NEW DELHI: The joint opposition stepped up its attack on Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar as it gathered signatures from MPs to submit a notice this week to the secretariats of both Houses of Parliament to seek a motion for his removal. This is the first time a notice — will be given seeking the removal of the CEC.The notice — piloted by TMC — will be submitted to the Speaker of Lok Sabha and Chairman Rajya Sabha through the secretary generals of the respective Houses. The nearly half a dozen charges in the notice seeking removal of CEC, according to sources, range from partisan conduct of the CEC to mass disenfranchisement of voters. MPs of all INDIA bloc parties and even Aam Aadmi Party which is not part of the bloc have signed the letter, sources said. It is likely to be submitted on Thursday itself in all likelihood but not later than Friday, sources said.Till late on Wednesday evening around 120 MPs had signed the notice to be submitted to the Lok Sabha, and around 60 MPs had signed the notice to be submitted in the Upper House.As per the procedure, at least 100 MPs must sign a notice seeking the removal of the CEC in the Lower House and the required number is 50 for Rajya Sabha.The notice seeking removal of CEC follows growing accusations from the opposition parties against Kumar. TMC has been demanding a notice for removal of CEC Kumar for a few months with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Lok Sabha MP and party national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee raising the issue repeatedly while leading protests over the SIR process in the state gearing up for assembly polls. They have accused the CEC of bias and carrying out ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in an arbitrary manner in a bid to aid the BJP. The West Bengal CM had said in February while addressing a press conference asserted that she was all for the removal of the CEC and said she was willing to join hands with the Congress and other opposition parties to rally support on the issue.“We do not have numbers, but there is a provision for removal of CEC. At least our stance will be recorded. If they (Congress) will do something like this then we will also take our party MPs into confidence,” she had said.Though there was no immediate agreement on the demand from other allies, the INDIA block was seen stepping up to act before the budget session resumed on Monday. On Saturday, TMC announced that it will support the motion for removal of Birla in the House, even though it had not signed the opposition notice for removal of Birla when it was submitted in the first half of the budget session citing that it would have wanted the opposition to write to the Speaker first and give him time for corrective action before moving a notice.On Monday, in the INDIA block strategy meeting in the office of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge in Parliament, TMC raised the issue to reiterate the demand for submitting a notice for seeking removal of CEC. On Wednesday, even as the opposition’s notice for removal of the Speaker was defeated by voice vote in Lok Sabha, the joint opposition gathered signatures of MPs from both Houses to reinforce the strong alignment of INDIA bloc against the CEC and in the process against the BJP.The process for removing the CEC is similar to that for the removal of a Supreme Court judge and only on “grounds of proven misbehaviour or incapacity”.According to the Judges (Inquiry) Act of 1968, once a motion to remove a judge is admitted in any of the Houses, the Speaker or the Chairman, as the case may be, will constitute a three-member committee to investigate the grounds on which the removal has been sought.As per the rule, once the committee submits its report, it will be tabled in the House, and discussions will start to impeach. The motion to remove a judge, and in this case the CEC, will have to be passed by both Houses. It must be passed by a special majority — a majority of the total membership of the House and a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting.Given that the BJP alliance has the majority in the two Houses makes the opposition’s move a non-starter but allows the opposition to register its joint protest against the CEC.

NEW DELHI: The Indian Premier League 2026 will get underway with defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru taking on Sunrisers Hyderabad in the opening match at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on March 28.The schedule for the first phase of the tournament — from March 28 to April 12 — was announced on Wednesday by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

