Saturday, 18 May 2024
Saturday, 18 May 2024
The Supreme Court unanimously upheld the Centre's decision to abrogate provisions of Article 370 bestowing special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, and directed restoration of statehood 'at the earliest' as well as elections to the assembly by September 30 next year. Writing the judgement for himself and Justices B R Gavai and Surya Kant, the CJI said Article 370 was a temporary provision and the president was empowered to revoke it in the absence of the Constituent Assembly of the erstwhile state.
Mohan Yadav, the BJP MLA from Ujjain South, will be the new Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, where the saffron outfit has retained power after the just held assembly polls, party sources said. He was serving as minister for higher education in the outgoing Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's cabinet.
Trinamul Congress (TMC) leader Mahua Moitra moved the Supreme Court challenging her expulsion from the Lok Sabha, after the House adopted the report of its ethics committee that held her guilty of accepting gifts and illegal gratification from a businessman to further his interest. Reacting sharply to her expulsion, Moitra had equated the action with hanging by a 'kangaroo court' and alleged that a parliamentary panel was being weaponised by the government to force the opposition into submission.
Former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti claimed they were put under house arrest ahead of the Supreme Court's verdict on a batch of petitions challenging the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution that conferred a special status on Jammu and Kashmir. However, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and the police said no one was put under house arrest or arrested.
The income-tax department continued its searches in different places linked to an Odisha-based distillery group on charges of tax evasion for the sixth consecutive day after recovering unaccounted cash to the tune of Rs 353 crore, the 'highest-ever' haul in a single action by any probe agency in the country, officials said. The raids were also conducted at Sambalpur, Titlagarh, Sundargarh, Bolangir and Bhubaneswar, the officials said.
MPs from various parties of the INDIA bloc staged a walkout in the Rajya Sabha, alleging a 'blockade' of funds to opposition-ruled states. "All Opposition parties walked out of the Rajya Sabha this morning, protesting against the Union government's economic blockade of funds to states run by non-BJP parties," TMC MP Derek O'Brien said.
Asserting that withdrawal of 'general consent' by some states has led to severe limitations in the CBI's powers to investigate crucial cases, a Parliamentary panel on Monday said there was a dire need to enact a new law and give wider powers to the federal agency so that it can probe cases without a 'state's consent and interference'. As per the provisions of the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act, which governs the functioning of the CBI, the consent of the state government is a pre-requisite for any investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
India night described as 'fake' and 'completely fabricated' a media report which claimed that a 'secret memo' was issued by New Delhi in April to take 'concrete' measures against certain Sikh separatists including Hardeep Singh Nijjar. "This is part of a sustained disinformation campaign against India. The outlet in question is known for propagating fake narratives peddled by Pakistani intelligence. The posts of the authors confirm this linkage," he said.
Two farmers from two districts of West Bengal died allegedly by suicide in the last few days after unseasonal rainfall damaged their crops, police said. “His entire potato crop was damaged due to rainfall caused under the influence of Cyclone Michaung,” a police officer said.
A woman was allegedly assaulted, paraded naked and tied to an electric pole in a village in this district, after her son eloped with a girl who was to get engaged with someone else, police said. The police, who rushed to the spot and set her free, have arrested seven persons in connection with the incident, and are investigating the matter.
