The “Monterey Five” are officially back.

HBO’s Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning “Big Little Lies” is returning on June 9 with even more drama ― and new cast member Meryl Streep.

Season 1, which was based on the book of the same title by Liane Moriarty,  followed the lives of five mothers in Monterey, California, played by Reese Witherspoon, Zoë Kravitz, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern and Shailene Woodley.  

The Season 2 trailer foreshadows trouble after Mary Louise Wright, played by Streep, comes to Monterey to find out more about the death of her son (played by Alexander Skarsgård in Season 1).

Watch the full trailer below.

In a late night tweet on Saturday, President Donald Trump declared he had the “absolute legal right” to release detained undocumented immigrants into so-called sanctuary cities, and demanded that his request be fulfilled.

“Just out,” Trump tweeted, announcing the alleged legal right to send the immigrants into cities that refuse to enforce his administration’s immigration policies. 

“We hereby demand that they be taken care of at the highest level,” he added. “Especially by the State of California, which is well known or [sic] its poor management & high taxes!”

Trump didn’t provide further proof of this “legal right.” HuffPost reached out to the White House for further comment but got no immediate response.

Trump’s announcement came after he posted a series of tweets earlier Saturday night in response to reports that he was strongly considering sending released undocumented immigrants to so-called sanctuary cities as a form of retaliation against the municipalities.

Trump confirmed that he had those plans in mind, even though a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told HuffPost on Thursday that the proposal was only a suggestion that had been rejected.

In his earlier rant, Trump claimed that the mayor of Oakland, California, was not willing to receive the undocumented immigrants he had earlier threatened to release into the city.

That claim appears to be false. In an interview with National Public Radio on Saturday, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said quite the opposite.

When asked by NPR whether she would welcome buses filled with 5,000 immigrants coming to the city next week, Schaaf confirmed that she would.

“I always say, welcome to Oakland,” the mayor told NPR.

“But this is much less about immigration or sanctuary. This is about an outrageous abuse of power,” Schaaf added, criticizing Trump using his presidential power to retaliate against cities such as Oakland who refuse to comply with his immigration policies.

NPR pushed Schaaf on the issue again, asking the mayor to clarify whether she’d “welcome more migrants” into Oakland.

“I said yes,” Schaaf replied. “Oakland welcomes all people.”

Trump on Saturday also aired his apparent frustration over a New York Times report that suggested the president privately told a border enforcement official that he would pardon him from convictions on any illegal acts if the official closed the southwestern border to incoming migrants.

CNN and the Associated Press separately confirmed the Times’ report on Trump’s on Saturday.

According to the reports, Trump urged Kevin McAleenan, now the acting head of the Homeland Security Department, to close the southern border to immigrants and guaranteed McAleenan that he would be pardoned if he broke any law by fulfilling the president’s request.

Trump denied that he offered the pardon or ordered the border closure in his Saturday tweets before turning his attention to so-called sanctuary cities and Democrats who oppose his immigration policies.

In a public statement, the Department of Homeland Security also denied that Trump “indicated, asked, directed or pressured” McAleenan to do anything illegal. 

For many of us, the phrases “Artificial Intelligence” and “Machine Learning” are likely to conjure up abstract visions of an imagined future. Perhaps a gleaming city: all shiny metal and squeaky clean buildings, a world where virtual assistants are at our beck and call. For others the vision is more dystopian, where each human thought is a monetizable commodity for corporate overlords who are hand in glove with an autocratic regime.

Whatever abstract visions we do have in mind, the truth is that artificial intelligence and machine learning are no longer the future, they are already part of our present, our everyday lived reality.

Yet there is a mystery associated with these terms, reminiscent of the black box symbolism erstwhile associated with “Rocket Science”. But unlike rocket science, which has little practical value in our day to day lives, an understanding of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning can help us navigate the world, reflect on modern politics and even become better citizens.

AI refers to the ability of a machine to mimic human-level intelligence in specific tasks, and ML refers to a set of algorithms developed by computer scientists to achieve this ability using large amounts of data. Simply put, ML is a means to the end that is AI.

But then what do we mean by “learning” and “intelligence” in the first place? Suppose a child is in a kitchen and accidentally touches a knife which causes her to yelp ― if the kitchen is a particularly dangerous one with lots of knives lying about, the accident repeats itself a number of times. The child soon spots a pattern and figures out that knives cause pain and should be avoided.

Figuring out that knives are a class of objects and that these objects can cause pain is “learning” while avoiding the knife in the future is “intelligence”. The implicit tool being used by the child to learn is pattern recognition, while the essential raw materials for learning are data (the pain caused by the knife) and a processing unit (the child’s brain).

Most of machine learning is essentially prediction models driven by sophisticated pattern recognition algorithms. The ever-growing data being generated by internet users and the ever-more efficient computer processors have led to massive improvements in the performance of these algorithms in the last decade, which has largely fueled the major advances in AI technology that we see today.