“As three states are scheduled to undergo State Assembly elections during this period, the full schedule of the tournament will be announced once the poll dates are announced,” BCCI said in a statement.The 19th edition of the world’s biggest T20 league will feature 20 matches in the first phase across 10 venues: Bengaluru, Mumbai, Guwahati, New Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.During this phase, the tournament will feature four double-headers, with afternoon matches beginning at 03:30 PM IST and evening games starting at 07:30 PM IST.The first double-header of the season will take place on April 4, when Delhi Capitals take on Mumbai Indians in the afternoon match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi, followed by Gujarat Titans facing Rajasthan Royals at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.Rajasthan Royals will start their home campaign in Guwahati, where they will host Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians. Punjab Kings, meanwhile, will play their early home fixtures at the PCA Stadium.During the season, Royal Challengers Bengaluru will play five home matches in Bengaluru and two in Raipur. Punjab Kings will play four home matches in New Chandigarh and three in Dharamsala, while Rajasthan Royals will split their home fixtures between Guwahati and Jaipur.BCCI also clarified that the matches scheduled in Bengaluru will depend on clearance from a government-appointed expert committee.“The matches scheduled in Bengaluru are subject to clearance from the Expert Committee constituted by the Government of Karnataka. The committee will conduct a meeting and inspection of the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on March 13, 2026, during which a full-scale mock demonstration of match-day arrangements will be carried out to assess the stadium’s preparedness for hosting IPL matches.”

IPL 2026: Team-wise schedule

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)

Mumbai Indians (MI)

Chennai Super Kings (CSK)

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)

Rajasthan Royals (RR)

Punjab Kings (PBKS)

Delhi Capitals (DC)

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG)

Gujarat Titans (GT)

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)

Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has questioned his ranking in Forbes’ latest global rich list. This comes after the Forbes Billionaires Index annual list placed the founder of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, ahead of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. In the publication’s 2026 billionaire list, Zhao, also known as CZ, was ranked 17th with an estimated net worth of $110 billion, largely tied to his stake in the cryptocurrency exchange Binance and other digital asset investments. Zhao disputed the calculation, pointing to the sharp decline in cryptocurrency prices this year. In a social media post, he said the estimate did not align with market trends and suggested that the ranking methodology should use ”some common sense and basic logic.”Replying to a post on microblogging site X (formerly Twitter) that included a chart showing how CZ surpassed Bill Gates’ net worth, the Binance founder wrote, “Didn’t read the Forbes article, but if you just look at the little chart 👇, you know it’s wrong. Crypto prices dropped by more than 50% in 2026 already. And my net worth went up? 🤷‍♂️Wish they can apply some common sense and basic logic.”

Commenting on CZ’s post, one user wrote, “From all the shorts during 10/10 makes sense.” Responding to this, CZ wrote: “Never shorted.”

What more did Binance founder CZ say about the Forbes global rich list ranking

In response to CZ’s comments, another user wrote, “It’s often said in Chinese culture that “wealth shouldn’t be flaunted,” and CZ’s comments are quite conservative 😂”Replying to this, CZ wrote: “It’s not that. It’s just the Forbes estimates are way off. ByteDance’s estimated yearly revenue: $150b (from public sources). Zhang Yiming’s estimated net worth by Forbes: $69b. Binance’s estimated yearly revenue: $5b. CZ’s estimated net worth by Forbes: $110b ??? I think if I tried to claim I have a high net worth, they will rank me much lower, or maybe even remove me from the list. They like to estimate the opposite. 🤣”

The Forbes report noted that CZ’s “net worth has skyrocketed to $110 billion, up $47 billion from last year, on the annual World’s Billionaire’s list. CZ now ranks as the 17th-wealthiest person on the planet, by our count, and one of just 20 people worth twelve figures. He is richer than Bill Gates.”The report also noted that some of Zhao’s smaller holdings declined over the past 12 months. The value of his estimated 1,400 bitcoins also fell by about 25%, to roughly $100 million. However, the portion believed to represent a large share of the BNB tokens in circulation remained largely unchanged, the report added.

Airports are places of waiting. Passengers sit beneath departure boards, watching cities flicker past in rows of glowing letters. Flights are delayed, gates change, and journeys unfold slowly, one boarding call at a time.But for Sujoy Kumar Mitra, for 5 days, 17 hours and 28 minutes, airports were something else entirely. They were checkpoints in a race against time, gateways that carried him across nearly the entire planet—more specifically, across the New Seven Wonders of the World.It was at Petra that he achieved the milestone no one has reached to date: a Guinness World Record for the fastest time to visit the New Seven Wonders of the World, completing the journey in exactly 5 days, 17 hours and 28 minutes.In an exclusive conversation with Times Travel, Sujoy Kumar Mitra gave us the often chaotic ‘Behind The Scene’ tour that finally helped him bag the coveted world record. But before we go into that in detail, here’s a little background on Mr Mitra as a traveller.

