Midfielders Richarlison (£6.4 m) and Abdoulaye Doucoure (£5.3 m) are arguably in better nick and having several Hornets players may be a thrifty policy, but is fraught with risk.

Callum Wilson

Team: Bournemouth
Fixtures: Arsenal (H), West Ham (A), Chelsea (A), Stoke (H) and Huddersfield (A)
Price: 5.7
Score: 45
Ownership: 2.1%

Why yes: The second wildcard pick of the gameweek, Callum Wilson, is a worthwhile option to bolster your forward line at a cut-rate price. Arsenal’s defence has been quite leaky of late and the Cherries could just stun the injury-hit Gunners come Sunday. Don’t forget, Arsene Wenger’s side have been poor travellers this season. Another third-choice attacking option, if nothing else.

Why no: Bournemouth are expected to be involved in a relegation scrap this season and it remains to be seen whether they can turn their poor record against the top sides around. Wilson is a bit injury-prone as well.

PS: The Gameweek deadline is 1400 GMT/19.30 IST.

Team Asia’s captain Arjun Atwal issued a strong statement of intent to win the third edition of the EurAsia Cup presented by DRB-HICOM by unleashing his strongest pairings in Friday’s opening Fourball matches.

Having drawn 10-10 in the inaugural edition in 2014 and going down 18 ½ – 5 ½ in 2016, Atwal, who is captaining the side for the first time, is eager to set the record straight with a win at the Glenmarie Golf and Counntry Club.

“The matches look pretty balanced.  But the players in my team are all champions and they all know how to win,” said Atwal.

“If you come into our team room, you’ll see their banners up and each and every one of them holding trophies. It takes a lot of guts and hunger to win a golf tournament, and all 12 of my players have it,” added Atwal.

The Indian, who won the Asian Tour Order of Merit in 2003, is counting on Korea’s Byeonghun An and Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat to deliver the first point in their opening match against England’s Tommy Fleetwood and Paul Casey.

Asia’s second pairing of Yuta Ikeda and Gavin Green will also prove to be a formidable one as Ikeda, the highest ranked Asian player at world number 36 is poised to strike a decisive partnership with Green, Asia’s number one as they attempt to take down England’s Matthew Fitzpatrick and Belgium’s Thomas Pieters.

“I think Ikeda and me will have a good partnership. He’s a pretty straight player off the tee and I’m a little longer, so I think that will be a really good line-up.  With him having much experience and taking me under his wing, it will be a good match,” said Green.

Atwal’s strategic pairing of Thailand’s Phachara Khongwatmai and Japan’s Hideto Tanihara where there is a mix of youth and experience could prove to be the difference as they face off with Sweden’s Alex Noren and Ireland’s Paul Dunne.

“I’ve played with Tanihara these past two days and I’ve learnt some skills from him. We should be able to do well as we try to complement each other,” said the 18-year-old Thai.

Atwal picked Korea’s Sunghoon Kang for the fourth match with Thailand’s Poom Saksansin while Team Europe’s captain Thomas Bjorn opted for Major winner Henrik Stenson of Sweden and France’s Alexander Levy.

Malaysia’s Nicholas Fung together with China’s Li Haotong will then square off against Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger while the Indian duo of Anirban Lahiri and S.S.P. Chawrasia will try to wrap up the points for Team Asia in their last match against England’s Ross Fisher and Tyrrell Hatton.

“S.S.P. and I are very comfortable playing with each other.  We have great communication and we have played so much golf together.  We were at the Olympics a couple years ago, and I think we have very complementary game styles.

“He’s a great putter.  I’ve been in good form finishing the year, so I feel confident with my game.  Hopefully we can go out there and make a bunch of birdies,” said Lahiri.

Samajwadi Party (SP) President Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday lashed out at the BJP government in the state and accused them of misleading the people with false hopes and dividing them along caste and religious lines.

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters here, Yadav said there was an atmosphere of lawlessness and fear under the watch of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and listed several cases where the police and the members of ruling party had allegedly committed excesses on the common people.

“The BJP has mastered the art of misleading people and I am sure that having seen their reality, the people will throw them out in the 2019 General Elections,” the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister said.

