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The ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) and the main opposition Nepali Congress are on a collision course. The NCP leaders accuse their Congress counterparts of rank opportunism—Congress did precious little on medical education reform when it was leading the government, the accusation goes, but has overnight morphed into an ardent advocate of the fasting Dr Govinda KC. The other accusation is that Congress is trying to subvert the authority of a demo­cratically-elected government by obstructing parliament and protesting in banned areas. They argue that five months are nearly not enough to judge this government.Congress leaders contend that they cannot be mute spectators even when the government has put the country on a slippery slope to full-blown authoritarianism, by for instance declaring popular protest places as ‘no go’ areas and by empowering the ‘medial mafia’ by watering down the medical education ordinance brought by the previous Con­gress government. There are other bones of contention too. The constitution requires that speaker and deputy speaker of the federal parliament and well as the seven provincial parliaments be from different parties, but in six of the seven provinces NCP holds both the positions. The appointments to constitutional bodies made by the previous Congress gov­ernment have been cancelled and social security measures it introduced rolled back—and hence the current standoff.

But what will these protests by opposition parties led by Congress—with Baburam Bhattarai’s Naya Shakti even asking for Prime Minister KP Oli’s resignation—amount to?

“It is true that the performance of this government has been disappointing thus far,” says political analyst and former chief election commissioner Bhojraj Pokharel. “But I also don’t think there are enough legitimate grounds for resignation.”

Pokharel credits Oli for trying to bring a “semblance of order” in governance, something that has been missing in Nepal since the 1990 change, “but the way the government has gone about achieving this order is wrong.”

But does he see enough reasons to fear autocracy? “The tendency is there. The biggest cause for concern right now is that the executive has become extremely powerful while the two other organs of the state are weak. This in turn has desta­bilized the principle of check and balance,” Pokharel replies.

Ominously, with the ruling communist party all-powerful and the main opposition in Nepali Congress at its weakest historically, they have no incentive to listen to one another.

 The highest temperature of the year was logged Wednesday as a protracted heat wave continues to sear wide swathes of Japan, leading the government to issue a warning to the public to protect themselves against heat-linked illnesses. 

The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said that 12 people have died in the heat wave during the week through last Sunday and almost 10,000 people were hospitalized for heat-related illnesses, such as heatstroke and dehydration. 

Of those hospitalized, the majority were in Osaka Prefecture, with 752 people being sent to hospital, followed by Tokyo with 704 people and 687 people in Aichi Prefecture, local media reported. 
The figure for those sent to hospital for treatment, the agency said, was 3.7 times higher than that of the previous week and, according to local media, around 5,000 people alone were hospitalized over the three-day holiday weekend. 

Temperatures on Wednesday hit 40.7 degrees Celsius in Tajimi City in Gifu Prefecture, central Japan, marking this year's highest temperature, with the mercury also soaring to 40.6 degrees Celsius in Gifu's Mino City. 

Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said that of the 927 points it monitors across the nation, 185 of them saw temperatures rise to 35 degrees Celsius or more, with the heatwave expected to continue for a week. 
The weather agency has forecast daytime highs of at least 35 degrees Celsius for Nagoya, Kyoto, and numerous other regions over the next seven days. 

Of the heat-related fatalities, in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, a six-year-old boy died of heatstroke on Tuesday after a school trip outdoors where the temperature was about 33 degrees Celsius, local media reported. 

A 94-year-old woman is also believed to have died from heatstroke in Nabari City, Mie Prefecture. She was found by her relatives on Tuesday evening lying in a field unconscious, according to local media accounts. 

As for the capital city of Tokyo, a record 2,900 emergency calls were received by the Tokyo Fire Department on Tuesday, marking the highest number of calls received in a single day since emergency services began in 1936. 
The JMA has said that the heat wave will continue throughout the week ahead owing to powerful convection activity near the Philippines, where air currents are strengthening a Pacific high-pressure system. 

