Daily Bulletin: Arun Jaitley passes away, last rites today; BS Yediyurappa to allocate portfolios in Karnataka; day's top stories

Arun Jaitley passes away, political leaders pay tribute  Arun Jaitley, who as finance minister in the first term of the Narendra Modi-led NDA government, brought in several tax reforms and was the chief trouble-shooter of the BJP-led government , passed away at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi on Saturday after battling multiple health issues for the past several months. In a brief statement, the hospital said Jaitley breathed his last on Saturday afternoon. The 66-year-old was admitted to the hospital on 9 August following complaints of difficulty breathing. [caption id=“attachment_7218491” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of Arun Jaitley. PTI[/caption] The cremation will be on Sunday afternoon at the Nigambodh Ghat. Jaitley was known as a consensus builder and had played the role of key strategist for the BJP-led government. He helmed the finance, corporate affairs and information and broadcasting ministries. Jaitley played an instrumental role in the implementation of Modi’s schemes and programmes after the BJP came to power in May 2014. His most important policy decision will be rolling out the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 2017, the biggest tax reforms after Independence. Leaders across the political spectrum tribute to Jaitley on Saturday. Modi, who is on a three-nation tour, said he had lost a valued friend and conveyed his condolences to Jaitley’s wife and son. “With the demise of Arun Jaitley_ji_, I have lost a valued friend, whom I have had the honour of knowing for decades. His insight on issues and nuanced understanding of matters had very few parallels. He lived well, leaving us all with innumerable happy memories. We will miss him!” the prime minister said. Paying homage to Jaitley, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and other Opposition leaders said his contribution to public life will be “remembered forever”. Allocation of portfolios in new Karnataka cabinet likely today The allocation of portfolios to 17 newly inducted ministers in the Karnataka cabinet is likely to take place after Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa’s return to Bengaluru from Delhi on Sunday. Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Yediyurappa cited the death of BJP stalwart and former finance minister Arun Jaitley, and his travel to Delhi on Sunday to pay last respects as the reasons for the delay. “I have had a discussion with Amit Shah. Today I had to send the list (of portfolios) to the governor. Tomorrow after coming from Delhi I will do it… everything is clear, there are no issues,” Yediyurappa said. Having to pacify disgruntled MLAs who missed out on cabinet berths, along with allocating portfolios to new ministers, Yediyurappa had left for Delhi on Thursday to consult BJP central leadership on the situation. Some disqualified former legislators of the Congress and JD(S) whose resignations saw the fall of the coalition government headed by HD Kumaraswamy, reportedly are also piling pressure on Yediyurappa. PV Sindhu storms into third World Badminton Championships final Star shuttler PV Sindhu entered the final of the BWF World Championships for a third consecutive time with a 21-7, 21-14 victory over world No 3 Chen Yufei. Having won silver on each of the previous finals, Sindhu will hope to go one better when she takes on Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara in the summit clash on Sunday. Earlier, B Sai Praneeth’s promising run came to an end with a 13-21, 8-21 loss to top-ranked shuttler and defending champion Kento Momota to settle for bronze, becoming the first Indian male shuttler in 36 years to win a medal at the event. Kohli, Rahane slam fifties to put India in control on Day 3 Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane brought up their half-centuries and forged an unbroken stand worth 104, with India 185/3 at stumps at the close of play on Day 3 of the first Test against West Indies at Antigua. The visitors lead by 260 runs with seven wickets in hand, having dismissed West Indies for 222 earlier in the day. The Indians will hope to bat out at least two sessions and set a target in the range of 400, one that will be a steep climb for the hosts. Jon Favreau hopes Spider-Man will remain in MCU After Sony and Marvel Cinematic Universe’s recent split, filmmaker Jon Favreau is “optimistic” that there won’t be any wrench between Happy and Aunt May’s relationship. “You never know what’s going to happen. I’m holding out hope and being optimistic that this isn’t the final chapter of the story between those characters,” Favreau told Variety’s Angelique Jackson at Disney’s biennial D23 Expo in Anaheim, Calif. On Wednesday, the company which holds the licensing rights to Spider-Man announced that Sony will not part their ways with Disney and Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige on the superhero movies. Before the split, the studio released the hit cult flicks ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ and this year’s ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ under the partnership, and lent the character to Marvel’s ‘Captain America: Civil War,’ ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ and ‘Avengers: Endgame.’ Unless Sony and Disney can restore the relationship, Spider-Man will no longer be in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.