Guinness Book of World Record

Why Guiness World Record?

To this Sujoy replied, “I have been travelling since 2006. Till 2011, I was travelling across India. From 2011 till date, I have been to 198 countries. Travelling was a passion for me. I once held the world record for visiting all 7 continents (which I no longer hold). That was my first Guinness record. We see these records every now and then, and I have always believed that all records are meant to be broken. So it was a lot of fun targeting Guinness records. This outlook really got me started.”His travels place him among a small group of travellers who have visited almost every recognised nation on Earth. We are also told that Sujoy is the only Indian traveller (globally) to hold 11 active Guinness World Records. So many world records, that too, in travel, one wonders – How does one even find the time, and most importantly, how does one manage the finances? Coming from an engineering background, leaving his job in 2014 happened naturally for Sujoy. Reason: to travel the world. He shared that he never took a flight till the age of 28. India travel was completely by trains and other low-cost travel. Here’s something we didn’t expect to hear: The secret behind the flights: “About 80 percent of my travel has been funded through airline miles,” he says. Over the years he accumulated millions of loyalty points through airline programmes, credit cards and boarding passes shared by friends and acquaintances.

Sujoy Kumar Mitra in Machu Picchu

Those points allow him to book long-haul flights, sometimes even premium seats, at a fraction of the normal cost. In essence, he has turned loyalty programmes into a powerful travel tool. He even did the same with hotel stays. Loyalty programs, folks. Always read the fine prints.

The world record and the challenges: The Behind-The-Scenes

One of his most remarkable feats involved visiting the New Seven Wonders of the World in just over five days. The challenge required him to travel thousands of kilometres across continents, stopping briefly at monumental sites including Machu Picchu, Great Wall of China and Petra. The route stretched across continents, leaving almost no margin for delay. Each stop required quick documentation and immediate departure for the next destination. The monuments themselves, from the towering stone walls of the Great Wall of China to the ancient rose-coloured city of Petra, were only part of the journey – the easier part, he said.

The real challenge unfolded in transit

Flights were tightly connected. Immigration queues could derail entire schedules. Any delay threatened to collapse the carefully constructed timeline. At one point, a flight cancellation even forced Mitra to completely redesign his route mid-journey. That was his Rome to Beijing stretch for the next leg of the record race. It was supposed to be Rome-Amsterdam-Beijing. But when it got cancelled last-minute, he had to, without wasting time, reroute it via Munich (Germany). Then came an even greater obstacle. Midway through the attempt, he fell seriously ill. Landing in China with a high fever was not an option so he took medicines to counter the fever and hoped to the Universe to let him get through this travel hiccup without ending the world record attempt. “I just needed to get through immigration,” he recalls.Times Travel: Which was the most beautiful of all New Seven Wonders of the world? Sujoy: There are two answers to this question. Emotionally, it’s the Taj Mahal. But I also must add that for me Petra held a special place. Mainly because it was the place where I broke the record. Before reaching Petra, I was just running around to break the record.Times Travel: One place in the world you would want to visit again.Sujoy: That’s an easy answer: Antarctica. That’s nature at its best. Seeing penguins in Antarctica is one of the most joyful things I experienced. If we look at the Seven Wonders of the World, I’d like to visit Machu Picchu again. From India, it’s like Machu Picchu is on the other end of the world, and it’s the journey that I love the most. Times Travel: One place you’d happily skip.Sujoy: Yemen, mostly because visiting Yemen is highly restricted. For Indians, it is illegal to visit Yemen due to a strict, long-standing travel ban imposed by the Government of India. But if you must visit the country, you’ll need an NOC from the Ministry of External Affairs, Govt. of India.