The protracted heat wave has made it particularly hard for ongoing relief operations in areas in western Japan pummeled by recent torrential rains. 

In Okayama, Hiroshima and Ehime prefectures, the three hardest-hit regions by the downpours, 813 people were reportedly hospitalized with heat-related illnesses last week, including volunteers who were cleaning up debris and assisting at evacuation shelters. 

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 Five marines were killed and one injured when a South Korean military helicopter crashed on Tuesday at a marine base in the country's southeast, the defence ministry said. 

The helicopter came down and caught fire during a test flight after repairs at the base in the port city of Pohang, the ministry said in a statement. 

"Five of the six crew members on board were killed and the remaining one has been taken to hospital due to injury," it said. The ministry said an investigation into the cause would be launched soon. 

The helicopter was a domestically made model known as the MUH-1 or Marineon, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said. 

Manufacturer Korea Aerospace Industries said it would "fully cooperate with the military to identify the cause of the crash", according to the Yonhap news agency. AFP

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Victorious France were set to return to a heroes' welcome on Monday after winning the World Cup for the second time with a rollercoaster 4-2 victory over Croatia which set off chaotic celebrations at home. 

Teenager Kylian Mbappe applied the coup de grace in Moscow as France, aided by an own goal and the video assistant referee, overcame determined opponents in one of the most compelling finals of the modern era. 

Mbappe, just 19, scored France's sizzling fourth goal and was voted the best young player of a tournament in which he has shown he is a superstar in the making. 

The triumph also put Didier Deschamps, who captained the national side to victory on home soil in 1998, alongside Mario Zagallo and Franz Beckenbauer as only the third man to win the World Cup both as a player and coach. 

French President Emmanuel Macron, who cheered every goal in Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium, was drenched by torrential rain during the trophy presentation and attempted to "dab" with the players in the changing room. 

On Monday, Macron will welcome the team back to Paris and the players will make a bus parade up the Champs-Elysees avenue from 1500 GMT, where they are expected to be feted by hundreds of thousands of people. 

"MERCI" Macron wrote in a one-word tweet after the match which saw him celebrating wildly in the stands and visiting the players in the changing rooms. 

-'To the stars' - 

Fans in France celebrated into the night, honking car horns and flying the tricolour flag while the Eiffel Tower was lit up in blue, white and red. 

However, youths also looted a Champs-Elysees store and police fired tear gas on the crowds as celebrations got out of control. 

"Endless happiness," trumpeted the headline in France's L'Equipe newspaper, while the Journal du Dimanche rushed out a special edition in Paris hailing a team which has ascended "To the Stars". 

Deschamps, who was soaked by champagne by his overjoyed players in a chaotic press conference, said the win was "just as big and just as beautiful" as the 1998 triumph. 

"There are two things that matter -- one is that these 23 players are now together for life, whatever happens, and also that from now on they will not be the same again, because they are world champions," he said. 

"To be champions of the world as professional footballers, there is nothing better." 

'We made history' 

The breathless victory under stormy skies meant his side -- a balance of youthful vitality and big-tournament experience -- have buried the pain of their defeat in the Euro 2016 final in Paris. 

"We did something incredible, we made history and we are going to enjoy it," said Antoine Griezmann, who scored France's second goal from the penalty spot. 

"We're going to see our families and we're going to party. Tomorrow in France will be the same, we're going to party with the French people." 
  
For Croatia, a country of just four million people, the loss was bitter but their fans took solace in the best run in the nation's history, which featured a stunning win against Argentina and a semi-final victory against England. 

Croatia playmaker Luka Modric was voted player of the tournament, Belgium's Thibaut Courtois was named the best goalkeeper and Harry Kane of England won the Golden Boot as top-scorer with six goals. 

US President Donald Trump tweeted congratulations to France for their "extraordinary soccer" and also praised Russia's President Vladimir Putin for his hosting of the tournament, which he described as "one of the best ever". 

