Buying Tesla At $420 A Share Was No Joke: Elon Musk Over 2018 Tweet Trial

Elon Musk on Monday told jurors that his 2018 tweet about taking Tesla private at $420 a share was no joke and that Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund was serious about helping him do it.

The Tesla chief returned to the witness stand to answer questions from lawyers for angry investors who accuse him of costing them millions of dollars with a pair of allegedly false tweets about having the funding secured to buy them out.

A lawyer for the plaintiffs focused on Musk's buyout figure of 420, a number that is also a popular rallying code for marijuana, which Musk uses.

"420 was not chosen because of a joke; it was chosen because there was a 20 percent premium over the stock price," Musk said when asked if he was having a laugh when he made the tweet.

Musk added, however, that there was "some karma around 420", though "I should question whether that is good or bad karma at this point."

The case revolves around a pair of tweets in which Musk said "funding secured" for a project to buy out the publicly-traded electric automaker, then in a second tweet added that "investor support is confirmed."

The tweets sent the Tesla share price on a rollercoaster ride and Musk was sued by shareholders who say the tycoon acted recklessly in an effort to squeeze investors who had bet, or "gone short," against the company.

Musk referred to short sellers as "evil" at the trial.

"It's difficult to appreciate just now just how much attack Tesla was under by short sellers who wanted Tesla to die," Musk told jurors.

- 'Done deal' -

But Musk said he fired off the tweets at issue after learning of a Financial Times story about a Saudi Arabian investment fund wanting to acquire a stake in Tesla.

"My concern was that if they knew all of this information, then they could also potentially know about the take-private," Musk said of the news report.

Musk testified that Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund was "unequivocally, without question" supportive of his project, adding that the head of the fund told him that the crown prince of Saudi Arabia was also on board.

"So essentially I took that to mean it was a done deal," Musk said.

When confronted with exchanges with the Saudi fund that showed they wanted more details before committing to his buyout plan, Musk said the fund was "backpedalling".

Musk testified that he understood the fund would do whatever it took to take Tesla private and had plenty of money to do it.

The billionaire added that even without the Saudi fund, he had the personal wealth to take Tesla private at the time, including by using his shares in SpaceX, the company he also runs.

Musk said he had shared some details of his plan with tech billionaire and Tesla investor Larry Ellison, who is among witnesses slated to testify at the fraud trial.

During testimony last week, a Harvard professor called as a witness by the plaintiffs said that Musk's plans were "illusory" and deviated wildly from the way such mega-deals usually take place.

In his own opening remarks, Musk attorney Alex Spiro said that even though the tweets may have been a "reckless choice of words", they were "not fraud, not even close.

"I'm being accused of fraud; it's outrageous," Musk said as his lawyer took over the questioning on Monday.

The tycoon's testimony is set to conclude on Tuesday.

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Man Arrested With 8 Gold Biscuits Worth Over Rs 54 Lakh In West Bengal

The Border Security Force (BSF) apprehended a man with eight gold biscuits on Sunday in North 24 Parganas in West Bengal, said a press release on Monday.

The accused had been identified as Bablu Molla, added the press release.

"......troops of Border Out Post Tarali, 112 Battalion under South Bengal Frontier, apprehended a smuggler with eight gold biscuits while returning from his farm on a bicycle," said a statement.

The weight of the seized gold biscuits is 933 grams and the estimated value of the gold is Rs 54,60,662, as per the statement.

On Saturday, in district Malda, troops of Border Out Post Kathakali, 115 Battalion had seized gold worth more than Rs 26 lakh from their area of responsibility.

The apprehended smuggler and the seized gold were handed over to the Customs office, Tentulia for further legal action.

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BJP Will Form Three-Fourth Majority Government In 2023 Rajasthan Polls: JP Nadda

BJP president J P Nadda on Monday said the party will form a three-fourth majority government in Rajasthan in the assembly elections to be held later this year.

Addressing the party's Rajasthan state working committee meeting here, Mr Nadda said, "BJP is the only national party and all other parties have remained family parties. The Congress has been identified as a family party. Regional parties have also become family parties." He also congratulated the state leadership for the successful organisation of the 'Jan Aakrosh Yatra' and asked it to hold more such campaigns.

Attacking the Congress government in the state, Mr Nadda alleged that cybercrimes and crimes against women and Dalits have increased. Prices of electricity, petrol and diesel are also continuously increasing under this Congress government, he added.

"We (BJP) are not just a political organisation but also a party working for social concerns... India and the whole world saw the social face of the party during the Covid period," the BJP chief said.

"Our party is a party with ideas, we do politics with a mission, politics with ideology and service to the country. Party and ideology are paramount for us," he said.

On Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra, he alleged that the people who raised slogans against India and conspired against the country were seen walking with him.

Mr Nadda said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is committed to the progress of the country and make it self-reliant.

A political resolution was passed in the BJP meeting and it stated that under Modi's leadership, new enthusiasm, energy, and inspiration have been infused in party workers across the country.

