Salman Khan arrived in Mumbai in the early hours of Wednesday to celebrate his 58th birthday in style, surrounded by his family, friends, and fans.

Salman Khan celebrated his 58th birthday with his niece Ayat Sharma. The actor, who shares his birthday with Arpita Sharma and Aayush Sharma’s daughter, was spotted standing alongside Helen, singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to Ayat as she cut into a three-tier cake.

In a video from the birthday celebration, Salman was dressed in all-black attire as he joined his family to mark both his and Ayat’s birthdays.

Arbaaz Khan, Arhaan Khan, Helen, Alvira Khan Agnihotri, Bobby Deol, and numerous other guests made their presence known at the extravagant house party.

The Khan family’s birthday festivities follow closely after Arbaaz’s recent wedding to Sshura Khan on Sunday. The entire family was seen at the private nikah ceremony.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Salman Khan is soon expected to begin filming for Tiger Vs Pathaan.

See Also: Salman Khan sends heartwarming Christmas gifts to Malaika Arora 

Wrestlers at an akhara in Haryana’s Jhajjar district were in for a surprise this morning when they saw Congress MP Rahul Gandhi walking in. Mr Gandhi joined them for exercise, shared his Jiu-jitsu experience and also spoke about the unrest in wrestling circles over sexual harassment allegations against former wrestling boss Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

Among those present was Olympic Games bronze medallist Bajrang Punia, who announced that he is returning his Padma Shri and will not take it back till “sisters and daughters” get justice.

Wrestlers at Virender Arya Akhara in Chhara village said they had no clue that the Congress leader would visit. “Nobody told us that he’s coming. We were practising here, and he walked in. He reached around 6.15 am,” a wrestler told the media.

Asked what the Congress leader did at the akhara, the wrestler said, “He exercised with us. He has a lot of knowledge about wrestling. He spoke about Jujutsu and showed us some moves. He asked about wrestling, how points are scored. He had bajre ki roti, curd and hara saag.”

Asked if there was a discussion on the current storm within the wrestling fraternity, the wrestler said they had told the Congress leaders that youngsters are very stressed about the situation. “Nationals will take place, but how will we solve this problem.”

To a question on how Mr Gandhi responded to their concerns, the wrestler said, “What can he do in this matter? It’s in the government’s hand.”

Visuals also showed wrestlers giving a bunch of radishes to the Congress leader.

Mr Poonia said the Congress leader had come to see a wrestler’s daily activities and joined him for exercises.

Mr Gandhi posted shots from his visit on X, previously Twitter. “The question is if these people have to quit wrestling in akhara to join the fight for justice for India’s daughters, then who will encourage their children to choose this path?”

“These people are from the families of farmers, they are simple people, let them serve the Tricolour,” he said in a post.

वर्षों की जीतोड़ मेहनत, धैर्य एवं अप्रतिम अनुशासन के साथ अपने खून और पसीने से मिट्टी को सींच कर एक खिलाड़ी अपने देश के लिए मेडल लाता है।

आज झज्जर के छारा गांव में भाई विरेंद्र आर्य के अखाड़े पहुंच कर ओलंपिक पदक विजेता बजरंग पूनिया समेत अन्य पहलवान भाइयों के साथ चर्चा की।

सवाल… pic.twitter.com/IeGOebvRl6

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) December 27, 2023

The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), the country’s top body for the sport, has been in the news for the wrong reasons ever since its former boss and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh was accused of sexually harassing women wrestlers.

A protest against him was led by Mr Poonia, Commonwealth Games gold medallist Vinesh Phogat and Olympics Games bronze meddalist Sakshee Malikkh.

In the latest elections of WFI, a close aide of the BJP MP won the top post. In protest, Ms Mallikkh quit wrestling and Mr Poonia and Ms Phogat returned their awards.

The activities of WFI have now been suspended by the centre over hasty announcement of the junior nationals. The Sports ministry’s statement has also noted that the newly elected body “appears to be (in) complete control of former office bearers in complete disregard to the Sports Code”.

Amid the row in Jammu and Kashmir over the death of three civilians after they were detained by the Army for questioning, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told soldiers that they should not “make any mistake” that hurts an Indian.

Mr Singh is in the Union Territory to review the security situation, days after an ambush on two Army vehicles left four soldiers dead. It was in the aftermath of the terror attack that several civilians in Poonch were detained by the Army for questioning. Three of them were later found dead. A Brigade Commander has been asked to join the Army’s probe into the deaths. The Army has said it has zero tolerance for violence against innocent civilians.

“You are the country’s protectors. But I want to request you that besides ensuring the country’s security, you also have the responsibility to win the hearts of the people. There should be no mistake that hurts an Indian,” he said.

The Defence Minister said the forces should share a close bond with the people. “We have to win battles, eliminate terrorists, but a bigger objective is to win the hearts of the people. We will win wars, but we need to win hearts too. And I know you try your best to do this,” he said.

Every soldier is like a family member to every India, he assured the troops.

“Every Indian feels this way. It is not tolerable to us if anyone casts an evil eye on you. Security and intelligence agencies play a crucial role in stopping such attacks. Whatever support is needed to step up surveillance will be provided by the government. The doors to our treasury are fully open,” he said.

The Defence Minister added that such attacks “should not be taken for granted”. “I know you all are alert, but I think more alertness is required. Your bravery makes us proud. Your sacrifice, your efforts have no parallel. And they are priceless. When a soldier dies a martyr, even if we pay some compensation, it cannot compensate for the loss. I want to assure you that the government is with you and your welfare and security are high on our priority list,” he said.

The Indian Army, he said, is now seen as more powerful and well-equipped than before.

Earlier today, the Defence Minister arrived in Jammu and left for Rajouri soon after.

Mr Singh is likely to meet local residents and families of the dead civilians. Around 3 pm, he is expected to chair a high-level security meeting at Raj Bhavan in Jammu.

Security has been stepped up across Jammu for the Defence Minister’s visit. Earlier, Army Chief General Manoj Pande visited the Union Territory to review the situation there.