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NEW DELHI: The Centre on Monday strongly opposed climate activist Sonam Wangchuks request to appear before the Supreme Court via video conferencing from Jodhpur jail in the case related to his detention under the National Security Act (NSA). During the hearing, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Wangchuks wife Gitanjali J Angmo, requested that the 52-year-old activist be allowed to join the proceedings via video from jail. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, opposed

BHOPAL: A training aircraft crashed after hitting a 33 KV electricity wire line in Madhya Pradeshs Seoni district on Monday evening. The instructor pilot Ajit Anthony and the trainee pilot Ashok Chawda, who were on board the aircraft were injured and rushed to the hospital, where they are now stated out of danger. The incident occurred around 6:30 pm near the fields of Amgaon, about two kilometres from the Suktara airstrip. Villagers said they saw sparks, heard a loud explosion, and then witness

BHOPAL: An alleged inter-state ganja smuggling racket has been busted in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh with the arrest of two men, including Anil Bagri, the elder brother of MPs minister of state for urban development and housing Pratima Bagri. Acting on a specific tip-off, a police team from Rampur Baghelan police station raided the house of one Pankaj Singh in Marahuan village late Sunday night and seized more than 46 kg of ganja worth over Rs 9 lakh, stashed in sacks under a tin shed. The

NEW DELHI: External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Monday made a sharp remark on the state of democracy in Pakistan, saying that democracy and Pakistan dont go together, while responding to questions on the political situation in the neighbouring country, including developments involving former Prime Minister Imran Khan and ongoing protests. Asked whether Pakistans democratic structures were weakening, Jaiswal said India has been closely monitoring developments. We keep a close

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the entire order of the Allahabad High Court's March 17 decision, which had held that mere grabbing the breasts of a minor victim and breaking the string of her pyjama to bring down her lower garment were not sufficient facts to infer that the accused were determined to commit rape. A two-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and also comprising Justice Joymalya Bagchi, said it will hear the case in January for a final hea

DEHRADUN: After breaking Uttarakhands decades-old political jinx in 2022becoming the first party to win back-to-back mandates since the states creationthe BJP under Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has moved with renewed force, pushing landmark measures such as the Uniform Civil Code. As the state turns toward the 2027 Assembly polls, Dhami speaks to Narendra Sethi about his development roadmap and the strategy behind the BJPs bid for an unprecedented third term. Here are some excerpts from th

NEW DELHI: Over 10 lakh passengers missed their flights during IndiGo's December meltdown even by conservative estimates, it has emerged. The shocking extent of the chaos that were unleashed by problems in Indigo'ss crew rostering and internal planning systems , according to Union Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu, came to light on a day when the airline cancelled nearly 500 flights. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is currently examining the airline's response to a show-cause n

A Parliamentary panel has called for a greater focus on conducting entrance exams in pen-and-paper mode, citing several leak-proof models such as CBSE and UPSC exams, and observed that the National Testing Agencys (NTA) performance over the past year has failed to inspire confidence. The panel, headed by Congress MP Digvijaya Singh, noted that in 2024 alone, out of 14 competitive examinations conducted by the NTA, at least five faced major issues. As a result, three examinations,UGC-NET, CSIR-NE

GUWAHATI: Manipurs Kuki-Zo community has strongly criticised Meitei BJP MLA Yumnam Khemchand Singh for an uninvited visit to the Litan Sareikhong Relief Camp in the Naga-majority Ukhrul district on Monday. According to Lunkhojang Baite, in-charge of the relief camp, Singh arrived around 9:30 am when most inmates had left for work, leaving behind mainly children, women, and the elderly. Singh, accompanied by several BJP workers, reportedly stopped at the camp without prior notice and took photogr

NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached assets worth Rs 4,189.89 crore in crypto-linked money laundering cases and has declared one accused a fugitive economic offender, Parliament was informed on Monday. In addition, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has identified undisclosed income of Rs 888.82 crore from transactions in virtual digital assets (VDAs) during search and seizure operations. The CBDT has sent 44,057 communications to taxpayers who invested or traded in VDA

NAIROBI: A draft resolution on strengthening the global response to wildfires, one of the 15 key texts being negotiated at the seventh UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-7), opened to broad support on Monday, even as delegations signalled early fault lines around finance and the framing of wildfire risk within climate and biodiversity strategies. The resolution, led by India and backed by a wide cross-regional group, seeks to anchor international cooperation on wildfire prevention, preparedness, and

Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, the owners of the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub in Arpora, Goa, where a fire claimed 25 lives late Saturday, have fled to Thailand, officials said on Monday, prompting police to seek Interpols assistance in tracking them. According to Goa Police, the Luthras departed for Phuket at 5.30 am on December 7 via IndiGo flight 6E 1073, just hours after the tragedy, which left mostly staff and five tourists dead. The police discovered their escape during a manhunt launched imm