These advancements in ML techniques in recent years has led to a proliferation of prediction models across a broad range of contexts. Application areas vary from personalized entertainment to medical diagnosis, from dating recommendations to legal decisions, from weather predictions to regulating agricultural markets ― the list goes on.

The data for each of these applications may be very different, for example: the data for a music recommendation app may come from how many times you play a particular song, while the data for a medical diagnosis may come from an x-ray. The common thread running through the applications is the ability to make accurate predictions, powered by large datasets and algorithms.

That said, the label is getting applied pretty freely as it’s a popular buzzword. Applied statisticians, econometricians and computer scientists have long been in the business of predicting trends with often very successful results. There is a tendency in the data community to brand related methods from these domains as machine learning, possibly to capitalize on the hype.

ML methods are also not a silver bullet solution to all types of problems. While modern ML and AI systems are becoming increasingly good at predictions (or answers to questions beginning with “what” or “who”), they are not yet proficient in answering questions around the “how” and “why” of things. In fact, theoretically grounded models of the natural and social world still dominate when the objective is to understand mechanisms or find explanations.  

Leaving aside the hyperbole and white noise though, think of some of the application areas where ML is being successfully employed. Entertainment, dating, healthcare, ecology ― these are all inherently human concerns with societal repercussions being driven by algorithms.

Our lives are becoming increasingly and inevitably intertwined with these algorithms. Not surprisingly then, social scientists, anthropologists and ethicists are starting to critically analyze how our world is changing as a result of this entwinement.

The emerging field of “AI and Ethics” is  centered around prickly questions like polarization, misinformation, surveillance and inequity resulting from algorithmic bias. Books like “Weapons of Math Destruction” and groups like the “Algorithmic Justice League” which shed light on the negative impacts of unregulated AI are gaining ground in the popular discourse in USA. Stanford also recently established a “Human Centered AI Institute”. Incidentally the fledgling institute is already facing criticism for its predominantly white, male and technocrat heavy advisory council!

How this cocktail of algorithms and society will play out in the Indian context should be of essential concern for policy makers. Keep in mind that the cutting edge research in AI and ML is predominantly done in the US and a handful of other developed countries, whereas the impacts of these technologies is global. Some institutes and think-tanks in India are starting to focus on questions of the opportunities and risks of AI and ML in India.

For instance “Wadhwani AI”, “Center for Internet and Society” and IIT Delhi’s new School of Public Policy are amongst the few that are venturing into building awareness and research expertise in social science aspects of AI and ML.  The Central Government’s planning agency, NITI Aayog has also dipped its toes into the AI and policy waters ― in 2018 they published a discussion paper on a “National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence”.

All these efforts are still quite nascent though, and there is an urgent need for a public dialogue on how lives of ordinary citizens are going to inevitably change, for both good and bad, as a result of the AI revolution.

A large, flightless bird killed its owner when it attacked him after he fell, authorities in Florida have said.

The Alachua County Fire Rescue Department said a cassowary killed the man on his property near Gainesville, apparently using its long claws.

The victim, 75-year-old Marvin Hajos, was breeding the birds, which are native to Australia and New Guinea.

Deputy chief Jeff Taylor said: “It looks like it was accidental. My understanding is that the gentleman was in the vicinity of the bird and at some point fell.

“When he fell, he was attacked.”

“Initial information indicates that this was a tragic accident for Mr Hajos,” said Lieutenant Brett Rhodenizer, a sheriff’s office spokesman.

“The cassowary involved remains secured on private property at this time.”

Cassowaries are similar to emus and reach up to 6ft in height and weigh up to 60kg.

They have black body feathers and bright blue heads and necks.

The San Diego Zoo website calls cassowaries the world’s most dangerous bird, with a 4in dagger-like claw on each foot.

“The cassowary can slice open any predator or potential threat with a single swift kick,” the website says.

“Powerful legs help the cassowary run up to 31mph through the dense forest underbrush.”

Cassowaries are not raised for food in the US but are sought after by collectors.

To get the mandatory permit, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission requires cassowary owners to have “substantial experience” and meet specific cage requirements, spokeswoman Karen Parker said.

While the Congress on Sunday demanded a probe into the alleged transportation of a “suspicious black trunk” in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s helicopter during his visit to Chitradurga in Karnataka for poll campaign, the BJP has clarified saying the trunk had electronic equipment. 

Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma asked the prime minister to come clean and said the Election Commission should inquire into the contents of the “trunk”.

He said the Congress’ Karnataka unit has already filed a complaint with the Election Commission in this regard.

The prime minister had addressed an election rally in Karnataka’s Chitradurga on 9 April.

“We saw there were three more choppers escorting the prime minister’s helicopter. After landing, a black trunk was taken out and whisked away in a private car which was not part of the SPG carcade,” he alleged.

Sharma suggested there was cash stashed in the trunk. “What was there in the trunk. If there was no cash in it, let there an inquiry be held.”

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President Dinesh Gundu Rao also took to Twitter to ask “Whats was in the box?”