Putin said Russia could be "proud" of its organisation of the event, adding that foreign visitors holding World Cup fan ID cards could have visa-free entry for the rest of 2018. 

 Six-goal thriller 

France scored first when Mario Mandzukic headed into his own net following a Griezmann free-kick in the 18th minute -- the first own goal in World Cup final history. 

Ivan Perisic's venomous strike levelled the scores but then, in a major turning point, referee Nestor Pitana awarded France a hotly debated penalty for a Perisic handball after consulting the video assistant referee (VAR). 

As thunder rolled around the stadium, Griezmann held his nerve to stroke his spot-kick into the net as goalkeeper Danijel Subasic went the wrong way. 

Croatia were unbowed as they ran the game from midfield, with Modric and Ivan Rakitic pulling the strings as roars of "Croatia" rang out. 

But Paul Pogba and then Mbappe both struck from outside the area to make it 4-1, before Mandzukic forced a humiliating mistake from France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris to raise faint hopes of a late comeback. 

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic said his side's luck had run out after the VAR penalty. 

"I never comment on referees but in a World Cup final you do not give such a penalty," said Dalic, whose team had to battle through extra-time in all three of their knockout games before the final. 

But he added: "You should never give up, never stop believing. At 4-1 down I was not defeated. Overall, Croatia played a great tournament and showed its strength and quality." 

Disappointed but proud Croatian fans in Zagreb cheered their team to the very end, lighting flares and firecrackers in the capital's packed main square at the final whistle. AFP

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The number of Afghan civilians killed in the country's long-running conflict hit a record high in the first six months of 2018, UN figures showed Sunday, with militant attacks and suicide bombs the leading causes of death. 

The toll of 1,692 fatalities was one percent more than a year earlier and the highest for the period since the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) began keeping records in 2009. 
Another 3,430 people were wounded in the war, down five percent from the same period last year, the report said. 

Overall civilian casualties -- 5,122 - fell three percent year on year. The record high death toll came despite an unprecedented ceasefire by Afghan security forces and the Taliban last month that was largely respected by both sides, UNAMA said. 

The ceasefire for the first three days of Eid was marked by scenes of jubilation as security forces and Taliban fighters celebrated the Islamic holiday, raising hopes that peace was possible after nearly 17 years of conflict. 

But the suspension of hostilities was marred by two suicide attacks in the eastern province of Nangarhar that killed dozens of people and were claimed by the Islamic State group, which was not part of the ceasefire. 

The Taliban refused a government request to extend the truce, returning to the battlefield and ignoring calls to enter talks with Kabul to end the war. "The brief ceasefire demonstrated that the fighting can be stopped and that Afghan civilians no longer need to bear the brunt of the war," Tadamichi Yamamoto, the UN secretary general's special representative for Afghanistan, said. "We urge parties to seize all opportunities to find a peaceful settlement -- this is the best way that they can protect all civilians." 

 Air strike casualties up 
Suicide bombs and "complex" attacks that involve several militants accounted for 1,413 casualties -- 427 deaths and 986 injuries -- up 22 percent from a year earlier. If that trend continues, the figure will top the 2017 full-year record of nearly 2,300 casualties. 

UNAMA attributed 52 percent of suicide and complex attacks to IS, mainly in Kabul and Nangarhar where the group established a stronghold after emerging in Afghanistan in 2014. 

The Taliban was responsible for 40 percent of such attacks. While the Taliban is Afghanistan's largest militant group and holds or contests more territory than any other, IS has repeatedly demonstrated its ability to carry out devastating attacks in urban areas. 

The latest report comes almost a year after US President Donald Trump announced his new South Asia strategy that involved ramping up American air strikes against militants. 

Civilians have paid a heavy toll for the intensified aerial bombing campaign, with 353 casualties recorded in the first half of the year, up 52 percent on last year, UNAMA said. 

More than half of the civilian casualties were caused by the Afghan Air Force. One of the worst incidents was in the northern province of Kunduz in April when an Afghan air strike on an outdoor religious gathering killed or wounded 107 people, mostly children, a previous UNAMA report found. 
The government and military said it had targeted a Taliban base where senior members of the group were planning attacks. 

UNAMA also recorded 341 civilian casualties in election-related violence -- a trend that is expected to worsen as the October 20 legislative ballot draws closer. AFP

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 Another 450 migrants on board two Frontex vessels were stranded at sea on Saturday as Italy and Malta locked horns over whose responsibility it was to offer them safe harbour. 

The migrants had initially set sail from Libya in a single wooden vessel which was identified early Friday while passing through waters under Malta's jurisdiction. But Italy's far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, who has authority over the country's ports, on Friday refused to let them dock in his latest show of intransigence over migrants stranded at sea. 

And on Saturday, as those on board were transferred to two vessels belonging to the EU border agency Frontex, he insisted they be instructed to "head south, to Libya or Malta". "We need an act of justice, of respect and of courage to fight against these human traffickers and generate a European intervention," he said in talks with Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, his remarks carried by Italian news agencies.

 
Cited by the Italian media, cabinet sources said Conte was going to push for them to be immediately transferred to other European countries, otherwise they would not be allowed to land. In an exchange of messages, emails and phone calls on Friday, Rome had tried to push Valetta to take responsibility for those on board the wooden boat. 

But Malta said the ship was much closer to the Italian island of Lampedusa, and on Saturday, insisted it had respected "all of its obligations under international conventions" concerning those rescued at sea. 

 Jumping overboard 

On Saturday morning, as the two Frontex vessels approached the wooden boat, several migrants threw themselves overboard, prompting immediate efforts to rescue them from the water, Italian sources said. 
Eight women and children were taken to Lampedusa for medical treatment. 

The new standoff kicked in just hours after 67 migrants were allowed to disembark from an Italian coast guard ship in Sicily late on Thursday. 

Salvini, who took office when Italy's new populist government came to power on June 1, wants to block any further migrant arrivals by boat and has banned charity rescue ships from docking in Italian ports, accusing them of aiding human traffickers. 

Last month, the French rescue ship Aquarius and the German boat Lifeline, who between them were carrying hundreds of migrants, were forced to divert to Spain and Malta respectively after Italy turned them away. 

Italy, Greece and Spain have been on the front line of the migrant crisis, with Europe deeply divided over how to share the burden of the massive influx of people seeking to create a new life in Europe. AFP

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France v Croatia: 3 key World Cup final battles

France are favorites to win the World Cup for a second time in Moscow on Sunday when they take on a Croatia side forced to go through three periods of extra-time to make their first ever final. 

By contrast, Didier Deschamps's side have seen off Argentina, Uruguay and Belgium, all in 90 minutes, and enjoyed a day's extra rest to prepare after their semi-final on Tuesday as they look to make amends for defeat in the Euro 2016 final to Portugal. 

As the smallest country to reach a World Cup final for 68 years, Croatia cannot call on the same resources as the French but have shown incredible mental strength to battle back from falling behind in each of their three knockout games. 

AFP Sport looks at three key battles that could decide who are crowned champions of the world: 
Luka Modric v Paul Pogba 
Modric has been widely hailed as the world's best midfielder for his performances in Russia and has emerged as a Ballon d'Or contender after also winning his fourth Champions League in five years at Real Madrid. 

That is a status Pogba aspires to, but the one-time world's most expensive player has sacrificed some of his creative talents for the good of the team in Russia. 

Manchester United's Pogba has formed a formidable partnership with N'Golo Kante at the heart of the French midfield that has helped snuff out the threat of Lionel Messi, Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard. 
Should Pogba and Kante also prevent Modric from taking control of the midfield as he did despite tired legs in the second half of Croatia's semi-final against England, it will take France a long way towards a first World Cup in 20 years. 

