On the eve of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav’s birthday, party leaders from four prominent non-Yadav OBC castes — Maurya, Shakya, Kushwaha and Saini — organised a blood donation camp at King George’s Medical University in Lucknow on Monday. Over 300 party workers donated blood at the camp. Yadav himself visited the camp to appreciate the donors and also cut a cake. SP has a good support base among the Yadav OBC castes but the votes of the other OBC castes get divided among different political parties. Model Office The constituency office of Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil, who represents the Navsari (Gujarat) Lok Sabha seat, has emerged as a ‘model MP office’ for fellow BJP MPs and MLAs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also learnt to have cited Patil’s office as an example during a recent meeting with BJP MLAs from Delhi, urging them to visit and learn how it operates. Since then, several Delhi BJP leaders have been planning a visit to his office. Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav and Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan have also expressed interest in understanding how Patil’s office functions. Digital Classic Bollywood classic Umrao Jaan is among the films under consideration for India’s Cannes Film Festival entry, it is learnt. The 4K remastered version of the the iconic 1981 film, starring Rekha, Farooq Shaikh and Naseeruddin Shah, premiered Sunday in Delhi. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri appeared as the chief guest at the invite of filmmaker Muzaffar Ali.