Hitting out at Rao, KS Naveen, President of the Chitradurga unit of the BJP, told Deccan Herald, “Being a president of the state unit of a national party, if he (Dinesh Gundu Rao) does not know what is part of the PM’s convoy, he should immediately resign from his office. As they are out of power for five years now, they seem to have forgotten about the security provided for the Prime Minister.”

He clarified that the box had teleprompter and other equipment for Modi’s speech. 

“A set of teleprompters, their cables, party logos to be fixed on to the dais and synchronization unit was all present in the box,” Naveen said. 

Congress played a video clip claiming that the purported trunk, after being unloaded from the PM’s helicopter, was shipped to a private Innova car, that Sharma alleged was not a part of the SPG carcade, and taken away.

Sharma also asked Modi to give an account of his five-year rule to the people of the country as a tribute to Dr BR Ambedkar on his birth anniversary.

“The Prime Minister is trying to control and change the narrative because he has no courage the face real issues,” he alleged.

Raising the issue of Rafale, Sharma asked Modi to make public the minutes of a meeting held last year between him and former French president Francois Hollande on the fighter jet deal.

“Why is he (PM) silent on his role in Rafale scam? Make the minutes of the meeting between Prime Minister and former French president Francois Hollande on the Rafale deal public by tomorrow. As there has been a controversy, it would help settle it once for all,” he said.

The Prime Minister in his “desperation to win has done enormous disservice to the nation by dragging in the Armed Forces for Partisan political propaganda”, Sharma further alleged.

“Seeking votes for the courageous action and sacrifices of our soldiers is an unpardonable transgression and also an insult to the Armed forces who defend the motherland under the tricolour and not under one person or party. The Indian Army belongs to the Republic of India,” he said.

Sharma also slammed BJP leader and Union minister General VK Singh (Retd).

“There is Prime Minister’s defence and his apology minister including one of his ministers, who should have been made literate in the military history of the country. I am referring to retired General V.K. Singh, he said - Indira Gandhi benefitted electorally from the Bangladesh war.”

“Is he ignorant of history when he himself was a commissioned officer?” Sharma asked.

“To reeducate him, these are the facts: General Singh got commissioned in June 1970, Smt Indira Gandhi recorded a massive electoral win in March 1971 and India won the 13-day war with Pakistan on 16 December 1971. VK Singh should extend an unconditional apology,” he said. 

(With PTI inputs)

MUMBAI — Jet Airways pilots body, the National Aviator’s Guild, on Monday appealed the State Bank of India (SBI) to release Rs 1,500 crore, which was proposed to be infused in the ailing carrier as part of a debt-restructuring plan last month.

The airline is operating just 6-7 planes, with almost its entire fleet being grounded due to non-payment of rentals to lessors amid severe paucity of cash.

“We would like to appeal SBI to release Rs 1,500 crore funds for the airline to help it continue operations. We also appeal Prime Minister Narendra Modi to save 20,000 odd jobs at the airline,” National Aviator’s Guild ( NAG) vice president Adim Valiani told reporters at the airline’s headquarter, Siroya Centre, on Monday.

Earlier, the airline’s pilots, engineers and cabin crew members assembled at the headquarters to show their solidarity.

The airline’s pilots along with engineers and senior staff were last paid for December, 2018. This apart, the airline has also defaulted on the March salary of other categories of employees as well.

Last month, an SBI-led consortium of lenders had taken management control of the airline post a debt-recast deal, following which the lenders had proposed to infuse as much as Rs 1,500 crore to the carrier to keep it afloat till the time it gets a investor.

The Monday meeting with lenders is reportedly expected to take a final decision on the quantum of funds to be infused immediately to avert a possible shut down. A meeting between the airline management and its major lender SBI last Friday could not take a decision on the fund infusion issue.

The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Election Commission to watch the Modi biopic starring Vivek Oberoi starrer and decide whether it should be banned, legal news portal Bar & Bench reported.

The top court asked EC to give its view on PM Narendra Modi by April 22 in a sealed cover, ANI said.

The film’s producers had moved the court against the stay ordered on its release by the EC on 10 April, a day before it was the first phase of polling began.

The poll panel had banned the screening of the biopic during the current poll period, saying any such film that subserves purpose of any political entity or individual should not be displayed in the electronic media.

The Commission, in a separate order, had also directed the producers “not to exhibit the film titled PM Narendra Modi till further orders.

Acting on the complaints of political parties, including the Congress, the poll panel had asserted that any biopic material with the potential to disturb the level playing field should not be displayed in the area where Model Code of Conduct was in force.

The copy of the order was also sent to the Central Board of Film Certification chairman and Secretary, Information and Broadcasting ministry.

The order had specifically stated that in view of the admitted acts and material available on record, this film being a biopic on Narendra Modi, “prime minister and a political leader and a prospective candidate in the current general elections” can not be exhibited in view of Commission’s order.

The EC order came after the Supreme Court had disposed of the petition filed by a Congress activist seeking stay on the release of the biopic on 9 April, saying the poll panel was the right forum to decide the issue. 