Mario Mandzukic v Raphael Varane 
Mandzukic often saves his best for the big occasion, most recently shrugging off a knee injury to strike the winner against England in the semi-final. 

The Juventus forward also has a great record when facing Varane. Mandzukic scored a stunning overhead kick in the 2017 Champions League final, netted twice as the Italians beat Real Madrid 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu in April and grabbed the winner for Atletico Madrid in the 2014 Spanish Super Cup. 

Mandzukic will be used as a focal point to try and bring Modric, Ivan Rakitic and Ivan Perisic into the game, but Varane has arguably been the best centre-back at the World Cup and has the speed, height and power to nullify Croatia's biggest goal threat. 

Marcelo Brozovic v Antoine Griezmann 

Recalled by Zlatko Dalic for the semi-final, Inter Milan midfielder Brozovic freed up Modric and Rakitic from defensive duties at the base of the midfield and always provided an out ball for his centre-backs as Croatia dominated possession. 

Griezmann has not shone as brightly as at Euro 2016, when he won the Golden Boot. His three goals have come from two penalties and a goalkeeping mistake by Uruguay's Fernando Muslera. 

However, the Atletico Madrid star has improved as the tournament has progressed and has been France's main playmaker, providing the assists for Varane's and Samuel Umtiti's goals in the quarter-finals and semi-finals. 

Griezmann's energy and intelligence will see him find space to feed Giroud and Kylian Mbappe if Croatia's energy levels run low. It'll be Brozovic's job to make sure he does not. AFP
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Fiction/Thriller

SACRED GAMES

Vikram Chandra

Language: English

Published: 2006

Publisher: Faber and Faber

Pages: 947, Paperback

Vikram Chandra’s Sacred Games is an immensely demanding novel. At nearly a thousand pages, you would be better off pick­ing it up only when you have lots of free time. A fair bit of understanding of politics and various religious prac­tices in India wouldn’t hurt either. If you have all that covered, reading Sacred Games will prove to be a thrilling ride. If not, you will have to take to Google on occasions to understand the references it makes to various places and events because of the author’s blatant refusal to let outsiders completely in on a city that isn’t theirs.Sacred Games, a vivid portrayal of modern India, focusing mostly on Bombay, introduces us to a Sikh policeman named Sartaj Singh who carries the weight of a broken mar­riage, and can’t seem to climb up the ranks like his more ambitious colleagues. When Singh had an afflu­ent wife, he didn’t take bribes but he no longer has that option. A tip-off leads him into the hideout of a famous gangster, Ganesh Gaitonde. At the impregnable white cube with green windows, which resembles a bunker-like structure and is fitted with security cameras all over, a voice, through the intercom, tells Singh that he will never get through.

It is apparently Gaitonde himself. And that is how Singh begins a con­versation with him. After declining to surrender, Gaitonde starts telling Singh his life story. He talks about the first murder that he committed that gave him enough money to build a criminal empire. The narra­tive is interrupted when a bulldozer arrives and the police force their way in, only to find Gaitonde has shot himself. But Gaitonde’s death isn’t the end of it as Singh is told to further investigate the gangster’s last few days in a top-secret manner. The plot moves forward in parallel nar­ratives that also include Gaitonde’s posthumous confessions.

Seven years in the making and with a seven-figure advance, Sacred Games was indeed an ambitious undertaking that could have gone horribly wrong. But Chandra man­ages to establish his two main char­acters and the city, with its many labyrinths, in such a relatable way that you simply won’t be able to get the book out of your head, while you are reading it, and long after you are done. We won’t say reading it is going to be easy but one of the charms of the book lies in the fact that it constantly challenges you to discover new things through a little bit of hard work.

Sacred Games is now an Indian web television series on Netflix starring Saif Ali Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Radhika Apte.