Flashback 2022: The Year That Was

Top 10 events Across the Globe:

Russia invades Ukraine: February witnessed one of the biggest events of the year unfolding in Europe when Russia invaded Ukraine's capital Kyiv from the north in an attempt to overthrow President Volodymyr Zelensky's government. Amid swirling tension and global criticisms which targeted Russian President Vladimir Putin and his administration, artillery bombardment and street fighting continued as Moscow attempted to capture one Ukrainian city after another. Volodymyr Zelensky remained one of the most talked about persons of the year due to his gutsy leadership and efforts to fight back the Russian invasion.

Political turmoil in UK: Global spotlight shifted to the UK this year as ex-PM Boris Johnson resigned from office in July after spending a term of only three years. Johnson was succeeded by Liz Truss only to make her the shortest serving PM of the country.

After taking over the reins in September, Liz could only be in her office for 45 days, ending a jittery rule that witnessed MPs losing confidence due to her budgetary plans that had led to the market crash.

After her exit, Rishi Sunak, the first Indian origin PM of the UK, grabbed the hot seat, promising to deliver and fix the mistakes made by his predecessor.

Sri Lanka stung by economic crisis: Sri Lanka, a nation best known for its beaches and picturesque travel destinations, started to suffer hard when a sharp rise in food and fuel costs triggered protests. Thousands of protesters demanded the resignation of now-ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Long hours of power cuts and shortage of food, fuel and other basic elements further escalated the anger.

The doctors even raised their hands and said they were nearly out of life-saving medicines. Protesters blamed the Rajapaksa administration for the poor economic state of the nation. In July, Sri Lanka witnessed a new form of protest when demonstrators finally stormed into Rajapaksa's palace.

They forced him to flee the nation before resigning from office, ending a dark chapter in the history of the country that had once witnessed civil war for several years.

Mahsa Amini's death leads to Iran unrest: Iranian woman Mahsa Amini died suspiciously in September after she was detained by the religion morality police of Iran for allegedly violating laws that require women to wear a headscarf. Iranian authorities claimed she died due to illness. However, Amini's family alleged the 22-year-old fell into a coma after being mistreated by the police.

During her funeral, women started protesting by ripping off their hijabs.

Thousands of women across the country have since then demonstrated in the Islamic nation by cutting their hair and burning their hijabs in public.

Beyond the paradigm of women's rights, the protest has now shifted to a new altar where demonstrators are demanding an end to theocratic rule. Today, the entire movement has emerged as a major struggle in the history of the country in several decades.

UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) tries to find answers to unknown issues:  World witnessed a landmark moment when rich countries agreed to pay for losses and damages caused by climate change. Interestingly, developing nations have been asking developed countries to  compensate for the costs of climate disasters caused by climate change for the past 30 years. However, rich nations have so far negated such demands until winds of change were finally felt in 2022.

Twitter gets new boss:  Billionaire Elon Musk finally in October became the new boss of Twitter, ending periods of uncertainty when the deal was constantly delayed due to hesitancy, drama and even a lawsuit.

Musk closed the $44 billion deal but his steps in the following weeks in handling the company kept him in the headline globally.

Imran Khan ousted from power: In April, former Pakistan PM Imran Khan received a jolt when the National Assembly passed a no-confidence motion against him. He became the first PM of the country to be removed from power through the no-confidence motion route. After his ouster, Shehbaz Sharif took oath as the 23rd PM of the country.

Pakistan also battled destructive floods in 2022 which led to the deaths of over 1200 people.

Taliban keeps tormenting Afghanistan: Afghanistan was in news in 2021 when Taliban once again returned to power by removing the regular government on Aug 15. After the foreign forces started leaving Afghanistan, Taliban kept capturing one city after the other till it took Kabul in its grips, returning to power after several years.

In 2022, Taliban kept shattering their promises to follow the paths of human rights and equality for women and even banned them from attending university classes. The insurgents even ordered NGOs not to employ women employees.

China slowly falling from grace: China remained in the news for the past one year for several reasons which also include dismantling the 'Zero COVID' policy and human rights violations. China is witnessing a sudden surge in the COVID-19 case after it decided to remove the 'Zero COVID policy' amid widespread protests against strict lockdown and restrictions imposed across the nation. The situation is emerging as a challenge for President Xi Jinping who kicked off his third term as Chinese Communist Party general secretary this year.

Queen Elizabeth dies: Queen Elizabeth II,  Britain's longest-serving monarch, died in September, ending her glorious 70-year-rule. Following her death, King Charles III succeeded as the new monarch.

Top Five Events Which Left India Amazed:

Indian gets second woman President: Droupadi Murmu created history when she became the first tribal President of India.

She is also the second woman President of the world's largest democracy.

In a one-sided battle, Murmu defeated opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha to win the Presidential polls. Apart from Murmu, Jagdeep Dhankar was also elected as the 14th Vice-President of India.

Congress gets non-Gandhi President: The grand old party finally elected their president and this time he does not belong to the Gandhi family. Senior leader Mallikarjun Kharge won the seat by beating his colleague Shashi Tharoor.

BJP wins Gujarat again: PM Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party seems to continue its dominance in the poll front and this was evident once again when the saffron brigade clinched the Gujarat elections by capturing 156 seats in a nearly one-sided contest. The result showed that Modi magic has not waned in Gujarat.

However, the party suffered a defeat in Himachal Pradesh where the Congress returned to power once again. 