Many atrocities were being perpetrated on women and girls and their honour and lives were not safe under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, he said.

The party also paraded the father of a minor girl who was hacked to death while returning from school.

The bereaved father alleged that he was getting threatening calls from the perpetrators and members of the BJP asking him not to rake up the matter further.

Coming from Nishad community, the man told media persons that his family had been living in perpetual fear, after which Yadav assured him that the matter would be taken up with Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik.

“I will write to him and petition him on your behalf, seeking safety and security of your family,” Yadav told the man.

The former Chief Minister also called the BJP “the biggest casteist force” and said: “When they (BJP) do it, the media says it is social engineering, demographic understanding and booth management, but when we advocate the rights of people from different castes, we are dubbed casteists.”

“Now we will also fight iron with iron — lohe se loha katenge,” he said suggesting that the party would emulate the formula of caste combinations mastered by the BJP.

Asked to comment on the future of his party’s alliance with the Congress, as was the case in 2017 assembly polls, he responded ambiguously, saying that as of now the party was busy with sprucing up its own machinery and added that the SP would cross the bridge when it came.

“When the elections are announced, we will discuss a host of issues like this,” Yadav said, adding that personally he was a friend of friends — “yaaron ka yaar!”

Clearly irked when a reporter asked him the future of the “UP ke dono ladke” — the catchline of their alliance’s campaign in the state assembly polls, he retorted by saying that he would be happy if the reporter dared to call the present Chief Minister a “ladke” (boy) as he was also of their age.

Many leaders from other parties, including the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress, joined the SP in presence of Yadav, state SP president Naresh Uttam and other senior leaders.

Those who joined the party include former BSP legislator Tahir Hussain Siddiqui, former BJP legislator Bhim Prasad Nishad and hundreds of other activists.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) issued fresh summons to Karti Chidambaram, son of Congress leader P Chidambaram, in a money laundering case after he failed to appear before the agency on Thursday.

Karti Chidambaram was supposed to appear at the ED headquarters in the national capital and record his statement before ED officials probing the case related to alleged irregularities in FIPB clearance accorded to INX Media.

“ED has issued fresh summons to Karti Chidambaram for January 16 after he missed his date today in the INX media money laundering case,” an ED official said.

The ED had registered a money laundering case against him in May 2017.

Also named in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR along with INX Media and its directors, Peter and Indrani Mukerjea — both accused in the Sheena Bora murder case — and others, Karti Chidambaram is facing a probe for his alleged role in facilitating the Foreign Investment Promotion Board’s (FIPB) clearance for INX Media Ltd when his father was the Union Finance Minister.

Karti Chidambaram is alleged to have received Rs 3.5 crore from Mumbai-based INX media, now 9X Media, for helping it get FIPB clearance when it was run by the Mukerjeas.

The ED, which is probing financial misappropriation in the case, has contended that Mukerjeas had “allegedly siphoned off 90 million pounds and the money is suspected to have gone to foreign countries through the unauthorized route of hawala”.

Following the FIPB clearance, the INX Media said it had received Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of Rs 46.20 million, but actually received 3,053.60 million between August 2007 and May 2008, the ED said.

Accordingly, this excess foreign exchange equivalent to Rs 3,004.40 million, beyond the disclosed the permitted foreign investment, was received by INX Media from three Mauritius-based investors, said the ED.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will be under pressure to moderate tax rate for the industry which was promised a lower levy of 25 percent by the government three years ago, experts said.

With the US substantially cutting corporate tax, the minister will also need to keep India’s tax rate globally competitive, they added.

The industry is doubtful whether Jaitley would fulfill his promise of reducing the corporate tax rate from 30 percent to 25 percent over four years. However, it wants the minister to consider moderating it to at least 28 percent in the forthcoming Budget.

To be unveiled on February 1, it would be the last full Budget of the present NDA government.

In his Budget speech of 2015-16, Jaitley had said “a regime of exemptions has led to pressure groups, litigation, and loss of revenue. It also gives room for avoidable discretion. I, therefore, propose to reduce the rate of corporate tax from 30 percent to 25 percent over the next four years. This will lead to higher level of investment, higher growth, and more jobs.”

