Canada’s finance min resigns
Toronto, Dec 16: Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, long Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s most powerful minister, announced Monday she was resigning from the Cabinet, as Trudeau deals with declining popularity. Freeland, who also was deputy prime minister, said Trudeau had told her Friday that he no longer wanted her to serve as finance minister and that he offered her another role in the Cabinet. But she said in her resignation letter to the prime minister that the only “honest and viable path” was to leave the Cabinet. “For the past number of weeks, you and I have found ourselves at odds about the best path forward for Canada,” Freeland said. (AP)
Girl charged with killing of Indian-origin man in UK
London, Dec 16: A 12-year-old girl on Monday became the second person to be charged in connection with the killing of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli, who died following an assault while out walking his dog in a park near Leicester, eastern England, in September. Leicestershire Police said the girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons due to being a minor, appeared at Leicester Youth Court sitting at Leicester Magistrates’ Court charged with manslaughter. A 15-year-old boy, then aged 14, arrested following the fatal assault and charged with Kohli’s murder remains in custody. Five children aged 12-14 years were arrested following the death of Kohli on September 2. (PTI)
Cop, polio worker killed in separate incidents in Pak
Peshawar, Dec 16: A polio worker and a police constable were shot dead in separate incidents in Pakistan’s restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Monday as the country began a week-long polio eradication campaign amid tight security. Unidentified assailants opened fire and killed a polio worker on the first day of the anti-polio drive. In a separate incident, Constable Ishtiaq Ahmed, escorting a team of polio workers, was killed when miscreants opened fire. (PTI)
B’desh may hold election in late 2025 or first half of 2026
Dhaka, Dec 16: Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus on Monday said the next general election in the country could take place by the end of 2025 or the first half of 2026. He, however, said the timing of the election will largely depend upon the political consensus and the extent of the reforms that must be carried out prior to it. “Broadly speaking, the election can be scheduled between the end of 2025 and the first half of 2026,” he said in a televised speech to the nation on Vijay Diwas. Yunus said he has repeatedly appealed to all to hold the polls after completing all the major reforms. (PTI)