Algerian international footballer Youcef Atal goes on trial in France  on Dec 18  accused of inciting hatred after posting a video in which a Palestinian preacher purportedly threatens Israel with a "black day".

Atal, who plays for Ligue 1 side Nice, shared the video on his Instagram account, which has 3.2 million followers, shortly after the attack by Hamas militants on Israel on October 7 in which 1,139 people were killed.

The 27-year-old defender, who quickly deleted the post and issued an apology, was suspended by his club while prosecutors probed the incident for suspected "justification of terrorism".

Two associations, the International League against Racism and anti-Semitism (Licra) and the Jewish Observatory of France, have brought civil actions against the player.

If found guilty, Atal could be sentenced to up to one year in prison and fined 45,000 euros ($49,000).

The Indian men's and women's teams bagged silver medals at the first Asian Dueball Championship held at BBCA ground in Mumbai from December 11 to 13. The 12-member women's team, who were selected by the Dueball Federation of India, included four people, Chennai native Vishnu Sri and Madurai natives Vanavi Aathirai, Mohana and Shalini, representing the state. Of them, Vishnu Sri bagged the best player award and Mohana won the best goalkeeper award. The championship, which was won by Iraq, witnessed the participation of Sri Lanka and India.

Similarly, in the men's team, three players, Rajasekar (Cuddalore), Manikandan (Villupuram) and Natarajan (Madurai), represented Tamil Nadu. The championship was won by Iraq and saw the participation of India and Bangladesh.

Q1. The Indian men's and women's teams bagged silver medals at the first Asian Dueball Championship held in

1. Mumbai
2. Chennai
3. Delhi
4. Kolkata
5. None of These

Q2. Name the Algerian international footballer  who goes on trial in France  on Dec 18  accused of inciting hatred after posting a video in which a Palestinian preacher purportedly threatens Israel with a "black day" ?

1. Lakhdar Belloumi
2. Youcef Atal
3. Saïd Benrahma
4. Mehdi Mostefa
5. None of These

Q3. The Finance Ministry  Dec 17 said that the number of GST return filers in 5 years till April 2023 rose about 65% to

1. 1.13 crore
2. 1. 73 crore
3. 1. 97  crore
4. 2.15 crore
5. None of These

Q4. Name the players   who   have been were honoured as the International Tennis Federation’s 2023 ITF World Champions on  Dec 14  after being the only singles players to reach at least the semifinals at all four Grand Slam tournaments this season ?

1. Carlos Alcaraz  and Ons Jabeur
2. Rafael Nadal  and Iga Swiatek
3. Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka
4. Andy Murray and Elena Rybakina
5. None of These

Q5. Name the person who stood trial on Dec 15  for accusations of racism during his time as coach of his former club Nice and said some of the comments he made during that period had been taken out of context or distorted ?

1. Pep Guardiola
2. Carlo Ancelotti
3. Diego Simeone
4. Christophe Galtier
5. None of These

Answers

1----------------------------------1   Mumbai

2--------------------------------------2   Youcef Atal

3-------------------------------------1    1.13 crore

4--------------------------------------3   Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka

5-------------------------------------4   Christophe GaltierMumbai

The Aam Aadmi Party has appointed its MP Raghav Chadha as the leader of the party in Rajya Sabha in place of Sanjay Singh.

AAP MP Sanjay Singh is currently behind bars in the Delhi liquor policy case.

The Union government introduced the Telecommunications Bill 2023 on Dec 18 , in a move to replace the 138-year-old Indian Telegraph Act that governs the telecom sector. IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw tabled the telecom bill in the Lok Sabha after it had received the Cabinet's nod in August.

The proposed legislation will allow the Union government to take over control, manage or suspend any telecommunication services, networks, or their components linked to such services, citing national security.

Similarly, the proposed legislation also provides the government with the authority to instruct that certain messages—sent or received by specific individuals, through particular telecommunication equipment, or related to specific subjects—should not be transmitted to "protect India's sovereignty, integrity, and national security."

Alternatively, such messages may be intercepted, detained, or disclosed in an "intelligible format" to the designated officer, as directed by the government's order.