(With PTI inputs) 

The Supreme Court on Monday made it clear that remarks made by Rahul Gandhi on the Rafale case verdict were “incorrectly attributed” to the apex court and directed the Congress President to give his explanation by April 22. 

The apex court said it will consider the petition filed by BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi seeking contempt action against Gandhi for attributing some observations to the apex court which was not in the Rafale judgement.

“We make it clear that views, observations, findings attributed to this court in the alleged speeches, remarks made by Gandhi to media/public have been incorrectly attributed to this court. We also make it clear that this court had no occasion to make such observation in as much as it was deciding legal admissibility of certain documents which were objected by the attorney general,” a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said.

The bench also comprising Justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna said, “Having clarified the matter we deem it appropriate to seek explanation of Gandhi.”

The bench further said the explanation by Gandhi has to be filed on or before next Monday and the matter will be heard on April 23 (next Tuesday).

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Lekhi, had told the bench that the Congress president reportedly made a remark that the “Supreme Court said chowkidar chor hai” in the verdict.

The Congress president had on April 10 claimed that the apex court has made it clear that Prime Minister Narendra Modi committed a theft.

He had made the statement while interacting with reporters in Amethi after filing his nomination papers where he is contesting against BJP leader and union minister Smriti Irani.

(With PTI inputs)

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor was hospitalised on Monday after he was injured during a temple visit in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram, reports said.

Tharoor was observing the ‘thulabharam’ ritual at the Gandhari Amman Kovil in the city, Mathrubhumi reported. The ritual involves being weighed on a scale against offerings to the temple.

After ‘thulabharam’, Tharoor was waiting to observe the ‘deeparadhana’ ritual when the scale broke and he hit his head, the report said.

The Congress MP was rushed to a general hospital, but later moved to the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College for treatment, Mathrubhumi said.

Tharoor is Congress-led UDF’s candidate for the Thiruvananthapuram seat in the Lok Sabha elections. A two-time MP, he will face BJP’s Kummanam Rajasekharan and LDF’s C Divakaran when Kerala goes to polls on 23 April.

General elections in India can be a bizarre time as politicians shoot their mouths off to get votes. Netas promise the moon and stars, but union minister Maneka Gandhi isn’t one of them. This time, Gandhi seems to have decided that she will threaten people with joblessness and deprivation if they don’t vote for her. Sabka saath, sabka vikaas? Not in Pilibhit, at least. 

Just days after she was caught on camera warning Muslims that she may not help them if they don’t vote for her, reports say that Gandhi has said that the development work she does in her constituency will be give-and-take.

Gandhi says she is confident that she will win, and hence the warning is for those who don’t want to vote for her. If she is to be believed, those who vote for her will get benefits, and those who don’t will get delayed benefits. 

Never mind that an elected representative is supposed to work for everyone in his/her constituency, irrespective of their political stands.

ANI reported that Gandhi said in Pilibhit that villages in the constituency will be divided into categories and development work will be carried out according to the percentage of votes that the BJP gets. 

“The village where we get 80% votes is A, the village in which we get 60% is B, the village in which we get 50% is C and the village where we get less than 50% is D. The development work first happens in all A category villages. After work at A category regions is done, then comes B and only after work in B is done, we start with C. So this is up to you whether you make it to A, B or C and no one should come in D because we all have come here to do good.” 

Gandhi, who is the incumbent BJP MP from Pilibhit, is contesting from Sultanpur this time. Gandhi’s son Varun, who is an MP from Sultanpur, is the BJP’s Pilibhit candidate. 

Gandhi’s remarks in Pilibhit come a few days after she said in Sultanpur that Muslims will be given jobs only if they vote for the BJP. She had said, “This is important. I am winning. I am winning because of the love and support of people. But if my victory is without Muslims, I won’t feel that good. Dil khatta ho jayega (Things will become sour). Then when a Muslim comes to me for work, I think let it be, how does it matter. It’s all give and take, isn’t it? We aren’t all sons of Mahatma Gandhi, are we? (laughter). It’s not that we keep on giving and then losing in the election. This victory will happen with or without you.”

“We are not Mahatma Gandhi’s children that we keep giving and not get anything in return,” she said in Muslim-dominated Turabkhani area of the constituency.

The district magistrate of Sulanpur served her a show-cause notice over the remarks. 

A Congress delegation moved the Election Commission (EC) on Friday seeking action against Gandhi’s remarks. Randeep Surjewala said that the Congress had sought an FIR against Gandhi and cancellation of her nomination. 

As the polling date for your constituency nears, are you fretting because you don’t have your voter ID? Maybe it’s because you’ve registered as a first-time voter or to change your constituency and are still waiting for your voter ID to reach you. Or maybe you’ve just misplaced your ID.

Whatever the reason, worry not, you can still vote in this election if your name is on the electoral roll. You also need to carry with you to the voting booth one of 11 alternate IDs specified by the Election Commission.

For voting in the Lok Sabha election, the Election Commission has said that photo voter slip shall not be accepted as a stand-alone identification document. 

