BENGALURU — Karnataka BJP stalwart BS Yediyurappa was sworn in as Chief Minister of the state for a fourth time on Friday in a sudden twist to the protracted high voltage political drama in the state with a big challenge to manage numbers staring him in the face.

Shortly after taking the oath, Yediyurappa said he would move a motion of confidence in the assembly on 29 July to prove his majority, apparently confident of winning it with the expectation that 16 rebel Congress and JDS MLAs may abstain as they did on Tuesday last, giving him the edge.

Of the 20 rebels MLAs, three were disqualified by the Assembly Speaker Thursday while the lone BSP MLA’s stand is not clear.

A few JD(S) legislators have impressed upon former CM HD Kumaraswamy to extend external support to the BJP government in Karnataka, party MLA and former minister GT Devegowda said on Friday.

Barely four days after losing power, the JD(S) legislators are divided on their next course of action.

The difference of opinion among the legislators surfaced in a meeting convened by Kumaraswamy on Friday night to decide the party’s future course of action in the wake of upheavals in Karnataka politics.

After the meeting of party legislators here, Devegowda said, “We (MLAs) discussed the future course of action. Some have suggested that we should sit in opposition, while some legislators are of the opinion that we should support the BJP from outside.” 

“We have authorised Kumaraswamy to take the final decision,” he said.

The JD(S) and its ally in the previous government ― the Congress ― had alleged that the BJP was the root cause behind unseating them from power by luring and threatening their MLAs.

JD(S) patriarch and former prime minister HD Deve Gowda, in a tweet, congratulated Yediyurappa on his swearing-in.

Amid speculations about BJP and JD(S) joining hands, Yediyurappa had recently ruled out any possibility of an alliance with the regional party, having had bitter experience in the past.

The BJP and JD(S) had formed a coalition government in 2006 with Kumaraswamy as chief minister and Yediyurappa as his deputy, under a power sharing formula of 20 months each.

That government had collapsed as the JD(S) did not transfer power to BJP, paving the way for the saffron party to win elections in 2008.

(With PTI inputs)

Fans of Beyoncé are divided over an ad campaign video the singer released on her personal YouTube account in which she touts her success with trainer Marco Borges’ 22 Days Nutrition diet.

The ad begins with Beyoncé stepping on the scale — “every woman’s nightmare,” she calls it — on the first day of rehearsals for her 2018 headlining Coachella performance. The pop icon followed the plant-based diet program for 44 days total leading up to Coachella, according to the video.

“I was a woman that felt like my body was not mine,” the “Lion King” star says in the video, referring to what it was like after she gave birth to her twins, Rumi and Sir. “Me getting the weight off was so much easier than getting back in shape and my body feeling comfortable.”

The video includes footage of Beyoncé going through intense rehearsals while Borges promotes the benefits of the vegan diet, calling it “a move towards healthier choices” that’s designed to help improve sleep, mood, complexion and strength in addition to managing weight.

The end of the ad shows Beyoncé twirling in what she calls her “wonder woman costume” and appearing thrilled to have lost the weight.

“She’s comin’ back,” Beyoncé says in voiceover as the ad shows her performing at Coachella.

The ad campaign yielded mixed responses from fans and critics alike. Some fans applauded the singer for following a vegan lifestyle. Others expressed disappointment that she chose to focus on the scale and a “fad diet” rather than body positivity.

“I’m disappointed to hear her calling her weight post-twins every ‘woman’s nightmare’, and promoting a VERY restrictive diet,” one Twitter user wrote.  “Perhaps use your star power to promote body positivity and beauty at any body size.”

Anne Gaviola at Vice pointed out that Beyoncé has access to professionals who can help her reach “long-term success” with her health. 

“Beyoncé is able to diet with the oversight of several professionals, so she has a good chance of long-term success no matter what her short or long-term goals are,” Gaviola wrote. “But, for those of us who don’t have an army of professional chefs, coaches, and medical experts guiding us every step of the way, the outcome is likely to be far more uncertain.”

“ICYMI By HuffPost” sat down to discuss the ad controversy. Watch above.

Heavy rains have halted Mahalaxmi Express between Badlapur and Wangani outside Mumbai, stranding nearly 2000 passengers who are on board the train, on Saturday morning.

The NDRF has deployed eight boats to the site to evacuate passengers, Central Railways said on Saturday.

The Railway Protection Force and the city police are at the site and have distributed biscuits and water to the passengers. 

Central Railway has requested passengers to the stay on the train and not attempt to leave it. “Please don’t get down from train. Train is the safe place. Staff, RPF and City Police is in train to look after your well being. Please wait for advice from NDRF and other disaster management authorities,” it tweeted.

ANI’s video footage showed the water level in the area had reached up to the steps leading into the train.

Mumbai was lashed by heavy rains on Friday and the IMD also predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall in Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai in the next 24 hours, PTI reported.

The Colaba observatory in Mumbai recorded 19.1 mm rain in the 24 hours ending 8.30 am on Friday, while the Santacruz weather station recorded 44 mm rainfall during that period.

An orange alert has been sounded for for Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts of Maharashtra, to signify that the authorities should get ready for necessary action.

For some, the menopause can spell a loss in sexual desire. Physical effects such as hot flashes, night sweats and vaginal dryness – all as a result of declining oestrogen levels – can bring about a decline in a person’s sex drive.

And testosterone might just be the key to changing that, according to a new study, which found it significantly improved sexual function and sexual wellbeing in postmenopausal women.

Although best known as a male hormone, testosterone is important for female sexual health, contributing to libido and orgasm as well as helping to maintain normal metabolic function, muscle strength, cognitive function and mood. However as women age, their testosterone levels naturally start to dip and they can also drop sharply following surgical menopause.

The new study found postmenopausal women treated with testosterone showed reduced measures of sexual concerns and sexually-associated distress.

However it was noted that oral formulations work best, as non-oral formulations resulted in some side effects such as mild weight gain, acne and increased hair growth.

Previous research has suggested that testosterone therapy can improve sexual function in women, but the available formulations have been designed for men and evidence for their safety or for adverse side-effects in women is scant.

For the study, published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology journal, researchers conducted a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis of testosterone treatment for women, including 46 reports on 36 trials involving 8,480 women.

Senior author Professor Susan Davis from Monash University, Australia, said the results suggest it is time to develop testosterone treatment tailored to postmenopausal women rather than treating them with higher concentrations formulated for men.

“Nearly a third of women experience low sexual desire at midlife, with associated distress, but no approved testosterone formulation or product exists for them in any country and there are no internationally-agreed guidelines for testosterone use by women,” she said.

“Considering the benefits we found for women’s sex lives and personal wellbeing, new guidelines and new formulations are urgently needed.”

As there were few studies available for premenopausal women, the authors noted that no conclusions could be drawn about the efficacy of testosterone treatment for sexual dysfunction in this group.