Not expecting Jaitley to cut the corporate tax rate to 25 percent in view of fiscal constraints, Ficci president Rashesh Shah said the minister should endeavor to bring it down to 28 percent.

After German cryptographers reported flaws that makes it possible to infiltrate WhatsApp’s private group chats without admin permission, the Facebook-owned messaging platform said on Thursday its end-to-end encryption is impeccable and its over one billion users are at no data breach risk.

According to a report in Wired.com, cryptographers from Ruhr University Bochum in Germany told a gathering at the “Real World Crypto Security Conference” in Zurich on Wednesday that “anyone who controls the app’s servers could insert new people into private group chats without needing admin permission.

“The confidentiality of the group is broken as soon as the uninvited member can obtain all the new messages and read them,” Paul Rosler, one of the Ruhr University researchers, was quoted as saying.

The report, however, did not document any threat to the way end-to-end encryption protects the content of messages sent on WhatsApp.

Reacting to the report, Facebook Chief Security Officer Alex Stamos tweeted: “Read the Wired article about WhatsApp — scary headline! But there is no secret way into WhatsApp groups chats. The article makes a few key points.”

In a statement to IANS on Thursday, a WhatsApp spokesperson said: “We’ve looked at this issue carefully. Existing members are notified when new people are added to a WhatsApp group. We built WhatsApp so group messages cannot be sent to a hidden user.

“The privacy and security of our users is incredibly important to WhatsApp. It’s why we collect very little information and all messages sent on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted,” the spokesperson added.

According to the report, the attack on WhatsApp group chats takes advantage of a bug.

“Only an administrator of a WhatsApp group can invite new members, but WhatsApp doesn’t use any authentication mechanism for that invitation that its own servers can’t spoof,” the report said.

So the server can simply add a new member to a group with no interaction on the part of the administrator.

“The phone of every participant in the group then automatically shares secret keys with that new member, giving him or her full access to any future messages,” the report added.

WhatsApp provides users with multiple ways of confirming who will receive a message prior to it being sent.

In every WhatsApp group, users see a special blue message when someone joins or leaves a group. The membership of a group can be seen by tapping on “group info”.  For additional security, users can easily verify the security code of other group members.

With over 1.2 billion monthly active users, WhatsApp is available in more than 50 different languages around the world and in 10 Indian languages.

Facebook-owned WhatsApp added end-to-end encryption to every conversation two years ago. WhatsApp is also testing a feature where it will likely give group administrators more powers where they will be able to restrict all other members from sending text messages, photographs, videos, GIFs, documents or voice messages in case the admin thinks so.

According to WABetaInfo, a fan site that tests new WhatsApp features early, the popular mobile messaging platform has submitted the “Restricted Groups” setting via Google Play Beta Programme in the version 2.17.430.

Once restricted, other members will simply have to read their messages and will not be able to respond. They will have to use the “Message Admin” button to post a message or share media to the group.

An Uttar Pradesh police constable has been arrested on charges of raping a seven-year-old girl at his one-room flat here, police said on Thursday.

The crime came to light after an angry mob of villagers caught Subhash Singh, 45, posted in the Sales Tax Department in Gautam Budh Nagar, near his accommodation in Surajpur, thrashed him, and handed him over to police around 8.30 a.m. on Thursday.

“Subhash took the girl, playing alone outside her home, to his flat around 3 p.m. on Wednesday and sexually assaulted her,” Superintendent of Police (Rural) Suniti told IANS.

A native of Uttar Pradesh’s Kaithi village, he escaped after neighbours gathered on hearing the girl’s cries for help.

Subhash returned to his room early on Thursday and allegedly attacked two women neighbours when they tried to catch hold of him. Later, villagers caught and beat him up.

Police have lodged an FIR under Sections 342 and 376 of the Indian Penal Code dealing with rape, and punishment for wrongful confinement and Sections 5/6 of the Protection of Children against Sexual Offences Act.

Police said it was awaiting the medical report of the girl from the district hospital in Noida’s Sector 30.

The girl’s mother works as a factory labourer and hails from Bihar. The child’s father died a few years ago.