Sujoy Kumar Mitra at the Great Wall of China

Discovering the world of Guinness World Record

Mitra’s entry into record-breaking began with an ambitious challenge: travelling across all seven continents within a set timeframe. The experience introduced him to the meticulous standards required by Guinness World Records.Unlike ordinary travel, record attempts require detailed documentation. Participants must collect passport stamps, GPS tracking data, continuous video recordings and independent witness statements to prove every step of the journey. Missing even a single requirement can invalidate the entire attempt.Planning can take months. Routes are calculated down to the minute. Flights must align with time zones and opening hours for sites. Sometimes permissions must be secured from institutions that verify the visit. “The day of the record is actually the easiest part,” he adds. “The real challenge is preparing everything beforehand.”

Beyond the records

Despite the headlines and certificates, Mitra speaks about records with a sense of humility. “All records are meant to be broken,” he says. “Even tomorrow someone may break mine.” For him, the real value of travel lies in the perspective it brings, the chance to witness cultures, landscapes and lives that rarely appear together in one person’s journey.From the icy wilderness of Antarctica to the crowded streets of ancient cities, his travels have formed a mosaic of experiences spanning almost the entire planet. What began as a young man’s dream to board an airplane has evolved into something far larger.

NEW DELHI: The opening match of IPL 2026 will be played between defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 28 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the schedule for the first 20 days of the Indian Premier League 2026 season.“As three states are scheduled to undergo State Assembly elections during this period, the full schedule of the tournament will be announced once the poll dates are announced,” BCCI said in a release.

A total of 20 matches will be played across 10 venues: Bengaluru, Mumbai, Guwahati, New Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.“The matches scheduled in Bengaluru are subject to clearance from the Expert Committee constituted by the Government of Karnataka. The committee will conduct a meeting and inspection of the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on March 13, 2026, during which a full-scale mock demonstration of match-day arrangements will be carried out to assess the stadium’s preparedness for hosting IPL matches,” BCCI said.During this period, the tournament will feature four double-headers, with the afternoon matches beginning at 03:30 PM IST and the evening matches commencing at 07:30 PM IST.Here’s the full schedule:

The first double-header of the season will take place on April 4, when Delhi Capitals face Mumbai Indians in the afternoon match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi, followed by Gujarat Titans taking on Rajasthan Royals at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.Rajasthan Royals will begin their home campaign in Guwahati, where they will host Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians. Punjab Kings, meanwhile, will play their early home fixtures at the PCA Stadium.During the season, Royal Challengers Bengaluru will play five home matches in Bengaluru and two in Raipur. Punjab Kings will play four home matches in New Chandigarh and three in Dharamsala, while Rajasthan Royals will play three home matches in Guwahati and four in Jaipur.

India’s victory in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup led to celebrations across the country. Fireworks lit up city skies. Fans gathered on the streets and outside homes. Social media quickly filled with congratulatory messages for the Indian team. In Kerala, the celebration took a slightly different form. A local businessman decided that the moment should also be shared with the people who help run his business every day. Instead of organising a public celebration, he chose a simple gesture that directly involved his employees.As reported, the decision was inspired largely by the performance of Kerala’s own cricketer, Sanju Samson, whose innings in the final played an important role in India’s win against the New Zealand national cricket team.

Kerala entrepreneur Nithin Babu rewards staff after Sanju Samson’s performance

Kerala entrepreneur Nithin Babu shares T20 World Cup joy with employees following Samson’s Heroics. The businessman behind the gesture is Nithin Babu, a 37-year-old entrepreneur from Pampady in Kerala’s Kottayam district. Reports indicate that he distributed Rs 1.64 lakh among employees working in his garment shops after India secured the World Cup title.The bonus was shared among 82 staff members working at his two retail outlets. Each employee reportedly received Rs 2,000 as a celebratory reward. The distribution happened shortly after the final match. For Nithin, the idea was simply to share the happiness of the moment with the people who contribute to his business operations every day. Samson’s performance in the final appears to have been the main reason behind the celebration. The wicketkeeper-batter scored 89 runs from 46 deliveries, helping India build a strong total in the title match.Many cricket followers in Kerala see Samson as one of the state’s most recognisable sporting figures. For fans in the region, his performances often carry a sense of regional pride.