In studies involving surgically postmenopausal women, consistent beneficial effects were seen for all measures of sexual function. Testosterone treatment resulted in an increase in the frequency of satisfactory sexual events.

Treatment significantly increased sexual desire, pleasure, arousal, orgasm, responsiveness to sexual stimuli and self-image.

Women treated with testosterone also showed reduced measures of sexual concerns and sexually-associated distress.

More research needs to be done to understand potential long-term side effects.

“The beneficial effects for postmenopausal women shown in our study extend beyond simply increasing the number of times a month they have sex,” said Prof Davis.

“Some women who have regular sexual encounters report dissatisfaction with their sexual function, so increasing their frequency of a positive sexual experience from never, or occasionally, to once or twice a month can improve self-image and reduce sexual concerns, and may improve overall wellbeing.”

Jenna Bush Hager thinks she could be related to a royal if she had just avoided wearing sunglasses.

The “Today” show host and daughter of former President George W. Bush said Friday that she once tried to set up her twin sister, Barbara, with Prince Harry ― but the sunglasses kept things from working out.

Hager said she interviewed the Prince in 2016 before the Invictus Games in Orlando, Florida. In addition to getting the interview, she apparently wanted to get her sister a date.

The future looked bright until Harry suggested he and Hager wear sunglasses, a decision she regrets in hindsight because the glasses made it seem as if there was a “barrier between us.”

Not that it stopped her from playing matchmaker.

As the video below shows, Hager had no problem asking Prince Harry about his love life. 

And when the prince mentioned he was single, she made her move.

“I have a single sister,” she interjected. “Listen, she’s available. She’s going to kill me.”

Russia’s Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft carrying the members of the International Space Station — NASA astronaut Andrew Morgan, Russian cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov and Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano — blasts off from the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on July 20, 2019.

A woman carries an infant at al-Hol camp for displaced people in northeastern Syria on July 22, 2019, as people collect UN-provided humanitarian aid packages.

A reflection of people cooling off in the Trocadero fountains across from the Eiffel Tower in Paris as a new heatwave broke temperature records in France, July 25, 2019.

A man uses his phone under an artistic work in Caracas on July 22, 2019.  Venezuela is wracked by an economic crisis after five years of crippling recession in which its population has faced a shortage of basic necessities and failing public services.

Ukraine’s Roman Svichkar and France’s Ronan Gustin compete during the men’s épée team final at the 2019 Fencing World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, on July 22, 2019.

A photo from July 22, 2019, shows the demolition of a Palestinian building under construction in the Palestinian village of Sur Baher in East Jerusalem.  Israel demolished a number of Palestinian homes it considers illegally constructed near its barrier south of Jerusalem on July 22, drawing international condemnation.

A cat disrupts play in the second half between Tigres UANL and the Real Salt Lake during their Leagues Cup game at Rio Tinto Stadium in Utah on July 24, 2019. 

Guatemalan migrant Ledy Perez embraces her son Anthony while praying for a member of the Mexican National Guard to let them cross into the United States, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, July 22, 2019. 

People play at a dam on Zhuangzhong mountain on July 23, 2019, in Ningbo, China.

Viacheslav Kolesnikov of Ukraine dives during the men’s high-diving competition at the World Swimming Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, on July 24, 2019.

A police officer salutes as late former U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens lies in repose in the Great Hall of the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on July 22, 2019. 

Lithuanian pilot Jurgis Kairys, with his Su-31, makes a face in the sky during the Wings Over Baltics Airshow 2019 in Tukums, Latvia, July 21, 2019.

FBI agents arrested a Bronx man at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City on Friday for allegedly trying to travel to Afghanistan to join the Taliban, according to federal prosecutors.

The man, identified as Delowar Mohammed Hossain, plotted to go to Afghanistan so he could kill American soldiers abroad, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York said in a statement.

Hossain, 33, purchased a ticket for a flight scheduled to depart from New York to Thailand on July 26, according to the criminal complaint. He was arrested while trying to board the flight.

“Delowar Hossain had a despicable goal. He wanted to make his way to Afghanistan, join up with Taliban forces, and kill Americans,” FBI Assistant Director of Counterterrorism Michael McGarrity said, citing the criminal complaint. “But he failed because members of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force interrupted his plans.”

Hossain is a U.S. citizen who was born in Bangladesh, New York City news station WPIX reported.

Prosecutors detailed his arrest and charges in a press release.

Hossain allegedly began expressing a desire to join the Taliban and fight against U.S. forces in early fall 2018. The criminal complaint claims that Hossain tried to recruit a confidential FBI source to travel with him to Pakistan, where they would cross the border to Afghanistan to join the Taliban.

To disguise his intent, the complaint says Hossain wanted to first fly to Thailand before reaching Pakistan. Hossain allegedly purchased walkie-talkies and trekking gear to prepare for his travels and encouraged the FBI source to save money for weapons in Afghanistan.

Prosecutors quoted Hossain in the complaint as saying, “I want to kill some kufars [non-believers] before I die.” 

Hossain was criminally charged with attempting to provide material support for acts of terrorism, a crime punishable by up to 15 years in prison. He appeared before a judge in a federal court in Manhattan on Friday.

Gwyneth Paltrow opened up about her looks, the aging process and struggling with her identity as she gets older on a recent episode of Goop’s new podcast, “The Beauty Closet.” 

“I’ve always felt so funny about my looks,” the “Iron Man” actress told Goop editors Jean Godfrey-June and Megan O’Neill. “I think that it’s very rare to think that you’re a beautiful person, and so, I feel like every other woman — like, I don’t see that when I look in the mirror.”

The Goop founder added that though she doesn’t always see herself as beautiful, other people have “considered” her that ― which she says is a “weird thing to be” as she gets older. 

“I think when you come to age, if you have this broad identity as that, what does it mean to get wrinkles and, like, get closer to menopause, and all these things?” she pondered. “What happens to your identity as a woman if you’re not fuckable and beautiful?”

There are upsides to getting older though, as Paltrow said she feels “less judgmental” about herself, as opposed to when she was younger and “trying to please” people all the time. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t still struggle with losing parts of her identity. 

“It’s like ― you feel so good, you know who you are, hopefully, you value the relationships in your life and your work and your contribution to the world,” Paltrow said.

“But then you’re like, ‘Wow, I have crow’s feet. Damn!’” she quipped. 

And as she gets older, Paltrow is experiencing lots of new things ― like being in  her first “adult relationship” with now-husband Brad Falchuk, a TV producer.

The Goop founder spoke about the difference in her new love with couples counselor Esther Perel in an interview with The Sunday Times last year. 

“Now, for the first time, I feel I’m in an adult relationship that is sometimes uncomfortable, because he sort of demands a certain level of intimacy and communication that I haven’t been held to before,” she said. “What came up in the first couple of years of our relationship was how incapable I was in this realm, how I feared intimacy and communication.”