“This slip will not be accepted for the purpose of identification in polling stations. You are required to carry EPIC (election photo identity card) or one of the 11 alternate documents specified by the commission for voting,” an order issued by the commission said.

Before going to vote, first you must check if your name is on the voter list. Here’s how.

You can take any one of these documents with you to the polling booth if you don’t have a voter id and your name is in the electoral roll:

1. Passport

2. Driving licence

3. Service ID card with Photo (Issued by Central Government/State Government/PSU)

4. Bank or post office passbook with photo

5.  PAN Card

6. Smart Card by RGI under NPR

7. MNREGA Job card

8. Health Insurance Card by Ministry of Labour

9. Pension document with photo

10. ID card issued to MPs/MLAs/MLCs

11.  Aadhaar Card

Actress Amber Heard has submitted a graphic new court filing that details horrifying allegations of abuse she says she endured during her relationship to actor Johnny Depp.

The Associated Press reports that on Thursday, the 32-year-old “Aquaman” actress asked a Virginia judge to dismiss a $50 million defamation lawsuit her 55-year-old ex-husband filed over an op-ed she wrote about domestic violence for The Washington Post in December 2018.

In the motion filed in the Circuit Court of Fairfax, Virginia, Heard goes into harrowing detail about more than a dozen alleged incidents before and during their rocky one-year marriage in which she claims the actor was high on drugs or alcohol, became “the Monster” and punched, slapped, kicked, spat on and choked her. There are also details about Depp allegedly head-butting Heard and pulling her hair so hard that chunks of her scalp came out.

Depp has denied the abuse, and the allegations have appeared in the couple’s divorce and other court documents. HuffPost has reached out to Depp’s publicist for comment.

In the court papers obtained by the New York Post’s Page Six, Heard claims that Depp’s substance abuse issues would trigger a personality they both referred to as “the Monster,” like on a morning in May 2014 in which the couple, who were dating at the time, traveled from Boston to Los Angeles on a private jet:

On the flight, Johnny ordered the flight attendants to give him an oxygen tank, and drank heavily. Johnny’s handlers told me that he was upset that I was filming a movie with a romantic scene with James Franco the day before. Soon, Johnny began to throw objects at me. Instead of reacting to his behavior, I simply moved seats. That didn’t stop him. He provocatively pushed a chair at me as I walked by, yelled at me, and taunted me by yelling out the name “James Franco.”

Heard states that at one point during the flight, she stood up and Depp kicked her in the back. She says she fell to the floor, Depp threw a boot at her and continued to insult her until he went to the bathroom and passed out inside.

Heard also elaborated on an incident she said occurred a month after their February 2015 marriage, in which Depp, who was supposed to be clean, went on a sleepless, three-day ecstasy bender in Australia:

Johnny told me that I had not explicitly forbidden him from taking ecstasy. The argument heated up, and Johnny pushed me, slapped me, and shoved me to the ground before I retreated to a locked bedroom.

Heard then goes into explicit detail about the abuse she said she endured during those three days, alleging she was hit, shoved and choked numerous more times. During their fights, Heard said Depp “shoved me into a ping pong table that collapsed underneath me,” threw bottles of alcohol at her and through the window, breaking panels, and at one point pulled off her nightgown. “I was naked and barefoot, covered in alcohol and glass,” Heard states.

She continued:

In one of the most horrific and scariest moments of this three-day ordeal, Johnny grabbed me by the neck and collarbone and slammed me against the countertop. I struggled to stand up as he strangled me, but my arms and feet kept slipping and sliding on to the spilled alcohol and were dragged against the broken glass on the countertop and floor, which repeatedly slashed my feet and arms. Scared for my life, I told Johnny, “You are hurting me and cutting me.” Johnny ignored me, continuing to hit me with the back of one closed hand, and slamming a hard plastic phone against a wall with his other until it was smashed into smithereens. While he was smashing the phone, Johnny severely injured his finger, cutting off the tip of it.

Heard states that the next morning she woke up to find that Depp had urinated all over the house and left messages for Heard in oil paint and his blood from his wounded finger. Heard said Depp was later hospitalized and she was left with “a busted lip, a swollen nose, and cuts all over my body. ... To this day, I still have scars on my arms and feet from this incident.”

Heard details other alleged incidents such as a time in March 2015 when she says she punched Depp in order to prevent him from attacking her sister, and a 2015 trip to Thailand in which Depp allegedly punched and choked her on a train.

“I remember being afraid that Johnny might not know when to stop, and that he might kill me,” she said of their fight in Thailand.

Heard also said that in December 2015 things got out of control when Depp “pulled large chunks of hair and scalp out of my head” and head-butted her, causing her nose to bleed.

Since their highly publicized 2016 divorce, in which Heard also claimed Depp had physically abused her, Heard has become an outspoken advocate for survivors of domestic abuse. Depp, however, has repeatedly denied her allegations of abuse.