Aam Aadmi Party wins Delhi MCD polls and Punjab: 2022 remained a golden year for Aam Aadmi Party and its chief Arvind Kejriwal  as after capturing Delhi, the 'muffler man' was successful in winning Punjab Assembly polls. The party won the polls by bagging 92 seats. Bhagwant Mann was declared the Chief Minister of the state. 

Arvind Kejriwal's magic continued to soar high as his AAP assumed power for the first time in Delhi municipal corporations this year.

Indian-Chinese troops briefly clash in Tawang: Indian and Chinese troops briefly clashed at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Arunachal Pradesh at the end of the year. The face-off took place on Dec 9 and led to "minor injuries to a few personnel from both sides".

Following the brief clash, the two sides "immediately disengaged from the area". The face-off took place at the Tawang Sector of Arunachal Pradesh. This is the first reported clash between Indian and Chinese troops since skirmishes at Eastern Ladakh.

The worst of these clashes broke out at Galwan Valley in June 2020, when 20 Indian soldiers were martyred and over 40 Chinese soldiers were killed or injured. The incident set off a series of confrontations between the two nations, including one at the South Bank of Pangong Lake. After multiple commanders-level talks, Indian and Chinese troops pulled back from key points including Gogra-Hot Springs in Ladakh.

Rahul Gandhi and his Bharat Jodo Yatra: Rahul Gandhi is currently carrying out an ambitious padyatra (foot rally) from Kanyakumari to Kashmir as an attempt to revive the fate of the grand old party of the nation which has been continuously facing defeats in several polls. The yatra received strong support with several eminent personalities, including  former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, joining it.

India's golden spots on sporting field:

Thomas Cup victory: India defeated 14-time Champions Indonesia to lift the iconic Thomas Cup and scripted a new chapter in the history of the country.

India defeats Pakistan in MCG: Virat Kohli magic prevailed on the pitch in MCG this year during the T20 World Cup when India defeated Pakistan in a highly-contested clash in Australia. Kohli smashed unbeaten 82 runs to help India beat the arch-rivals in the group stage match of the tournament. The match will remain memorable especially after India scripted the victory despite being reduced to 31/4. Virat Kohli single-handedly changed the course of the match which will remain memorable in the hearts of cricket lovers forever.

India wins hearts at Commonwealth Games: India clinched 61 medals at the Commonwealth Games which was held in Birmingham this year. Making the country proud, India stood in fourth position in the medals tally.

BCCI Equal Pay: BCCI created history this year when the board announced women and men will be getting the same match fee.Following the decision, the board will be  getting INR 15 lakhs for the Test, INR 6 lakhs for ODI, and INR 3 lakhs for the T20I.

Dominating Events in World Sports:

Rafael Nadal creates a golden page in history: Spanish Tennis star Rafael Nadal won the 14th French Open title as he became the first player in the Open era to win 22 Grand Slam men's titles.

Argentina and Messi win the world: The World Cup was held in Qatar this year with Lionel Messi and his spirited Argentina defeating existing champions France to lift the iconic title. With seven goals and three assists Messi was successful in winning the Golden Ball. He also shattered records to become the most capped World Cup player with 26 appearances in the grand football event.

Bollywood faces tough competition from South:

2022 will be remembered as one of the tough years for Bollywood when regional movie industries gave the B-town cut-throat competition nationally with even audiences giving major releases a miss and preferring to shift their allegiance to their new found love in South. Boycott calls also trended all through the year. However, there were certain major events which kept Bollywood buzzing.

Alia Bhatt-Ranbir Kapoor ties knot, welcome first baby: 2022 will remain one memorable year for Alia Bhatt as she achieved several crucial benchmarks in her life which included her marriage with Ranbir Kapoor and subsequent motherhood. In April, Alia and Ranbir left their fans delighted when the loved couple of the industry finally agreed to tie the nuptial knot. Happy news was extended in the later half of the year as well when she gave birth to a baby girl.

Deepika Padukone: Deepika remained in the news for the entire year with her performance in Gehraiyaan at the beginning and then ending with her supposedly "sizzling appearance" in 'Besharam Rang' song from Pathaan. The song, however, landed the film in trouble for featuring Deepika in a saffron bikini angering a section of Hindus with even a ruling BJP minister in Madhya Pradesh threatening to stall its release in the state. Deepika earned applause from fans and critics for playing an out-of-the-box character  in Gehraiyaan. The movie, apart from the notable chemistry shared between Deepika and Sidhant Chaturvedi, will also be remembered for creating awareness about mental illness.

Ranveer Singh's nude act lands him in trouble: Ranveer, who beautifully portrayed Kapil Dev in 2021 released movie 83, found himself in the middle of a controversy when he appeared in a nude photoshoot for a magazine.  A case was filed against the talented Bollywood actor by an NGO which alleged that he hurt the sentiments of women. (Image courtesy Twitter of Paper magazine)

The Kashmir File: Anupam Kher, who is considered as one the best performers in Bollywood, perhaps created one of the biggest magic of the year with the release of his movie The Kashmir Files. Based around the 1990s exodus of Kashmiri Hindus from Kashmir, the  Vivek Agnihotri-directed hard-hitting drama emerged as the first major hit of the year. The movie also emerged as one of the most talked about films of the year. The film was an entry at the 53rd International Film Festival of India, held in Goa in November 2022. During the festival, Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid, who was one of the heads of the juries for international competition at the IFFI, triggered a controversy by calling it 'vulgar and propaganda'.

RIP Lata Mangeshkar: India was heartbroken when Lata Mangeshkar, the singing legend of the nation, passed away at a hospital in Mumbai. With her death, a glorious chapter in the history of the country came to an end but she will surely continue to live through her memorable songs forever.

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