A lawyer for actress Amber Heard is denying accusations from ex-husband Johnny Depp that she once shoved a cigarette into his cheek.

The Blast is reporting Depp made the allegations as part of an amended response to a libel lawsuit against News Group Newspapers Limited over a 2018 article that called him a “wife-beater.”

Depp claims the incident happened during a March 2015 argument in Australia. 

Heard’s lawyer, Eric George, denied the allegations in a statement to HuffPost.

“This allegation is absurd, offensive and categorically untrue,” George said. “This photograph proves nothing - apart from the fact that Johnny Depp is desperate to throw out any outlandish allegation to deflect attention from his physical and ongoing psychological abuse of Amber Heard.”

Depp is alleging that during the argument in Australia, Heard went “into a rage” after she learned from the actor’s attorney about his “intention to enter into a post-nuptial agreement.”

Depp said that he tried to avoid Heard by going to the downstairs bar in his house, but she followed him and screamed at him.

The actor claims that after he drank some vodka, Heard threw two bottles. He says one missed him and the other caused what the website calls his “infamous severed finger.”

Depp then accused Heard of allegedly putting out a cigarette on his right cheek. The Blast article includes a photo of Depp on a gurney with a napkin loosely wrapped around his right middle finger and what looks like a blemish on his cheek.

Depp and Heard were married between 2015 and 2017. The actress has accused him of more than a dozen abusive incidents before and during their brief marriage. Heard has accused Depp of punching, slapping, choking and kicking her while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Stomach cramps, mood swings, fatigue, a face full of spots and some serious bloating: on the surface your period doesn’t seem designed to make you feel your sexiest. Not to mention if you have a heavy flow, when the idea of anything near your vagina other than a tampon, pad or menstrual cup seems like a recipe for carnage.

As a result lots of people write off sex altogether in the week of their period, preferring to wait until it’s finished before engaging in the bedroom. This can vary from a penetrative sex rule (one woman said an ex-partner optimistically referred to that time as ‘blow job week’) to no sexual touching of any kind. 

While you can see some of the reasons for choosing to avoid it, there are other people out there who find sex during their period to be a positive experience.

One poll of 500 people found 55% of participants thought period sex was “awesome” and “natural” (not least because a release of post-orgasm oxytocin and dopamine hormones can be helpful in lessening cramp pain). In fact there are some people who enjoy period sex so much they actively seek it out.  

Jenni*, 25, from London, says she is all for having sex when she is on her period because she tends to have a higher libido. This isn’t as uncommon as it sounds – experts have speculated about the causes of this well-documented libido surge from the psychological (feeling liberated from a fear of pregnancy) to the physiological (the theory that bleeding stimulates nerve endings in the vulva).

The first time Jenni had period sex was at the beginning of 2018, and now she does it regularly. “Sex is always on my mind [during my period],” she says, adding that she and her partner use a towel to clean up afterwards but also rely on the missionary position to try and reduce mess – rather than her preferred position of ‘cowgirl’. She also has more shower sex during her period. 

But Jenni didn’t always feel this way. “Having been that person who was afraid of the stigma, it is totally understandable [to me] why some people might feel differently.” The turning point, she says, was a feeling of resentment that women’s bodies were treated differently to men’s. “Boys are fine with ‘cum’ so why aren’t they fine with blood? Blood is just blood.”

Other people like the extra layer of intimacy it can bring with a partner. Lydia*, 21, from York, doesn’t have period sex on one night stands but would with “a partner who really cares about me”, she says. “It’s like peeing with the door open or talking in the morning before you’ve brushed your teeth. A little icky and a little bit more real. It’s embarrassing and messy but it feels more honest.” 

Rachel, 26, from Leeds agrees on the intimacy it brings – and as a result wouldn’t do it with a one night stand either, only with her current long-term partner. “Knowing that it doesn’t bother my boyfriend feels good,” she says 

Ellie*, 19, from Cheshire is more on the fence. She has had period sex before, near the end of her period, but doesn’t do it regularly and isn’t really a fan. This is because she doesn’t feel at her best when she is bleeding, either physically or mentally. “I find I am in too much pain with my period earlier on in the seven days. I know it’s only a little blood but I don’t feel overly sexy when I’m on my period and it all feels a bit messier than it’s worth.”

But, like Jenni, she does acknowledge that her sex drive is much higher when she is on her period. “This could be psychological because I’ve told myself I can’t have it. But your sex drive is definitely higher in my experience – I can definitely understand why people love it.”

Aside from the pain, she also struggles with having the conversation with male partners. “It all feels a little too much for me and my partner to handle, like you can be close but it still feels a bit much! I think it is something that works better with a long-term partner as it is messy and can be a bit embarrassing.”

Kelvin*, 22, a trans man from London says that having period sex is a negative experience for him because it is too triggering. He had periods when he was younger – he started a medical transition at the age of 15 – but wasn’t old enough to have sex, and has only experienced period sex secondhand with a partner. 

Even though it isn’t him having the period, he says that this can be a stressful time for a trans person suffering with gender dysphoria (where a person experiences discomfort or distress over the mismatch between their gender identity and the gender they were assigned at birth). Because of this, he says, sex has been “completely off the table” during his partner’s period.

Any interaction on those days has relied on using toys over clothes, or anal sex. But Kelvin says this is still difficult and it sometimes feel easier just to avoid it. “Because of my history with dysphoria, it can be difficult to navigate period sex with partners who are up for it without being triggered,” he says. “Even though it’s not mine, seeing menstrual blood can cause me to have anxiety attacks.”

Zoe*, 27, from London, is also anti-period sex because of the pain and discomfort she experiences during her periods. “I’m bleeding, it’s sticky and messy and it has an odour, my back aches, I get awful sharp cramps like I can feel my body shredding itself apart, I’m often bloated, and if I tried to have sex when feeling like that, that’s all I’d be thinking about.

“If it was just the mess it would be simpler, but for me (and I’m sure loads of others), it’s all the other stuff going on with my body as well as the bleeding. Period bowel movements? Not an aphrodisiac.”

Zoe is in a long-term relationship. For her it’s not about awkwardness, she says, adding that often feels “horny” on her period, so she can see those arguments.

But for her, it’s still a no. She worries that period sex has been co-opted by men as a “badge of honour,” rather than always being what women want. “There’s an element of shaming to it,” she says. “If you aren’t getting jiggy when on your period you’re a prude! It’s not the case – I’m as horny as the next person but I also know myself and my body.”

• Some names have been changed and surnames omitted at the request of interviewees.

Seventy two percent married Indian women interviewed for a survey by a medical portal in 2015 confessed that they were dissatisfied with their sex lives. Let that figure sink in: 72% of the women the portal surveyed.

In comparison, 98% of the men interviewed by the portal said they were quite happy with their sex lives. 