In her 2018 op-ed in the Post, Heard did not name Depp, but Depp sued anyway. In his lawsuit, Depp says it’s clear Heard is talking about him and that he’s suffered financial losses due to her allegations, like being dropped from his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” films. Depp’s lawyers call Heard’s claims “an elaborate hoax to generate positive publicity for Ms. Heard and advance her career” in his lawsuit, per Page Six.

Heard claims Depp often forgot “his delusional and violent conduct after he came out of his drunk or medicated states.”

Heard’s attorney, Eric George, chastised Depp in a statement Friday, per the AP.

“Johnny Depp physically and verbally abused Amber Heard,” George said. “Since their divorce, Mr. Depp has continued to publicly harass Ms. Heard, and attempted to gaslight the world by denying his abuse. It is long past time for Mr. Depp’s despicable conduct to end.”

Last week, Kangana Ranaut, in an interview to BollywoodLife, said that she was embarrassed to ‘beat’ Alia Bhatt in a poll of best performances of 2019.

Ranaut had said, “I am embarrassed...What is there to beat in Gully Boy performance ....same snappy muh phat girl...Bollywood’s idea of a fiery girl, woman empowerment and good acting, spare me this embarrassment, please. Media has taken filmy kids love too far...stop pampering mediocre work or else bar will never be raised.”

While several cinephiles called out Ranaut for sounding arrogant and insecure, Bhatt, on whom Ranaut’s tirade was directed, had a perfect, dignified response.

In an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Bhatt said:

“I respect Kangana’s work a lot and I respect her opinion. If she feels a particular way she must have reason to feel that way. I would rather remember how much she had praised me after watching Raazi. And I’d just like to focus on my work. Maybe she will appreciate me again if I work hard enough.”

Bhatt will be next seen in Karan Johar’sKalank that releases April 17.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi has summoned a representative of the EC for Tuesday. 

The bench referred to submissions of the EC that they can issue notice, then advisory and finally lodge a complaint against an errant politician for violating the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by giving hate speeches based on caste and religion during campaign.

“The EC says they are toothless. They say that they first issue notice, then advisory and then complain,” the bench said.

EC told the court that it was powerless and toothless against hate speech and religious speeches made during campaigns.

“Mayawati was required to file her explanation by April 12 but it was not done...we can only issue advisories and in case of a repeat offence, register a complaint...”, the court was informed, LiveLaw reported.

The poll panel said it did not have the power to de-recognise or disqualify the person and could only send advisories. The EC could filed a complaint if a candidate repeatedly violated the poll code, it said.

(With PTI inputs)

The Election Commission on Monday barred UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath and BSP chief Mayawati from campaigning for three days and two days respectively.

The two politicians were barred for making communal remarks days before the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections on 18 April.

The EC order is applicable from 6 am on Tuesday.

EC had issued a show cause notice to Adityanath for his “Ali” and “Bajrang Bali” remarks while addressing a rally in Meerut.

Adityanath had compared the Lok Sabha elections to a contest between ‘Ali’, a revered figure in Islam, and Bajrang Bali, the Hindu god Hanuman. 

“Agar Congress, SP, BSP ko ‘Ali’ par vishwaas hai toh humein bhi ‘Bajrang Bali’ par vishwaas hai (If the Congress, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party have faith in Ali, we have faith in Hanuman),” the UP CM had said.

His remarks had come in response to Mayawati’s speech at a rally in Deoband, where she urged Muslims to back the SP-BSP alliance.

Mayawati said the Congress was busy dividing the votes and cautioned the gathering to guard against any such attempt.

“In western UP, where people of all communities live...in Saharanpur, Bareilly, where there is a huge Muslim population...I want to tell the Muslim community...don’t divide your votes...give it to the BSP, SP and RLD alliance,” she had said. 

Mayawati was also issued a notice.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court said it would on Tuesday examine the poll panel’s contention it did not have legal powers to tackle hate speech made during election campaigns.

The EC said it had limited powers as it could send advisories and file complaints, but could not de-recognise or disqualify a candidate.

(With PTI inputs)

NEW DELHI — The BJP on Monday announced seven more Lok Sabha candidates for Uttar Pradesh, including Bhojpuri film star Ravi Kishan from the Gorakhpur constituency.

The party also declared sitting MP Praveen Nishad as its candidate from Sant Kabir Nagar by dropping Sharad Tripathi, who had beaten a local BJP MLA with shoes. 

Praveen Nishad is the son of Sanjay Nishad, founder of the Nishad Party which is now in alliance with the BJP in Uttar Pradesh.

With these names, the party has so far announced candidates for 420 Lok Sabha seats for the seven-phase elections which started on April 11 and will continue till May 19.

Nishad had won the Gorakhpur seat in a bypoll as the SP candidate and he was supported by the BSP, under the grand alliance between the two parties.

The Gorakhpur seat had fallen vacant after BJP MP Yogi Adityanath was elected as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh.

While seeing an alligator is never too much of a surprise in Florida, the number of close encounters has jumped in recent days and it’s likely due to a combination of hunger and lust. 