The draft legislation reads: "On the occurrence of any public emergency, including disaster management, or in the interest of public safety, the Central Government or a State Government or any officer specially authorised in this behalf by the Central Government or a State Government, if satisfied that is necessary or expedient so to do, by notification-- (a) take temporary possession of any telecommunication service or telecommunication network from any authorised entity; or (b) provide for appropriate mechanism to ensure that messages of a user or group of users authorised for response and recovery during public emergency are routed on priority."

The draft Telecommunications Bill released in 2023 had proposed to bring over-the-top or internet-based calling and messaging apps under the definition of telecommunications to enhance users' safety.

The bill had also proposed to curb the power of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), on which industry players had raised concerns.

According to government officials, the issues around over-the-top players and TRAI were resolved before it was cleared by the Cabinet. The draft had proposed to ease some of the rules like refund of fees for licence, registration etc. in case a company surrenders its permit.

The new bill proposes the government be vested with the power to waive off entry fees, licence fees, penalties etc. in the interest of consumers, ensuring competition in the market, availability or continuity of telecom networks, and national security.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on  Dec 17 launched the second edition of the Kashi Tamil Sangamam at the Namo Ghat  in Varanasi .

He also flagged off the Kashi Tamil Sangamam Express between Varanasi and Kanyakumari.

The Kashi Tamil Sangamam, which will be held from December 17-31, will witness the participation of 1,400 dignitaries from Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

According to an official statement, they are scheduled to visit Varanasi, Prayagraj and Ayodhya.

The first batch of the Tamil delegation comprising a group of students from various parts of the state named 'Ganga' reached Varanasi on Dec 17 .

Six more groups comprising teachers (Yamuna), professionals (Godavari), spiritual leaders (Saraswati), farmers and artisans (Narmada), writers (Sindhu) and traders and businessmen (Kaveri) will be reaching the city later to participate at the event.

In addition to the cultural exchange, an exhibition showcasing the rich tapestry of art, music, handloom, handicrafts, cuisines and other distinctive products from both Tamil Nadu and Kashi is also on the agenda.

The programme will also feature cultural events highlighting the unique traditions of Kashi and Tamil Nadu with the aim to strengthen the ties between the people of these two regions, the statement said.

The Union Ministry of Education is the nodal agency for the event with participation from the ministries of culture, tourism, railways, textiles, food processing, MSME, information and broadcasting, skill development and entrepreneurship, IRCTC and related departments of the Uttar Pradesh government.

The Kashi Tamil Sangamam will encompass lectures covering literature, ancient texts, philosophy, spirituality, music, dance, drama, yoga, and Ayurveda.

Additionally, seminars are planned on innovation, trade, knowledge exchange, edutech and next-gen technology.

India and Oman reviewed the entire range of bilateral relations with each other during the ongoing state visit of the Sultan of Oman, Haitham bin Tarik, to India. Talks ranged from concluding the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to furthering partnership in defence, trade and more.

"We had an excellent meeting and reviewed the entire range of our bilateral ties and we discussed ways to deepen cooperation in defence, commerce, culture, and innovation,’’ said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who visited Oman in 2018.

This is the first state visit from the Sultan of Oman after a gap of 26 years.

Sultan of Oman was accompanied by a high-level delegation which comprised his deputy Prime Minister for Defence, seven cabinet ministers and three vice ministers.

India and Oman have agreed to work closely to accelerate and conclude CEPA negotiations. Bilateral trade between the two nations has doubled from USD 5.4 billion in 2020-21 to USD 12.3 billion in 2022-23.

Meanwhile, the India-Oman Joint Vision identified areas like maritime cooperation, connectivity, energy security, green energy, space, technologies, digital payments, financial cooperation, trade, investment, health, tourism, agriculture and food security amongst other things.

The Mumbai police has registered an FIR against steel baron and managing director of JSW Group Sajjan Jindal after a 30-year-old woman accused him of raping her. Jindal has denied the charge. The FIR was registered on December 13.

The BKC police station in Mumbai said that based on the actress’ statements, the accused Sajjan Jindal was booked under sections 376 (rape), 354 (assault or use of criminal force on a woman intending to outrage her modesty) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC. The complaint doctor-turned-actress claimed that she visited Jindal at his office around 7 pm in January 2022, where he allegedly raped her in the penthouse at Bandra Kurla Complex and promised to marry her.