Nithin Babu makes rewarding employees a tradition after Samson’s key innings

The final was not the first time Nithin decided to celebrate Samson’s batting during the tournament. Earlier in the competition, India played against the West Indies cricket team during the Super Eights stage. In that match, Samson scored an unbeaten 97 runs. After that innings, Nithin distributed Rs 500 to each of the 62 employees working at his main shop. The total amount shared at that time was about Rs 31,000. A similar celebration followed in the semifinal. India faced the England cricket team at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium.Samson again produced a strong batting performance and scored 89 runs in that match. Following the semifinal victory, Nithin increased the reward to Rs 1,000 per employee. Around Rs 62,000 was distributed among staff members during that stage of the tournament.By the time India reached the final, rewarding employees after Samson’s performances had become something of a tradition inside the business.

Nithin Babu’s love for cricket shaped his early years

Nithin’s enthusiasm for Samson’s achievements seems to be linked to his own past interest in cricket. As a teenager growing up in Pampady, he regularly played in local tournaments and also represented his college team. Cricket was reportedly a major part of his life during those years. While studying in Class 12, he was selected to join the Kottayam Cricket Club. The opportunity could have helped him continue pursuing the sport at a higher level. Without the necessary equipment, continuing seriously in the sport became almost impossible. Gradually, his focus began to shift towards other career options.

Nithin Babu shifts focus from cricket to career in Bengaluru

After completing his studies, Nithin moved to Bengaluru to pursue a course in business management. During that period, he worked part-time to support his expenses. While travelling to work each day, he often passed a cricket academy where young players trained under professional coaches.The cost reportedly came to Rs 8,000 per month. Coincidentally, that amount was almost identical to the salary he earned from his part-time job. Paying for professional training was therefore not a practical option for him. As a result, he gradually moved away from the idea of pursuing cricket and instead concentrated on building a career.

Nithin Babu’s garment success story

After working for several companies in Bengaluru, Nithin later found employment at Technopark in Thiruvananthapuram. Eventually he and his wife Blessy decided to start a small business of their own. The couple opened a garment store in Pampady and named it Feya Garments, after their eldest daughter. The shop started as a modest venture but gradually expanded.Later, they launched another store called JRN Clothing. The couple also established a manufacturing and export unit in Tiruppur. Over time the business continued to grow. Reports suggest that the venture now generates an annual turnover of around Rs 30 crore.

Japan will release part of its emergency oil reserves to stabilise energy supplies amid rising tensions in the Middle East, Reuters reported. The move will include the release of 15 days worth of oil held by the private sector and one month worth of state oil reserves as authorities attempt to ease supply concerns and calm global energy markets.“Japan plans to release 15 days worth of private-sector oil reserves and one month’s worth of state oil reserves,” Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said.The decision comes as oil prices surge and supply risks grow due to the expanding conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which has raised fears of shipping disruptions in key energy routes.Earlier this week, the International Energy Agency urged major economies to consider coordinated action. During an online meeting with Group of Seven finance ministers on Monday, the agency called for the release of emergency stockpiles to support global supply.“IEA called for each country to do a coordinated release of oil reserves,” Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said during a briefing.“In response to the current situation… the G7 has agreed to continue closely monitoring developments in the energy market and to take necessary measures to support global energy supply, including the release of oil reserves,” she said.The meeting included finance ministers from the G7 countries as well as representatives from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, Katayama said. She added that the G7 energy ministers are expected to meet soon to discuss further steps.Oil prices earlier this week climbed to levels not seen since mid-2022 as some major producers reduced output while fears grew over prolonged disruption to shipping routes linked to the widening US-Israeli war with Iran.Japan is particularly vulnerable to disruptions in Middle Eastern supplies as it relies on the region for about 95 percent of its oil imports. The country maintains one of the largest strategic petroleum reserves in the world.The government had already been facing calls from domestic refiners to release oil from national reserves. Japanese oil companies earlier asked authorities to consider such a step amid concerns over supply shortages linked to U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, according to a Bloomberg report.Companies have also discussed using crude stored in tanks leased to oil producing nations, which Japan can purchase on priority during emergencies, according to the report.