A family in Fort Meyers was awoken by an eight-foot gator in their lanai in the middle of the night last week, police said on Facebook. In another part of town, a motorist captured footage of a massive gator casually strolling along a busy road: 

With the mating season underway, the randy reptiles tend to be more active. But one expert told local media there was more to it than that. The weather is getting warmer and the higher temps speed up the reptiles’ metabolism and make them hungrier. 

“They have to find some food so that’s when we’ll find them on sidewalks and people’s pools,” Brian Norris of Florida Fish and Wildlife told Fox 4 in Fort Myers. “They’re really just out there browsing around.” 

Some might even be looking for chicken. A motorist in North Port had to call the cops after coming out of a chicken wing restaurant and finding a gator under the car:

Over in Polk County, a gator turned up just outside a local jail. 

In Palm Beach Gardens, a 300-pounder managed to go for a swim in a family’s swimming pool despite the fact that the yard was completely fenced in, CBS12 noted.  

At St. Andrews State Park in Panama City, a woman fishing for mackerel also caught something else: footage of a gator emerging from the water for a little R&R on the beach.  

And last month, authorities apprehended a three-legged alligator measuring 12 feet and weighing 650 pounds. It was estimated to be between 60 and 70 years old. 

Expect to see more gators out in the open and on the prowl. Florida Fish and Wildlife said the creatures begin courting in April, then get busy mating in May and June. 

Netflix has plenty of high-brow, critically acclaimed shows that jam literary references into character dialogue and feature directorial imitations of the cinematic greats. I love those shows and try to champion them as much as possible.

But sometimes, especially at night after a long workday, I just want to watch something that doesn’t require hyperfocus on every frame to catch obscure Easter eggs. Sometimes I need to just slouch into the couch and not worry about whether I’m watching something “correctly” or missing some great artistic revelation. Sometimes I just want to have mindless fun while watching television.

The shows recommended below are still great; they’re just not the kinds of comedies that will make you sob and have an existential crisis. These are shows that won’t demand much from you but still rise to a level of quality that will make it feel like you’re not completely wasting your time.

“Schitt’s Creek”

Premise: A family with obscene wealth loses everything except the ownership of a small town that the father bought as a joke. With no other assets, the family moves to this town to live for cheap and to try to sell the place.

Sum-up: The plot makes little sense, but the show is much more about the character interactions. The show balances the fine line between making the previously wealthy characters insufferable monsters and creating people with relatable emotions. Given that the thin plot doesn’t need servicing, the writers can also just cram rapid-fire jokes into each episode.

Heads-up: Without gripping narrative stakes, you can feel as trapped in this small town as the characters. You almost have to approach the show like a sitcom where the family can’t seem to leave the living room. These characters aren’t going anywhere, so you better enjoy watching them talk to one another.

Trailer:

“I’m Sorry”

Premise: A young couple living in Los Angeles juggles their relationship, adult friends and the responsibilities they have as parents. The show centers on the mother, who has a personality in the ilk of Larry David on “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” as she’s also a writer and perpetually stumbles into situations where she has to say the name of this show.

Sum-up: Most television comedies about families reside in the sitcom genre. This stands out for featuring great comedians telling the same dirty jokes they would be doing if kids weren’t also in this.

Heads-up: The show has a vibe of trying to be edgy, but doesn’t really accomplish that. For the genre of family storytelling, it succeeds at edginess, but otherwise “I’m Sorry” can be a bit cringeworthy.

Trailer:

“Friends From College”

Premise: A number of 40-somethings living in New York City hang out and partner off together romantically. Most of the group knew each other back in college and have remained ... friends.

Sum-up: If you love the genre of “cool rich people living in NYC” then you’ll be a fan of “Friends From College.” The show balances just enough narrative and character development with the constant jokes and impressive pratfalls, such that this is an easy binge-watch.

Heads-up: The second season is much, much better than the first. You should probably just find a recap of Season 1 and then start with the second season. Netflix also canceled this show earlier in the year.

Trailer:

“Dating Around”

Premise: A reality show based on New Yorkers going on first dates. Each episode focuses on one person going on dates with different people, but at the same locations (on different nights). At the end, the subject of each episode has to choose just one person for a second date.

Sum-up: The world has plenty of dating shows right now, but “Dating Around” stands out for its exceptional camerawork and editing. These dates look cinematic while the competition tends to look cheap. The show also does a great job of weaving all the different date footage together to make it look like one long, continuous date (the main dater wears the same clothes to each date). This editing trick makes it easy to just get lost in the show.

Heads-up: The show doesn’t try hard to make the dates actually realistic. All of the meetups are blind dates and most of the people don’t seem remotely compatible, so you can guess early on who will get a second date.

Trailer:

“Derry Girls”

Premise: A group of friends living in 1990s Northern Ireland just tries to have a normal teenage life at school. While the British Army and the Irish Republican Army fight each other, these teens pursue crushes and have the typical awkward moments of their age.