Considering women in India are conditioned to believe that sexual gratification is not an important aspect of their lives, the figures are probably not deeply shocking. Therapists HuffPost India spoke to revealed that most women struggling with sexless marriages don’t even consider the lack of sex may be a root of their troubles. 

“Never wash your dirty linen in public”, we’ve heard women from older generations tell us, and we have internalised it to the extent that women don’t even talk about it to doctors at times.

“The lack of sexual compatibility is the root cause of isolation for a woman in a marriage. This manifests in depression or ‘crying cycles’. During therapy, we try to dig deeper and unravel the genesis of the constant fights and discontentment. In most cases it stems from sexless marriages,” says Priyanka Shah, counseling psychologist from Mumbai. 

So what forces Indian women, some of whom are economically independent, to stay in sexually incompatible relationships?  

1. Sexual gratification is not important in a marriage

There is hardly any discussion around the need for sexual satisfaction of married women in India. This taboo leads to a lack of awareness for both the wife and the husband. Since discussing it is considered vulgar, women often feel sexual gratification is not important in a marriage.

“Is he abusive?” “Is he financially unstable?” “Does he have an extramarital affair”? If the answers to these questions are a “NO”, then the woman starts believing that sex is not the most important factor for a healthy and happy union. “She doesn’t even realise that she could be deprived of her basic rights. And this is mostly due to social conditioning, where a sexless marriage is not considered the worst kind of marriage to be in,” says Shah.

The prospect of finding another partner, who could tick all the right boxes, also seems impossible to a married woman in India. The fear of the unknown works like a trap, and she prefers to stay in her current sexless marriage.

2. Sex was never good, so there is nothing to miss

Often, women choose to stay off sex than be disappointed by it. This could happen due to a number of reasons, says Anindita Chowdhury, Clinical Psychologist and Reproductive Health Consultant from Kolkata. If a woman’s sexperience has not been satisfactory right from the beginning, she gradually tends to lose interest in the act.

“Instances, where the couple plan sex but cannot really see it through, make the experience frustrating for the woman. Her partner’s premature ejaculation or losing erection while insertion, or lack of foreplay, could leave her dissatisfied and dry,” says Chowdhury. 

This makes sex less enjoyable or inviting for the woman, and she chooses to voluntarily stay off it. With less sex comes low self esteem, which stops her from discussing her needs with her husband. More often than not, the wife internalises it and even shifts the blame on to herself. 

3. A convenient, parallel sex life outside marriage

It is a myth that Indian women do not crave for sex as much as the men do. Another convenient misbelief is that women want fewer sexual partners. If sex within marriage is not satisfactory, they are more than willing to look outside. Indian women are, in fact, open to leading parallel sex lives. 

“Dating apps like Tinder, Bumble and Hinge are as popular with married women in India, as they are with single ladies. I have had clients tell me they use escort services. And they do not feel guilty about it,” says Chowdhury.

For a married woman, a parallel sex life would mean having one or more partner than the husband. These are mostly men she considers attractive and good enough to bed, but not be in a relationship with.

4. The belief that compatibility and sex are the same

This may come as a shock to most, but experts say emotional compatibility has nothing to do with sexual satisfaction. You could be best friends with your husband. You both could even be deeply in love. But even that may not guarantee a fulfilling sexual relationship. 

“What we do not realise is that sex and compatibility are two separate issues. Most Indian couples feel it is more important to live harmoniously. We, as a society, just don’t talk about the need for sexual gratification in marriages,” says Shah.

According to Shah, women she has met often stay in sexually-deprived marriages because they are emotionally attached to their husbands. Living with someone for months or years can turn into a fond habit that one cannot get rid of easily.

5. Feeling responsible for the lack of sex in marriage

More often than not married women feel responsible for their husbands’ actions. They blame themselves for their sexual incompatibility and can even feel guilty of their own bodily needs. The fear of being judged silences them into leading sexless marriages.

Most Indian families do not view sexual incompatibility as a reason for separation. Often, the woman’s upbringing does not allow her the space to discuss marital problems with anyone, including her own partner. As a result, she continues to live in a sexless marriage.

6. Balancing work and family kills the woman’s sexual urge

Caught between work and family, Indian women lose their appetite for sex. According to Chowdhury, married women often complain that the burden of taking care of the home, children and extended family is on them. So, unlike men, who can unwind after office hours, it becomes impossible for them to relax. Naturally, a woman’s body shuts down when in bed and she suppresses her desire for sex.

“She feels overworked and the bed looks more inviting for a peaceful night of sleep than sex. So even if the husband is willing, the woman may postpone sex for weekends and holidays. This leads to frustration for both her and her husband,” says Chowdhury.

7. The fear of financial insecurity and raising kids alone

Despite sexual incompatibility, Indian women try their best to salvage their marriage. A big reason for this is the need for financial stability. This is true for both working women and homemakers. 

And, when you add children to this equation, the woman’s personal satisfaction takes a backseat, says Chowdhury. The need to ensure education and a safe future for their children takes precedence. 

“Indian mothers stay in sexless and loveless marriages as long as they know their kids are safe. This need to protect and maintain the ‘complete family’ image often comes with a price,” says Shah.

The fear of living alone and running the show solo are such big hurdles, that Indian married women choose to stay in sexless marriages. Often all their lives.

Over 700 passengers, including nine pregnant women, of the Mahalaxmi Express stuck near Vangani in Thane district, were rescued by the NDRF on Saturday afternoon, the Maharashtra Chief Minister’s Office said.

The train had left Mumbai for Kolhapur on Friday night, but could not travel beyond Chamtoli, where it reached early Saturday, as heavy rains waterlogged the tracks and vast areas around it.

The National Disaster Response Force, the Indian Navy, the Indian Air Force, Railway Protection Force and local authorities jointly launched a rescue operation to move the passengers out of the deluged area.

One of the things that I love most about “Queer Eye” is the way the show artfully deconstructs stereotypes by cutting through loaded and polarizing issues to tell the stories of individual people. Jonathan, Antoni, Karamo, Bobby and Tan introduce their audience to individuals and their communities with sensitivity and respect. We have never needed the Fab Five more, and personally, I adore them.

It’s my loyal fandom that made Episode 2 of the newly released Season 4 particularly disappointing. In this episode, the men helped Wesley, a Black man, loving father, 30-year-old community activist and wheelchair user based in Kansas City. He acquired his disability after being shot in the abdomen seven years ago. Now, he runs a nonprofit called “Disabled But Not Really,” which strives to increase accessibility and empowerment in fitness settings. 

Wesley is kind, funny, charismatic and thoughtful. Despite my affection for this hero, I found the episode itself painful. I am a disabled woman who uses a power wheelchair, and the show missed an opportunity to make the world more equitable for those of us with disabilities. 

Embracing one’s identity has been a central theme throughout all four seasons of “Queer Eye” — a direct reflection of the Fab Five’s examples of hard-won self-love. In Season 3, Jess Guilbeaux struggled with her identities as a Black woman and lesbian. The Fab Five drew from their individual experiences of accepting and embracing their own queer identities to help her do the same in an episode with the empowering title, “Black Girl Magic.” By contrast, in Wesley’s episode, they danced around themes of disability pride, accessibility, independence/interdependence and assimilation without ever aligning themselves with the values central to the disability rights movement.  

My guess, based on statistics about disability representation in media, is that the producers didn’t consult with disability rights activists — much less employ them on the show — when they were developing and editing the episode. If they had, then less problematic themes would have dictated the narrative course of this episode. Critically, being disabled is not a negative. It’s an identity, just like being queer, Black or Latinx is an identity. If it makes you pause to hear “Black, but not really,” or “gay, but not really,” then you should have the same reaction to “disabled, but not really.”

Disability, as defined by the disability rights movement and even the World Health Organization, is primarily a result of society’s exclusion of different body types through architecture and policy. This framework, called the social model of disability, is empowering because it focuses our attention on the social issues affecting disabled people that need to to be addressed (like poverty rates, voting rights, access to education, adequate transportation, medical care, the prevalence of sexual assault, and employment opportunities). Disability is not defined by a lack of ability, but by a power structure that protects a particular way of having a body. 

It’s tricky, of course, because Wesley himself, a disabled man, named his organization, and the organization is doing incredible work. I also don’t know whether the name is meant to imply that “disability” itself a negative label or only that society views it as such. The problem isn’t Wesley. The problem is that we so rarely see people with visible disabilities on TV, and when we do, the stories told about us often perpetuate our oppression. “Queer Eye” had an enormous responsibility with this episode because people with disabilities experience such a scarcity of representation, and it fell short. The show failed to talk in-depth about the beautiful community of disabled people educating and advocating, and instead repeated tired and oppressive tropes about disability.

Wesley is not the first person on “Queer Eye” who has experienced ambivalence around his identity. Many of the heroes have felt uncomfortable with their gender, race, sexuality or ethnicity. What matters is that the Fab Five have, without exception, encouraged the stars of all the episodes to embrace who they are. With Wesley, while they never fully encourage him to reject his identity, their overarching goal was seemingly about helping him be more “normal,” which, in this case, they equate with being able-bodied.

While they unfortunately don’t explicitly address pervasive inaccessibility, the Fab Five do allude to how difficult it can be to navigate the world and even your own home as a person with a disability. Jackets, stairs, room dimensions and appliances are all made for a certain kind of body. Wesley and his mom reference the financial struggles that are inherent in acquiring a disability (his mother lost her job and her house in the process of trying to provide him with necessary care). The show never fully leans into this version of the story, though — the one where the disability isn’t the problem, it’s how society treats people with disabilities.

In one touching scene, Tan cries as he relates his own internalized homophobia, and how he has only recently come out to some members of his family. Wesley asks him how he was able to become proud, finally, of who he is. This scene could have been an opportunity to discuss disability pride, to consider that being disabled is not inherently worse than being able-bodied, that Wesley’s body isn’t deficient, and that often the shame a disabled person experiences comes from external messaging, not who they are and how their bodies work. Instead, Wesley somehow ends up comforting Tan, and we all move on. 

Of course, Wesley has the right to view disability however he would like. He is a disabled man, and it’s his life, his identity. But it’s also critical that we acknowledge the intersectional factors of his multiple identities ― as a father, a Black man, a survivor of gun violence, and a person with a disability. We also can’t expect one man’s story to represent all of us. Again, though, because there is such a dearth of disabled representation, each example carries a lot of weight. I would hope that, in the future, when “Queer Eye” features someone with a disability, they will ensure that the production and the messaging of the Fab Five align with disability rights’ core beliefs.

I am disabled, and my goal isn’t to be able-bodied. My goal is to see myself adequately represented in all spheres, including sentimental reality shows. It is not bad to be disabled. We don’t need to distance ourselves from that word.

Many people with disabilities, including me, are proud of our identity. My hope is that people with disabilities will soon be allowed the same level of safety, freedom, professional success and access to power as our non-disabled peers.

I wish that “Queer Eye” hadn’t missed this opportunity to examine ableism (including internalized ableism). I wish that the Fab Five hadn’t clinked their glasses at the end of the episode with the refrain, “Disabled, but not really. Cheers!” but instead, “Disabled and proud. Fuck yeah.”

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SRINAGAR — Two militants including a top Jaish-e-Mohammed commander from Pakistan responsible for a car blast last month in which two Army soldiers lost their lives, were killed on Saturday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Shopian district, police said.

Munna Lahori, a Pakistani national, was also responsible for a series of civilian killings in Kashmir, a police official said.

The second militant, an associate of Lahori, was a local, he said.

Lahori, also known as Bihari, had been used by Pakistan-based JeM for the recruitment of militants in the valley, the official said.

He was an expert in making Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).

Lahori was responsible for a car blast attack on security a forces’ convoy on March 30 at Banihal and “a fatal car blast on Army vehicle at Arihal in Pulwahma on June 17 in which two soldiers were killed and nine others including two civilians were injured,” the official said.

He said the security forces had launched a cordon and search operation in Banday Mohalla in Bonbazar area of Shopian last night following a tip-off about the presence of militants there.

The search operation turned into an encounter after the militants opened fire, leading to their killing, he said, adding that incriminating material including arms and ammunition were recovered from the site of the gunfight.

In a few months from now, Indians will be able channel their inner Indiana Jones, the saviour of antiquities. All they will need is a computer, a phone, and the internet to take a stab at identifying archeological heritage, hunting for buried treasure, and preventing the looting of artifacts. 

The Global Xplorer program, conceived by egyptologist Sarah Parcak, and backed by Tata Trusts, the philanthropic arm of the Tata Group, will give Indians access to satellite images and tutor them in the ways of becoming space or satellite archaeologists. 

India happens to be the worst victim of antiquities smuggling in the world. The sculptures of Hindu gods are one of the most smuggled commodities. 

This program, Anica Mann, an art historian and archeologist, is about getting everyone involved in preventing smugglers from looting India’s heritage.

Mann, a graduate of SOAS University of London and Oxford University, who is in charge of the program in India, said it was also about finding buried treasure.  “Buried treasures are all around this country. People are looking for temples but nobody is looking for buried treasure.”

What is satellite or space archaeology?

We have a lot of satellites around the earth now. All these satellites have different purposes to serve. All have different resolutions. With whatever resolution and purpose that they are sent into orbit for, they take pictures and send those pictures back. A lot of satellite imagery is housed by private companies like Digital Globe, who supply imagery to a platform like Google Earth, for example. 

Satellite archaeologists basically get these images and run them through software and scanners to look for archeological features or built heritage that could be underground or above the ground. This is used in times of war when a heritage site under threat. Do you remember how ISIS busted up an entire temple? There was an image and then suddenly there was no image. That’s the perfect use of satellite imagery. 

How else is satellite imagery being used for archaeology? 

Say you live in Champaran in Bihar, which is already a very well known site for Buddhism. Say you are farmer and you are tilling the fields when you find a new mound. You contact the authorities to come and check it out. Usually, the authority will sit on a train from Delhi and come to Champaran. This act of seeing if a monument exists over there is called ground truthing. It takes many days and it costs a lot of money. 

What if I was able to give satellite imagery of the geographical coordinates to the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) and they could check out whether there is a building or not. You don’t have to ground truth. So, that is how satellite imagery is used for archaeology.

Since when has satellite archaeology been going on?

It has come into the public domain in the past five to six years. One of the people leading this globally is Egyptologist and space archeologist Sarah Parcak. She founded this project after she won the Ted Prize Award, which is a million dollars. 

There was a lot of looting happening during the Arab Spring in Egypt. The Antiquities Ministry contacted her and asked for help to figure out the trend of looting through satellite imagery. And she did. She also discovered 18 new pyramids for them, thousands of news tombs. She presented this at TED, and she won the TED prize, which is a million dollars.  She used it to found Global Xplorer, a crowd sourced program which gives every citizen an opportunity to go through satellite imagery to find out whether it has archeological heritage or not. 

What is Global Xplorer?

Global means the entire planet planet. Explorer means you and me getting a chance to be Indian Jones over your computer, looking for archaeological features. But you are not looking for archaeological features in the old Indiana Jones way, where you are a tomb raider and you go to the tomb and take out the objects or try to protect the objects. Now, you are an explorer who is trying to fill up the missing pages of history with broken pieces of evidence that is previously undiscovered. 

We only have 10% of archeological history right now, 90% hasn’t even been discovered yet. The history of India is yet to completely told. Global Xplorers helps every person, individual, every citizen of the world, essentially participate in the discovery of that heritage. 

How does it work exactly? 

It’s very simple. You go on to www. globalxplorer.org and there is a short tutorial. Right now, what we are teaching is looting. Looting that is done in archeological sites is a very big problem around the world. It is one of the biggest black markets that is almost equal to human trafficking and drug market. It’s a big problem in the Middle East, especially with the rise of terrorism. India is the biggest victim of the antiquities black market. Every museum that has any acquisition post 1970, essentially that is a looted object because the law has forbidden the import of antiquities outside the country. 

So, you go onto the website and we teach you how to look for looting. You would be looking for digging pits outside an archeological sites. From space, it looks almost like a beehive. Once you do that tutorial, images are shown to you, and you are asked simple yes and no questions. No geographical coordinates are ever shared with the audience. To prevent looting, we do not reveal the location. 

The tutorial is on how to detect if something has been looted from somewhere...

How to detect if someone has been on that site and if there has been any intervention on the ground.

But the user won’t know where that site is?

 Yeah, you don’t know where that is. You know it’s somewhere in the world. We cannot, according to the laws of several countries, reveal the geographical location to you. You might see — say an amphitheater with holes dug around it — but you won’t know whether it is Italy or Greece or India. 

What is one looking for in the images? 

We are looking for archeological evidence, which, putting it very simply, could mean a building. Now, when you look at satellite imagery, how do you determine it’s a building? Anything that is made by nature is never in straight lines. So when you see a rectangle, you know for a fact that it is a manmade object. Context is important in determining whether that manmade feature is of archeological importance. So things like is it buried, is it next to a previous archaeological site, how buried, what material is it built of, what is its architectural plan, can help determine whether it is an archaeological figure. But essentially what you are looking at satellite imagery for is evidence of built heritage. 

How old does an object have to be for it to be archaeologically important?

It depends on the law of the country. In India, anything that is more that 100 years old, and is of any cultural significance, cannot be imported outside the country. With that, you can redact that it is of archeological importance. 

How did Global Xplorer come to India?

It was a very organic inclusion. India is the biggest victim of antiquities smuggling in the world. It’s a big dramatic thing in the world. Sarah was at a National Geographic event somewhere in America. Someone from the ASI called Dr. Prabhakar and members of TATA also happened to be at that conference. They heard her speak. ASI told her that India really needed this technology and she agreed to help. TATA really liked this technology disruptor in this archeology space. So, somehow the stars aligned. TATA wanted to invest its philanthropy in it. Somehow, TATA found me to design the Global Xplorer to design the project for India. 

It has a huge educational element. You will be defining the next generation of archeologists in the country. Right now, archeology is a very dormant genre of working in India. The only places you can work is universities or ASI. There is no other way to participate, but it is still very exciting. Everyone likes it. Everyone wants to go to a site and participate and know more about history. It’s very emotional. 

Where is the project at the moment?

We are updating our technology according to ASI’s requirement and we will be ready to launch in a few months. 

Is there more that a citizen archeologist can do? 

There are several things you do. First, you go on to the website and check out archeological sites. Now, we have people on the platform who say that I want to be involved more, can I know more about satellite and space archaeology, so we are running these workshops where you can learn how to be a space and satellite archaeologist yourself.  These are actually being done in partnership with Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and Deccan College in Pune, which is the oldest archaeological university in India.

We ask you to participate in actual ground truthing the site. We notice that you live next to Gujarat and there is a site about 12 kilometres away from you. Would you be kind enough to go over there and collect information for us? Can you download this app? We put in in-built scanners into our app. Once we do give this person this access, the blockchain that we are using to document all the objects, will monitor this person in terms of when they log on and log off and if they are at that particular location.  

Why is India the biggest victim of antiquities smuggling?

There was a survey done by Antiquities Coalition. In 2017 or 2016, they estimated that the amount of smuggled objects that came into the United States, India had the largest share. Based on that, based on several vigilante figures, based on the numbers of repatriation that have been done, it has been proved that India is the biggest victim of antiquities smuggling. Global organisations have also recognised that. 

Tamil Nadu is a really big victim. In fact, Tamil Nadu has a very interesting police force called the ‘idol police.’ Other big victims for antiquity smuggling are Karnataka, Gujarat. Actually, all of the country is quite vulnerable because a large part of it is along the coast. Second, most Hindu temples have sculptures and several sculptures. Can you imagine a Khajuraho temple and how many sculptures it has. Even one piece of sculpture from there would sell for over two, three, four, five million dollars. And when one piece of sculpture is missing among so many then nobody even notices it. We are so used to this entire discourse of temples being busted over time, being vandalised over time, that we actually don’t miss these sculptures too much, but they actually sell for a lot in the antiquities market. 

How does the smuggling happen?

There is a book which I highly recommend. It’s called The Idol Thief written by S. Vijay Kumar, who is from Tamil Nadu, and became a vigilante. He looks at old photographs of temples from Pondicherry Institute or any public domain and then he goes to the temples and compares to see what is missing. This is how he figures out and he has helped in a lot of repatriation.  

In this book, a simple anecdote is about a really beautiful Ardhanarishvara (half Shiva-half Parvati) statute which is guarded by a Godrej lock. The smugglers go into a temple at night, take sword, cut the Godrej lock, they take out the sculpture and replace it with a fake. They glue back the Godrej lock with Feviquick and go off with the statute. That’s how simply statues are taken out of temples. 

Mostly temples?

There are several other kinds of archaeological sites in this country. It just so happens that antiquity smuggling is very popular for sculptures but sculptures don’t exist in Islamic monuments. However, there are swords and daggers and jewellery that has been pilfered. A lot of it by the British. 

When people realised, especially temple Pandits, that there was an invading army, they took all the treasures of the temple and buried it somewhere. There is a proper ritual on how to bury these treasures. Buried treasures are all around this country. That’s why spotting digging with satellite imagery is very important for this country because nobody is looking for it. People are looking for temples but nobody is looking for buried treasure.

 What happens if someone does find treasure? 

There is a Treasure Trove Act. Say if you are a farmer digging your land, and you find a horde of sculptures, what do you do? According to the law, you are supposed to submit it to the state and it becomes state property.

But that is a poor farmer who is probably going to earn a lot more by selling it to a smuggler or a dealer and these dealers are all around. They have stronger networks than our governments and our police force. So it has become common for people to sell it to the highest bidder. And that is also how smuggling happens. 

How do smugglers operate? 

Satellite archaeology is very important for our country right now because smugglers have far more advanced technology than the protectors or the vanguards of archaeological heritage. Smugglers are using very sophisticated shipping routes. Things usually go from the ports of India to usually Hong Kong or Russia. From there, they can go to places like Germany and England. In England, somehow, they work with the provenance of the object ― they say it has come from a major Swiss art collect ― and then it goes into a gallery or an auction house and suddenly it comes into the white market. It also sells on the blackmarket on ebay. A lot of shipping containers have left the country marked as handicrafts.  

Is there a famous smuggler?

One of the biggest criminals, who is sitting in jail right now, is Subhash Kapoor. He was a very important gallerist on Fifth Avenue next to Tiffany’s in New York. He ran a gallery called Art of the Past, selling South Asian and Southeast Asian treasures. And he started donating a lot of very important pieces of sculptures to a lot of very important museums like the MET, the Louvre, the Australian National Museum of New South Wales, you name it. Then, his objects started going to the auction market. Then, people started coming to his gallery. He became this millionaire. 

Interpol, Homeland Security, the FBI, S. Vijay Kumar, the author, an old estranged girlfriend of Subhash Kapoor, who ratted on him on the Brooklyn Museum’s website, and Chennai idol police —they got after him and finally caught him in Germany. When they caught him, they raided just one of his warehouses. Just one of his warehouses had Indian sculptures worth $100 million. And he was deemed one of the largest commodity, not even antiquity, smugglers. No commodity has been smuggled out of a country in such volume. That commodity happened to be Indian sculptures. 

How do antiquities go from the  black to white market? An individual buys it and sells it to a museum. Won’t a museum check its history?

Falsification of paperwork to prove that this particular work has come from a very important private collection, has sat in that private collection for many years, and finally now the family wants to sell it. 

We all know that in Switzerland, there are containers and containers ― where the very rich stash their art. Collectors don’t display art on the walls, they collect it for investment purposes. A family can say that we bought it several years ago, it was a gift from so and so maharaja and now we want to sell it. 

Is it always a family or individual selling things to a museum or auction house?

No. Smugglers can find a family who says that we’ll help you, and then the documents are falsified.

What does the family get?

A commission. Sometimes, a family may not even know that they are being named in the false documents.

Are smuggled antiquities currently on display in some of the most famous museums in the world?

Yeah, several.  More than 200 objects, right before the (2019 general) election, returned to our country from prominent museums. 

If objects have been required recently, they probably have some dark history. If objects were acquired a long time ago, they too were smuggled. Let’s just take it as a blanket rule that most antiquities from colonised countries are  looted objects. Most stone sculptures belong in a temple. They have been sliced off a particular temple and sold. No law allows allows you to chisel out a sculpture and put it in a museum. 

Just last year, I went to Alabama, to the Birmingham Museum of Art. I went to the South Asian art section. This is something wonderful that the museum did. They identified a piece, which a vigilante had pointed out as smuggled and given strong evidence. So, the label of that Shiva Bhava Murti sculpture reads ― this sculpture as we understand has been identified from the Subhash Kapoor horde and is thus a smuggled piece. We are awaiting the correct paperwork to come through to send it back to its country where it rightly belongs but until then we have it in our care. 

Saanvi, a 23-year-old art student from Mumbai who identifies as a lesbian, had been comfortable with her sexuality for quite some time. The only thing that made her feel guilty was that she hadn’t come out to her friends and family yet. After talking this over with a counsellor, she decided to come out to her mother first, and only later to the rest of her family. She started leaving books and leaflets with information or stories about the LGBTIQA community in her living room for her family members to find, wanting to see how they would react. A few discussions at the dinner table went well, giving her the confidence to speak up. One day, she took her mother out for shopping and lunch, and bought her a saree. During lunch, she finally told her mother that she was a lesbian. She was shocked, and didn’t react too much at the time. But soon, it became obvious that she was finding it tough to come to terms with her daughter’s revelation.   

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Saanvi didn’t give up—she convinced her mother to accompany her to psychologists and counsellors until she (unwillingly) accepted her daughter’s sexuality. But without the reassurance that her mother would fully back her, Saanvi realised that it would be difficult to come out to her father or other relatives. The easy confidence she had in her choices was affected and she feels she will not be comfortable in taking anyone else into confidence anytime soon. 

Saanvi’s mother hasn’t worn the saree her daughter bought her that day even once.

For most people, coming out about one’s sexuality is a prolonged event that may be accompanied by abrasive reactions, violence, trauma and self-harm. The result is usually painful, and may convince at least some that it’s better to stay quiet.  

Even a few years ago, the average Indian may have been ignorant that there could be different kinds of sexualities. However, the legal battle against Section 377 and Pride marches for advocacy have put a spotlight on the LGBTIQA community. 

Coming out is a difficult decision to take. There are numerous questions involved—what is the right time to come out? How does one come out to anyone? Who is the right person to come out to? How much do you tell them? What are the consequences? Is one really prepared to speak or is the decision taken under some pressure? What can one expect from the person they are coming out to? 

There are no specific guidelines or right/wrong answers to these questions, as several factors — socio-economic, educational, cultural background etc — play a role in this. But it is advisable to seek professional help before going forward.

28-year-old Zafar was forced to get married early after his father was diagnosed with cancer. He went through depression because he identified as gay and getting married to a woman was never his choice. He went for psychotherapy on his partner’s suggestion and eventually got his father along for a counselling session. He came out to his father in front of the psychologist. Zafar felt relieved because he could now share what he felt with his father, but would need some more time to speak to his mother. His father initially remained in denial about his son’s sexuality, but after a few sessions, was willing to accept him on two conditions — he would never bring any of his boyfriends home and he would never talk about his sexuality to anyone else in the family. Zafar found he could put up with these conditions, at least for now. 

The mental health concerns related to coming out vary at different levels, ranging from depression, anxiety, distorted self-image, low self-confidence, suicidal ideation, suicidal attempts, angry outbursts, anti-social behaviour and substance abuse. These concerns spring from mainly the following issues:

• Denial or no acceptance from family members. Often, families do not accept a child who identifies as LGBTIQA. They either have to leave the house or live a suppressed life and are deprived of their legal and fundamental rights. Sometimes, they are also treated disrespectfully by family members. 
• Alternate treatment — Many are taken to faith healers, religious leaders and spiritual gurus under the misbelief that they are suffering from some ill fate or are possessed and can be cured. While some family members take their children to quacks who promise a cure from this disease, others go to a psychologist or psychiatrist who is willing to offer therapy to modify the queer behaviour at a high cost. 

• Corrective rapes — In such cases, the queer individual is forced to have sex with an individual from the opposite sex. Often, elder members from the extended families are allowed to bed with the queer individual or sex workers are hired. The mental trauma one undergoes because of these corrective rapes is sometimes irreparable, and leads to several other psychological concerns. 
• Forced marriage is the socially accepted option that many parents opt for because then everything can be pushed under the carpet and the children are forced to start a new life. This is mostly carried out through emotional blackmail, threats of physical harm, withholding property and wealth or threats to cast them out from the family or community. This spoils the life of the spouse as well because they never have a satisfying life with their partner and often, such marriages end up in a divorce. 

Saurabh made a frantic call to a mental health centre to seek an urgent appointment with a psychologist because he was suicidal and didn’t know what to do. He had found his younger sister and wife in a compromising position after returning from work early that day. When he confronted them, they told him that they had been in love with each other for five years. As there was no way that their families and society would have allowed them to live together, they tried this way — to get the girl married to him so they could live under one roof. Saurabh was devastated, but decided to seek professional help for all of them. After a few months of therapy, they collectively decided that Saurabh would divorce his wife and support his sister and her partner to help them settle abroad. This is, however, a rare situation where everyone finds some kind of peace and maybe even happiness.

Coming out is a life-changing decision for everyone who wants to live their life the way they want to. Unfortunately, in our country, it is accompanied by many worries. We are waiting for the day when coming out is not a scary experience but until then, one has to tread this path with great caution and, if possible, with professional guidance, at least initially. 

Names have been changed.

The author is a psychologist and outreach associate at Mpower—The Centre, in Mumbai. Mpower is an organisation that helps people tackle mental health issues.

HYDERABAD–Senior Congress leader and former Union minister S. Jaipal Reddy died at a hospital here in the early hours of Sunday.

The 77-year-old was recently diagnosed with pneumonia and was admitted to the hospital, where he died at 1:28 am, a Congress leader told PTI.

Reddy held key portfolios in various governments. He was a four-term MLA, member of Lok Sabha for five terms and member of Rajya Sabha for two terms.

Reddy was the Information and Broadcasting Minister in the IK Gujral government. During the UPA-1 government he held portfolios like urban development and culture.

In UPA-2, he was again assigned the urban development ministry. Later, he became the minister of petroleum and natural gas but was shifted to the science and technology and earth sciences ministries, creating a political storm.

The last rites of Reddy will take place on Monday, Congress Lok Sabha member Komatireddy Venkat Reddy said.

Speaking to reporters at Jaipal Reddy’s residence, Venkat Reddy said the state Government should allocate a place for performing the last rites keeping in view the popularity of the leader.

We will request the state Government to allocate place for the funeral as thousands of his followers and people are expected to attend. A regular crematorium cannot accommodate such a big crowd, Venkat Reddy said.

He also said the party would request the state Government and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao to name a project or place after Jaipal Reddy.

President Ram Nath Kovind expressed condolences over the passing away of Jaipal Reddy. 

“Sorry to hear of the passing of Shri S. Jaipal Reddy, former Union Minister. He was a thinking person’s politician and an outstanding parliamentarian. My condolences to his family and many associates,” the President said in a tweet,.

The Congress, in a tweet, said it was saddened to hear the passing of Reddy. “We hope his family and friends find strength in their time of grief.” 

“Deeply saddened and pained by the sudden demise of Jaipal Reddy,” Congress’ Telangana unit chief Uttam Kumar Reddy said, describing the party veteran as an outstanding orator, great human being and an intellectual giant.

“Huge personal loss to me and the entire Congress party. We will miss him,” he added.

TRS working president K T Rama Rao, son of Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, also condoled the death.

“My condolences to the family & friends of senior leader & Former union minister Shri #JaipalReddy Garu who passed away earlier today. RIP Sir (sic),” he tweeted.

K Chandrasekhar Rao and his Andhra Pradesh counterpart YS Jagan Mohan Reddy also expressed condolences over the death of senior Congress leader.

KCR in statement recalled the services rendered by Jaipal Reddy as union minister and parliamentarian.

Known for his oratory skills Jaipal Reddy carved a niche for himself in Parliament and State assembly alike. The chief minister conveyed his condolences to the bereaved family members, Jagan said in statement.

AICC spokesperson Dasoju Sravan said it’s a great loss to the party, to the people of Telangana and the nation.

“I am shocked (on his demise). He was a role model leader. His honesty was impeccable,” Sravan told PTI. 

“His role in formation of Telangana is superb.He silently did a great job of convincing Congress and various other political party leaders after personally talking to them and persuading them,” Sravan said.

It took only one Instagram post to turn a 7-year-old girl in Roanoke, Virginia, into an “insta-sensation.”

Of course, it helps that the post was by Rihanna, who was blown away at how much little Ala’a Baytops looks like her.

“Almost drop my phone. how?” was Rihanna’s reaction.

Others apparently felt the same. Rihanna’s post has been liked more than 7 million times since Tuesday.

Ala’a’s mom, Bria Baytops, said Rihanna’s mention was a real surprise.

She was at work when “a coworker walked in and was like, ‘Rihanna just posted your daughter,’” Baytops told ABC News.

“I was just star struck,” Baytops said. “Like it was surreal and still is.”

As for Ala’a? Her reaction was a little more restrained.

“She didn’t really realize what was going on until I showed her who she is, and she was like, ‘Woah!’” Baytops told BET.com. “We originally took the pictures because she said she wanted to model.”

Baytops said she has reached out to Rihanna and hopes she can arrange a meeting between the singer and her daughter.

“I am just appreciative she shared it because she didn’t have to. I would love for them to do a photo shoot, and if that doesn’t happen, I am just thankful that she shared her picture, that is amazing,” Baytops told Inside Edition.