This has strengthened the political confidence of the BJP and it will have a positive impact on upcoming assembly polls and the 2024 general elections, it said.

While the BJP at the Centre is setting "new records" in the development of the country, in Rajasthan, people's hopes are being shattered by the Congress, the resolution said.

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PM Modi's "Read Biographies" Advice On Netaji's Birth Anniversary

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday advised youngsters to read biographies of historical personalities to learn about the challenges they faced and how they overcame it as he interacted with them on the birth anniversary of Subhas Chandra Bose.

PM Modi interacted with them on the Parakram Diwas at his residence. These youngsters, a statement said, were selected under the 'Know Your Leader" programme to participate in the ceremony to honour Bose in Parliament's Central Hall.

The statement said PM Modi engaged in a candid and free-wheeling talk and discussed various facets of Bose's life and what can be learnt from him.

The youngsters shared their excitement on getting the unique opportunity to meet the prime minister and to sit in the Central Hall of Parliament, it said.

The happy group of youngsters said the programme, through which they were chosen, has also given them an understanding of what unity in diversity is as they met so many young persons from all corners of the country.

The statement said in a welcome change from the past practice of inviting only dignitaries to pay floral tributes to national icons in Parliament, these 80 youths were selected from across the country to participate in the floral tribute function to commemorate Netaji, as Bose is fondly remembered.

The programme "Know Your Leader" has been launched to use the floral tribute functions in Parliament as a medium for spreading more knowledge and awareness about the lives and contributions of these icons among the youth.

They were selected through an "elaborate, objective and merit-based" process involving quizzes on DIKSHA portal and MyGov, elocution and speech competition at district and state level, and selection from universities through competition on life and contributions of Netaji.

As many as 31 of them also got an opportunity to speak on his contributions at a function organised in the Central Hall. They spoke in five languages: Hindi, English, Sanskrit, Marathi and Bangla, the statement said.

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"Post Box To Heaven" In UK Receives Over 2,000 Letters

Over 2,000 letters have been sent to a post box, which is popularly called "post box to heaven" where friends and family leave notes for their dead loved ones. It was set up in November 2021,  during the Covid-19 pandemic. It is located in Dell, in the formal gardens at Walton Hall in Warrington, United Kingdom, as per a report in BBC.

Letters are written on biodegradable wildflower seed paper and then planted in the gardens. The BBC states that the hall became a place for people "to come and reflect and remember their loved ones".

Following the same trend, a crematorium recently set up a similar postbox in Nottingham. A nine-year-old girl Matilda Handy decided this as a medium to express her feelings after her grandparents died, according to UK's Metro. After approaching the owners of Gedling Crematorium in Nottinghamshire about the idea, the management installed the white postbox. To the girl's surprise, the post box has already received nearly hundred 'letters to heaven.'

The mother and daughter hope that the post box becomes permanent at the site so that "people can continue to send their loved one's messages on anniversaries and holidays throughout the year."

Cabinet member for leisure and community, Councillor Tony Higgins spoke to the BBC about the formal gardens at Walton Hall. He said, "Recent years have been difficult for us all, especially for those who lost loved ones and were sometimes not able to say goodbye." He said that the setting allows people to reflect on special memories. "I'm so pleased that there is now a tranquil setting where they are able to visit to reflect on special memories," he continued telling the outlet.

"I hope the garden becomes a much-loved area of the estate and, over time, I look forward to seeing the whole garden flourish with wildflowers, bringing a beautiful backdrop of colour and providing the perfect environment for nature to thrive," Councillor Tony Higgins said.

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Police Surround Suspect In California Mass Shooting: Reports

Police were involved in a stand-off with the man they believe was responsible for killing 10 people in a mass shooting during Lunar New Year celebrations in California, media reports said Sunday.

Aerial footage showed a white transit van hemmed in by two armored police vehicles, while a large number of police cars stood nearby in Torrance, south of Los Angeles.

The development came as Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department released images of the man they are looking for.

Images, apparently from surveillance cameras, show an Asian man wearing a beanie hat and glasses.

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6 Killed As Truck Hits Car In UP's Unnao

Six people lost their lives on Sunday evening when a dumper truck collided with a car on the Lucknow-Kanpur highway in the Achalganj police station area in Unnao, officials said.

Following the collision, the car got dragged for some distance and hit a woman and her daughter before falling into a ditch, Superintendent of Police Siddharth Shankar Meena said, adding the incident occurred around 7 pm.

Two persons died on the spot, while the rest of them died of their injuries at a hospital.

The victims have been identified as Chhottelal (32), Shivang (30), Vimlesh (60), Rampyari (45) and her daughter Shivani (13), Emergency Medical Officer at the district hospital Dr Ashish said, adding the identity of the sixth victim is yet to be ascertained.

Locals had blocked the road following the accident. However, the blockade was lifted after sometime following intervention by the police.

Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has expressed grief over the loss of lives in the Unnao road accident, the Chief Minister's Office said in a tweet.

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