Sum-up: A comedy that brilliantly balances the horrors of the world with the day-to-day lives that must go on. Without the backdrop of war, this would still be a fun teen comedy, but the show’s humorous approach to the surrounding darkness elevates this to something truly unique. Choosing to center this on teens who can credibly be disinterested and simply annoyed by the surrounding violence also helps the tricky concept work.

Heads-up: The characters speak with thick Northern Irish accents, so you may need to use subtitles.

Trailer:

Eating disorders are psychiatric conditions related to irregular eating habits and behaviours that affect over 10 million people across the world.

While it’s tough to find India specific data because eating disorders were considered “to be a problem that was largely confined to the more highly industrialized nations”, there has been much written about adolescents in our country being affected by the disorder nowadays. 

People with eating disorders typically become pre-occupied with food and their body weight, size and shape, psychiatrist Dr Sanjay Chugh told Huffpost India.

Most eating disorders have their onset in adolescence or early adulthood, Prachi Akhavi, a therapist at Antaraal, said. She added that eating disorders affect more women than men.

However, Dr Prerna Kohli, a clinical psychologist, said that the number of men who consult her for eating disorders has increased in the last few years. 

Tanya Vasunia, a psychologist at Mpower, said that those who struggle with such disorders face extreme low self-esteem, rigid thought patterns and anxiety. 

The most common forms of eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating. 

Forms of eating disorders

Anorexia is characterised by excessive weight loss and an intense fear of obesity, said Akhavi.  

Bulimia involves bouts of excessive eating followed by purging through puking or intake of laxatives, she added. Bulimia can be more difficult to spot as the sufferer may not lose weight in the same way as in anorexia, Binita Priyambada, a consultant for docprime.com, wrote for Firstpost.

Binge eating, on the other hand, usually does not have purging symptoms. It involves intake of unusually large amounts of food in short periods of time followed by feelings of guilt and shame, Akhavi said.

What are the causes?

Factors leading to eating disorders usually have psychological roots, experts say. “Some people have a poor self image and feel that others will not find them attractive if they are not extremely thin,” said Kohli.  

Chugh said that emotional distress caused by a poor self image or the stress stemming from personal, social and other work related problems, could lead to people indulging in unhealthy eating patterns that later take the shape of a disorder.

“An unfortunate reality like fat shaming/body shaming almost automatically puts a huge amount of pressure on young, impressionable minds to be thin because of which they would either starve or adopt unhealthy eating habits like bingeing and purging,” Chugh said.

Akhavi said, “Our relationship with our bodies is at the centre of the eating disorders.” In some ways all of these disorders represent the struggle to establish control over our bodies, she added.

Treatment for eating disorders

The experts said that counselling was the best form of helping people with an eating disorder. 

“Therapy can help in rethinking and rebuilding one’s relationship with one’s body,” said Akhavi.  

She also suggested support groups that help in dealing with the associated feelings of shame or fear.

Therapists also use medication to manage depression or anxiety which is often associated with eating disorders.

How can families help?

Vasunia said that it is imperative that families support the individual. Being kind but firm is key in assisting the individual to seek help.

Being sensitive while communicating with the individual is also important, she said while adding that family members must avoid disregarding their feelings or making them feel silly. 

Akhavi said the families as well as the individual need to psycho-educate themselves so as to take these conditions as serious psychological illnesses and not merely as tantrums, excessive hunger or moodiness.

Apart from this, she said that a circle of care around a patient and a willingness to seek professional care helps in case of all psychological distress.

Apart from seeking professional assistance, those suffering can help themselves by taking small steps. 

Talking/sharing what you are going through with someone you trust can help. Vasunia said, “Eating disorders can lead an individual to feel very isolated and disconnected from their environment. So you need to find someone you trust.”

Remembering your strengths is another way. Engage in activities and with people who make you feel good about yourself, Vasunia added. She said that volunteering, starting a gratitude journal or going for a fun class like yoga can help in battling negative thoughts.

Are you voting for the first time this election? If so, this is what you need to know before you step inside the polling booth.

How To Vote

1. Before you leave to vote, check where your polling booth is.

2. Make sure your name is on the Election Commission’s voter’s list, also called the electoral roll.

3. If you don’t have a voter’s ID, you can still vote. Just make sure you carry one of these 11 alternate IDs approved by the Election Commission.

4. Once you’re at the polling booth, the first polling officer will check your ID.

5. The second polling officer will mark your finger with indelible ink and give you a paper slip.

6. You will be asked to sign a register (Form 17A).

7. Deposit your slip with the third polling official and show them your inked finger. You will then be directed to the polling booth. Mobile phones, cameras and other such gadgets are not allowed inside the booth.

8. Once inside the polling booth, press the ballot button on the EVM next to the symbol of the candidate of your choice. The machine will make a beep sound. 

9. A slip will appear on the window of the VVPAT machine next to the EVM. This is for you to ensure that the machine has registered your vote against the right candidate. The slip will show you the name, serial number and symbol of the candidate you voted for.  It will be visible in the window for 7 seconds before it drops in the sealed VVPAT box.

For a demonstration of the voting process, see video below: