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The Bombay High Court on Friday came down heavily on AI-generated and morphed images of Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, terming the content “extremely disturbing and shocking” and directing social media platforms to forthwith delete and remove all such links and websites.As per PTI, a vacation bench of Justice Advait Sethna observed that the material placed before the court was, “prima facie extremely disturbing,” adding that, “no personality, much less a person and or a woman can be portrayed in a fashion which affects her fundamental right to privacy and that too, without her knowledge and or consent.”
In her suit, Shetty sought protection of her personality rights, alleging that AI tools were used to clone her voice and mannerisms to create morphed images, books and other merchandise without her authorisation.The actor urged the court to pass an injunction directing websites to take down the content and to restrain them from using her name, voice or image without prior permission.Recording its findings, the court noted that Shetty had submitted images from multiple social media platforms which depicted her in an inappropriate and unacceptable fashion.“These pictures prima facie appear shocking,” Justice Sethna said in the order.
Acknowledging Shetty’s public standing, the court underlined the potential damage caused by the circulation of such content.She is a well-known film personality and active on social media, the bench observed, adding that portraying such images through URLs would “tarnish her image and reputation and this cannot be countenanced.” Concluding the matter, the high court directed all defendants to immediately delete the offending URLs from their respective platforms.“In the interest of justice,” the court ordered that the content be taken down without delay.
NEW DELHI: Union home minister Amit Shah on Friday said 40 kilograms (kgs) of explosives were used in an i20 car blast near Red Fort in New Delhi.Commending the J&K police for an “excellent investigation into the explosion,” Shah said, “3 tonnes of explosives were recovered before they could detonate, and the entire team involved in conspiring this plot was apprehended before the Delhi blast could take place.““The incident in Delhi happened with 40 kilograms of explosives, while 3 tonnes of explosives were recovered before they could detonate, and the entire team involved in conspiring this plot was apprehended before the Delhi blast could take place. He said that the investigation of this entire network was carried out very effectively by all our agencies,” Shah said, according to new agency PTI.The Union home minister said that in the coming days, the government will be “bringing a plan to launch a 360-degree assault on organized crime”.He also asked DGPs of all states should implement “extremely essential” common ATS structure for police at the earliest across the country.Inaugurating the ‘Anti-Terrorism Conference-2025’ in New Delhi, Shah said: “Everyone should move forward with the principle of ‘Duty to Share’ instead of ‘Need to Know’. He said that the central agencies and state police have made good use of technology at their respective levels, but technology developed in silos and data collected in silos are like a gun without bullets. It is better if all data can communicate with each other and are created using the same technology.” He further said: “For this purpose, the Ministry of Home Affairs, NIA, and IB should hold discussions to develop a seamless national-level framework for technology and data, and should support the states in strengthening it.”The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has till now arrested nine key accused in connection with the bomb blast that killed 15 people and injured several others in the 10/11 blast.The NIA said that while working closely with various central and state agencies, the NIA continues to move with “alacrity to unravel the complete conspiracy behind the terror attack.”Earlier this month, it had conducted extensive searches at the premises of several accused and suspects in J&K and Uttar Pradesh and seized various digital devices and other incriminating materials.The Union cabinet, days after the blast, described the November 10 car blast near Lal Quila as an act of “terror” in a description that signaled acknowledgement of the terrorists’ plan to cause large-scale mayhem by striking multiple targets.The designation of “terror incident” is significant because of the anti-terror doctrine worked out by the Modi govt in the wake of the Pahalgam attack. As per the new policy, a terror attack, as the PM had spelt out in his address to the nation, is proposed to be treated and dealt with as an act of aggression against the country.However, sources have refrained from saying whether the car blast near Red Fort fulfilled the criterion and said a determination would be based on what the investigation across states might throw up. The cabinet, however, signalled its intent to use all options available to it against terror.
NEW DELHI: People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti on Friday lost her cool with a journalist who asked her to speak in Urdu instead of Kashmiri, which the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister was using at the time.As soon as she began her press conference in Kashmiri at the PDP headquarters in Srinagar, a journalist asked her to speak in Urdu.“Do you want a translation? Why? Translate it. Why don’t you ask Stalin to speak in English or Urdu?” Mufti snapped, referring to Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin, who speaks only Tamil, his native language.She further urged Kashmiri journalists to “show some respect” for their language.“This is the only thing that is left now, so respect the Kashmiri language a little,” the former chief minister said, before continuing her address in her mother tongue.
Mufti also spoke about the lynching of two Hindu youths in separate incidents in neighbouring Bangladesh, drawing a parallel with the “intolerant” situation in India.“The intolerance in the entire country has increased. Lynchings are taking place. What is happening in Bangladesh pains us, but those who criticise it remain mute spectators when lynchings take place here,” she told reporters.The PDP chief further urged the Jammu and Kashmir government to send ministerial teams to various states to ensure the “safety” of Kashmiris living there.“Our government should send a ministerial team to every state and especially to Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Haryana, where most such incidents take place,” she said.Mufti’s remark came in the wake of an alleged assault on a shawl seller from the Union territory in Uttarakhand. She also took credit for the arrest of the accused.“I immediately put out a tweet and tagged the Uttarakhand DGP, seeking his intervention. That is why the accused was arrested. There are still some officers in the police who respond. But three incidents took place in 72 hours? In Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana. What is happening is distressing,” she added.(With PTI inputs)
What do Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, Noam Chomsky, Prince Andrew, Alan Dershowitz, Leon Black, Leslie Wexner, David Rockefeller, Ehud Barak, Kevin Spacey, Woody Johnson, and Lynn Forester de Rothschild have in common? At different points in time and in different capacities, they were all connected to Jeffrey Epstein.That overlap is often treated as the mystery at the heart of the Epstein story. It is not. As a detailed investigation by The New York Times makes clear, the more revealing question is how Epstein became a person to whom such proximity was even possible. How did a man who began life as an unremarkable schoolteacher, armed with fake degrees and no inherited privilege, move with such ease through the upper reaches of politics, finance, academia, and global high society? The answer lies less in Epstein’s personal skill than in the way elite systems reward usefulness, tolerate ambiguity, and repeatedly choose comfort over confrontation.
Before the private jets, the island, and the proximity to presidents and princes, Epstein was a teacher. In the mid-1970s, he taught mathematics and physics at the Dalton School in New York, one of the city’s most prestigious private institutions. He came from a working-class family in Brooklyn and had never completed a college degree. He fabricated academic credentials to secure the teaching position, and his classroom performance left little impression. Dalton administrators asked him to leave after the academic year. By any conventional measure, this should have marked the limit of his upward mobility. Instead, it marked the moment when social access began to substitute for merit.
Epstein’s move from the classroom to Wall Street did not occur through professional achievement but through proximity. A parent of one of his Dalton students introduced him to a senior executive at Bear Stearns, then a major investment bank that prided itself on hiring unconventional talent. Epstein lacked formal training in finance and possessed no legitimate academic pedigree, yet he was hired. When the firm later discovered that he had lied about holding degrees from two universities, Epstein did not deny it. He admitted the deception calmly and explained that without impressive credentials, no one would give him a chance. Bear Stearns chose not to fire him. That decision, more than the lie itself, shaped the rest of his life.
At Bear Stearns, Epstein did not distinguish himself as a financial innovator. What he learned instead was how power functions inside institutions. He observed that relationships often outweighed rules, that proximity to senior figures created insulation, and that violations could be negotiated away if one appeared useful or non-disruptive. He cultivated patrons, dated the daughter of a senior executive, and learned when to apologise and when to express offence. This education in institutional behaviour would prove more valuable than any technical training.
This undated photo released by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, shows Jeffrey Epstein talking with Noam Chomsky. (House Oversight Committee via AP)
Epstein misused company funds, violated internal compliance norms, and channelled privileged opportunities to romantic partners. Investigations followed, but consequences remained limited. Even when disciplinary action was finally imposed, Epstein resigned rather than accept formal punishment, preserving the appearance of autonomy. Crucially, Bear Stearns did not sever ties with him. Former colleagues continued to vouch for him, and his association with the firm became a credential that followed him long after the reasons for his departure had faded from institutional memory.
After leaving Bear Stearns, Epstein relied heavily on that institutional residue. He presented himself to wealthy individuals as a Wall Street insider, knowing that brand association often substitutes for verification. In this period, he engaged in a series of questionable investment arrangements, including at least one instance in which an investor entrusted him with a substantial portion of his net worth for a deal that never materialised. When the money disappeared, Epstein avoided personal liability through legal technicalities. These early episodes were not anomalies but rehearsals, teaching him how often accountability could be deferred.
Epstein’s ambitions sharpened when he encountered genuine generational wealth. Through British and European connections, he moved within aristocratic and defence-linked circles where discretion was prized above transparency and loyalty outweighed explanation. He repositioned himself as a specialist in locating hidden assets, cultivating an image as someone who could navigate offshore financial structures beyond the reach of conventional advisers. In at least one high-profile case, he successfully helped recover missing funds, earning significant compensation and credibility.
By the mid-1980s, Epstein was a millionaire, but wealth alone was not the inflection point. He had acquired a role within elite networks. He was no longer merely investing or advising. He was mediating, connecting, and facilitating. This intermediary position insulated him from scrutiny because his value lay not in outcomes but in access. People tolerated him because he appeared useful.
From that point onward, Epstein focused on assembling legitimacy. He understood that access to America’s most exclusive circles is constructed incrementally. He joined boards, donated strategically to cultural and academic institutions, and embedded himself in philanthropic circuits where influence circulates informally. He cultivated academics, politicians, and donors, ensuring that each affiliation reinforced the next. He also surrounded himself with young women, using them to smooth introductions and signal desirability within male-dominated power networks. This was not incidental behaviour. It was deliberate.
This undated redacted photo released by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, shows Jeffrey Epstein. (House Oversight Committee via AP)
By the late 1980s, Epstein was perceived as established rather than aspirational. That perception proved decisive when he met Leslie Wexner, the billionaire founder of what would become the L Brands empire. The two met by chance, and Epstein presented himself as a financial expert. Wexner hired him. Within a year, Epstein had been granted power of attorney over Wexner’s finances, effectively transferring extraordinary authority over assets, corporate entities, and charitable structures. Epstein’s wealth expanded dramatically. Advisers warned Wexner. Colleagues raised concerns. He did not sever ties.
With Wexner’s backing, Epstein converted wealth into institutional immunity. He donated to universities, joined commissions, cultivated political access, and became a regular presence in elite social settings without ever clearly explaining his professional role. Banks accepted his business. Foundations accepted his money. Institutions accepted his presence. Each acceptance validated the next, creating a closed loop of credibility that insulated him from scrutiny. Epstein was not invisible. He was ubiquitous.
This undated photo released by the U.S. Department of Justice shows Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. (U.S. Department of Justice via AP)
In the early 1990s, Epstein’s relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell marked a further consolidation of power. Maxwell, the daughter of British media baron Robert Maxwell, brought aristocratic polish and social reach, helping Epstein navigate elite spaces more fluently. She also became central to his criminal operation, recruiting and grooming victims and normalising abuse within environments that discouraged scrutiny. Their partnership thrived in plain sight, buffered by reputation and institutional reluctance to intervene.
When Epstein was first investigated in the mid-2000s, the response followed a familiar pattern. Elite lawyers negotiated. Prosecutors deferred. Institutions prioritised containment over exposure. Epstein received a lenient plea deal and served a brief sentence before returning to his life largely intact. The system did not collapse. It adjusted. A later investigation by The New York Times would strip away much of the mythology around Epstein’s wealth, showing that it was built not on brilliance or espionage but on manipulation enabled by repeated institutional failure.
The Epstein story ultimately reveals less about one man’s depravity than about how power protects itself. Epstein did not invent corruption. He exploited tolerance for it. He thrived because elite systems reward confidence without verification, loyalty without ethics, and money without questions. His ascent was not a glitch. It was the predictable outcome of institutions that repeatedly chose not to look too closely at what they were enabling. Jeffrey Epstein was not an aberration within the system. He was assembled by it, patiently and predictably, over decades of indulgence.
US stocks traded mixed on Friday as investors returned from the Christmas holiday in thin volumes, while gold and silver continued their sharp rally to fresh record highs amid safe-haven demand. In early trade, the S&P 500 edged up about 0.1% in early trade, holding on to modest gains for the week, AP reported. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed, while the Nasdaq Composite rose around 0.2%, supported by gains in large technology stocks including Nvidia. Trading activity remained light at the end of the holiday-shortened week, with several overseas markets closed and many investors staying on the sidelines. Precious metals remained the standout performers. Gold rose nearly 1% to trade around $4,541 per ounce, while silver jumped more than 4% to about $74.90 per ounce, briefly crossing the $75 mark. The rally has been driven by strong safe-haven flows, expectations of further US Federal Reserve rate cuts next year and continued buying by central banks. “Gold is doing what gold does when the world loses its anchor: it becomes the anchor,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said, pointing to political uncertainty, currency volatility and inflation concerns. Oil prices moved higher in early trade, with US crude adding about 18 cents to $58.53 per barrel, while Brent crude rose 15 cents to $61.95 per barrel. Oil prices, however, remain sharply lower compared with mid-year levels. In Asia, markets showed mixed trends. Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 0.7% after the cabinet approved a record defence budget exceeding 9 trillion yen ($58 billion) for the next fiscal year. Heavy industries and technology stocks led the gains. Markets in China edged higher, while stocks slipped in India and Thailand. Several Asian markets, including Hong Kong and Australia, remained closed. European markets were largely shut for the Christmas holiday. In currency markets, the dollar strengthened slightly against the Japanese yen to 156.25, while the euro eased to $1.1777. Bitcoin rose about 2.2% to trade near $89,705, extending gains seen over the past week. With most investors having closed positions for the year, analysts expect market moves to remain muted until trading volumes return to normal in the new year.
Indian batting stalwart Virat Kohli once again showed why he is regarded as one of the greatest batters of all time. On Friday, the former India captain played a brilliant knock of 77 runs for Delhi against Gujarat in the Vijay Hazare Trophy match in Bengaluru.While the innings helped his team, it also earned Kohli a special place in cricket history.
With this knock, Kohli went past former Australian cricketer Michael Bevan to become the highest-averaging batter in the history of the List A cricket, among players with at least 5,000 runs. Kohli’s List A average now stands at 57.87, just ahead of Bevan’s record of 57.86. Bevan was widely known as one of the best finishers in one-day cricket, and his record had stood strong for many years. Kohli’s innings against Gujarat came off just 61 balls. Over the years, Kohli has often been compared to Sachin Tendulkar for his hunger for runs and centuries. In recent months, questions had been raised about Kohli’s form and his place in the one-day setup. Instead of slowing down, the 37-year-old has responded with an incredible run of scores. In his last six List A matches, Kohli has scored 584 runs at a staggering average of 146.00. His scores during this period include 77 against Gujarat, 131 against Andhra, an unbeaten 65 against South Africa, 102 and 135 in other games against South Africa, and 74 against Australia. Kohli’s form throughout 2025 has been just as impressive. His strike rate in List A cricket this year has stayed above 110, proving that he has adapted well to the faster pace of modern white-ball cricket. Recently, Kohli also became the fastest player in history to reach 16,000 List A runs. He achieved this milestone 61 innings quicker than Sachin Tendulkar.
Across the year, one headline after another chipped away at the glossy study-abroad promise. A student found dead in a room they had just started calling home. Another shot while working a night shift. Someone killed in a crash on an unfamiliar road. Some deaths were violent. Some were sudden. Some came with more questions than answers. But the pattern was hard to ignore: young Indians left for classrooms and campuses—and did not return. What makes 2025 feel heavier is not just the number of deaths, but how scattered and ordinary the circumstances often were. Different countries. Different courses. Different causes. No single story explains them all. Yet together, they force a harder conversation about what studying abroad really involves—beyond rankings, visas, and Instagram sunsets. Here is a look at the Indian students who lost their lives abroad in 2025, and what is known so far about them.
Toronto, Canada | December 2025University of Toronto ScarboroughShivank Avasthi was already living the reality of doctoral life at the University of Toronto Scarborough, a phase of education defined less by classrooms and more by isolation, persistence, and intellectual risk. This was not an exploratory stint abroad. It was commitment. Years of research ahead, years already invested.In December 2025, he was shot dead near the campus. A homicide investigation followed, but what lingered longer was disbelief. His death unsettled Indian student communities across Canada because it punctured an assumption many families hold quietly but firmly: that elite universities in developed countries come bundled with safety. In reality, education and exposure often arrive together, especially in global cities where the university is part of the city—not shielded from it.
Ufa, Russia | November 2025Bashkir State Medical UniversityAjit Singh Chaudhary was pursuing an MBBS at Bashkir State Medical University. He was one of the countless Indian students who leave home for medicine because competition for medical seats in India is tough to say the least. Medical education abroad, also, is rarely glamorous. It is not only long and demanding but also linguistically alien and isolating.In November 2025, Ajit went missing after leaving his hostel. Days later, his body was found near a dam in Ufa. His family sought answers, clarity, timelines—basic things that become harder to secure when grief unfolds inside an unfamiliar legal system. For Indian medical students abroad, vulnerability is not just academic; it is structural. When something goes wrong, distance amplifies helplessness.
Worcester, England | November 2025University of the West of England (UWE Bristol)At 30, Vijay Kumar Sheoran was not a wide-eyed undergraduate. He was an older student at UWE Bristol, managing coursework alongside the logistics of housing, travel, work and routines that are beyond the campus borders. He appeared to be in transition, preparing for what would come after graduation.In November 2025, he was stabbed during an altercation in Worcester. A suspect was arrested; the case was treated as homicide. His death highlighted a grey reality international students quickly encounter: universities may be safe, but student life is rarely confined to them. Risk often appears in the in-between spaces—streets, shared housing, late evenings—where institutional protection fades and everyday unpredictability takes over.
Dubai, UAE | October 2025Middlesex University DubaiVaishnav Krishnakumar had barely begun his life abroad. At the age of 18, he was weeks into a BBA course in Marketing at Middlesex University Dubai. He was navigating first lectures, new friendships, and the small freedoms that come with living away from home. In October 2025, during Diwali celebrations, Vaishnav suffered a sudden cardiac arrest and passed away. This was a brutally random medical emergency. But for families, even natural death abroad carries an extra burden apart from sorrow: Hospitals, paperwork, consular coordination, and the long, quiet process of bringing a child home across borders.
Texas, United States | October 2025University of North Texas, DentonChandrashekar Pole was pursuing a Master’s in Data Analytics at the University of North Texas, an obvious choice in our tech-driven era. To manage tuition, rent, and loan repayments, he worked night shifts at a gas station.In October 2025, he was shot dead while on duty. A suspect was later arrested. But his death exposed an ugly reality which any study-abroad narrative hardly acknowledges. Financial pressure routinely pushes students into long hours and high-risk environments.
Found in Germany | March 2025Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), NetherlandsDevesh Bapat was studying physics at Eindhoven University of Technology, immersed in a demanding STEM programme where progress is incremental and discipline is everything. In early March 2025, he went missing. After weeks of search, his body was found in Germany. Authorities said there were no immediate signs of foul play, but clarity was elusive. In cases like this, death abroad leaves families not just grieving, but suspended. They are caught between closure and the ache of unanswered questions.
Taken together, these stories are not an argument against studying abroad. They are a reminder of what that journey truly means. Beyond aspiration and access lies exposure—financial, physical, emotional. Campuses do not exist in isolation from cities. Degrees do not shield students from night shifts, medical emergencies, or violence. Distance, when things go wrong, multiplies grief.The promise of studying abroad has not vanished. But in 2025, it came with a clearer, harsher footnote—one that families can no longer afford to ignore.
Mumbai: Prashant Jagtap, Pune city chief of NCP (SP), joined the Congress, its alliance partner, on Friday in Mumbai in the presence of state Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal and Congress legislature party leader Vijay Wadettiwar.A former Pune mayor, Jagtap’s departure followed an indication by party leader Supriya Sule that NCP (SP) might align with her cousin Ajit Pawar‘s NCP in Pune. Jagtap stated he remained with Sharad Pawar after the party split due to his ideology and for that, he faced a tough time from Ajit Pawar.Congress remained uncertain about an alliance in Pune with NCP (SP) following its discussions with the Ajit Pawar-led NCP. Congress was expected to play a smaller role in the city due to its weaker presence in the case of alliance with NCP (SP), but Jagtap’s switch gave the party a boost. The Congress is also in talks with the VBA, which is demanding over 50 seats to contest in Pune. Sapkal said, “Parties function on ideology, and Congress is fighting this ideological battle with sincerity and determination. However, today some parties are focused only on power, amassing money through corrupt means, and winning elections using that money. Jagtap has joined the Congress for an ideological fight.”Wadettiwar said that Jagtap took a firm stand that he would not align with communal forces.The Congress also felicitated the newly elected 41 municipal presidents and 1,006 corporators of recently held municipal and nagar panchayat elections at Tilak Bhavan in Dadar.
SA20 have officially announced their lineup of match officials for the upcoming 2025-26 season, featuring a high-caliber mix of international veterans and rising stars. The selection underscores the league’s commitment to world-class officiating as they prepare for another exciting season of the popular tournament.
The contingent is headlined by ICC Elite Panel Umpires Allahudien Paleker and Adrian Holdstock. Paleker, the reigning Cricket South Africa (CSA) Umpire of the Year with 161 T20s under his belt, brings immense technical expertise to the tournament.
Adding significant weight to the panel is the return of Marais Erasmus. The former ICC Umpire of the Year, renowned for his calm demeanor and precision, brings the experience of 267 international matches to the group.
The full panel consists of 18 umpires and six match referees who will oversee the six-team competition at iconic grounds including Boland Park, Centurion, Kingsmead, Newlands, St George’s Park, and the Wanderers.
In a move to foster global collaboration, the panel also features Ian Blackwell from England as part of an Umpire Exchange Programme. Furthermore, the league welcomes Abdoellaah Steenkamp, the current CSA Umpires’ Umpire of the Year.
Lauren Agenbag, Ian Blackwell (ENG), Marais Erasmus, Mazizi Gampu, Siphelele Gasa, Babalo Gcuma, Stephen Harris, Adrian Holdstock, Arno Jacobs, Bongani Jele, Thomas Mokorosi, Andre Olivier, Allahudien Paleker, Dennis Smith, Abongile Sodumo, Abdoellaah Steenkamp, Brad White, Warren Wyngaard.
Rudi Birkenstock, Shandre Fritz, Clifford Isaacs, Barry Lambson, Laurence Matroos, Gerrie Pienaar.
Also READ: SA20 2026 Squads: Players list and captains of all six teams