NEW DELHI: In a show of unity and purpose, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Bihars NDA MPs on Monday at Parliament, marking their first interaction since the alliances historic win in the 243-member Bihar Legislative Assembly. During the meeting, the Prime Minister reviewed the NDAs commitments in the state and reiterated the coalitions shared long-term goal: achieving a Viksit Bharat by 2047. The MPs reportedly shared insights from the recent state elections, where the partnership between

NEW DELHI: Kanpur mourns the loss of Rohan (28), a chef from Kalyanpur, who was among the 25 people killed in the tragic nightclub fire in Goa . Rohan had been working at the club for the past 18 months. Rohan, a native of Nepal, had been living in Kanpur with his maternal uncle, Kunwar Singh, in the Barasirohi locality. He had previously worked in various restaurants in Kanpur before moving to Goa in February 2024 for a higher-paying chef position. Speaking to reporters, Kunwar Singh said, Roha

RANCHI: The families affected by the toxic gas leak in Dhanbads Kenduadih have directly rejected the proposal to relocate to a safer place. They made it clear on Monday that they would not abandon their ancestral land and relocate to the proposed sites at Belgadia or Karmatand. According to the affected families, the land is the heritage of their generations, and there is no question of leaving it. We would rather die, but not leave our land, they said unanimously. They believe that instead of d

NEW DELHI: In a major boost to bilateral cooperation in education, research and skilling, India and Australia on Monday announced a fresh set of collaborative initiatives at the third AustraliaIndia Education and Skills Council (AIESC) meeting held in New Delhi. The Ministry of Education said that under the SPARC (Scheme for Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration) programme, Rs 9.84 crore has been sanctioned for 10 new joint research projects with top Australian universities in areas i

NEW DELHI: In a significant boost to Indias clean energy goals, the Indian Army on Monday formally inducted bio-diesel into its fuel supply chain, marking a major milestone in its shift toward environmentally responsible mobility. Calling it a landmark initiative, the Army said the move signals the beginning of its transition to sustainable fuel alternatives aimed at reducing carbon emissions and strengthening long-term energy security. The initiative aligns with the National Biofuel Policy and

BHOPAL: Ten days and 33 surrenders have shrunk the number of armed Naxal cadres to single digits, for the first time in more than three decades in the Maharashtra-Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh (MMC) Special Zone. The CPI (Maoist) MMC Zone comprises bordering districts of the three neighbouring states MP, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh including Balaghat district and parts of Mandla district (MP), Rajnandgaon, KCG, MMA and Kabirdham districts of Chhattisgarh, and Gondia district of Maharashtra. Aro

JAIPUR: Four people lost their lives and three others were critically injured after being hit by a speeding car while they were helping a couple injured in an earlier road accident. The double accident took place on the ChittorgarhKota highway. According to reports, a car coming from the wrong side of the road first hit a couple, Shambhu Lal and his wife Kali Bai, who were riding a motorcycle near Mandana village. The same car then collided with another vehicle. Hearing the sound of the crash, p

CHANDIGARH: After a backlash over her 'Rs 500 crore for chief minister's chair' remark, Congress leader Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu has been suspended from the primary membership of the party with immediate effect. Days after claiming that it costs Rs 500 crore to become Punjab Chief Minister and making utterances against her party colleagues, Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu was placed under suspension by Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh Raja Warring. Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu is hereby suspended from the pri

NEW DELHI: Granting more relief in the form of bail relaxation to former Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji, the Supreme Court on Monday said in its order that unless summoned by the probe agency, he was not required to appear before an Enforcement Directorate officer twice a week in Chennai in the money laundering case linked to the alleged cash-for-job scam in the state. Why is this man (Balaji) required to appear before the Deputy Director of the Enforcement Directorate at Chennai on every Mo

NEW DELHI: As part of the ongoing Operation Sagar Bandhu, which was launched to provide urgent Search and Rescue and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) support to Sri Lanka, Indian Navy has deployed four more ships INS Gharial, Landing Craft Utility (LCU) 54, LCU 51 and LCU 57 for supplying HADR stores to cyclone-affected regions of Sri Lanka. INS Vikrant, INS Udaygiri and INS Sukanya had earlier rendered relief assistance and heli borne SAR support. The Indian Navy on Monday inf

AHMEDABAD: BJP MLA Prakash Varmora in a recent video remarked that characterless, alcohol-drinking and gambling people are entering politics, giving Congress a new opportunity to target the ruling BJP amid the ongoing liquor ban debate and internal dissatisfaction. The video, which surfaced from a recent religious event in Dhrangadhra, shows Varmora declaring that public trust has weakened due to such elements infiltrating the political system. In the circulating video, BJP MLA Prakash Varmora i

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Income Tax (IT) department have together dealt with more than 20,000 cases in the last 11 years, the government informed parliament on Monday. The ED recorded 6,444 Enforcement Case Information Reports (ECIRs) under the PMLA, while the IT department has filed 13,877 prosecution cases over the same period, said Finance Minister of State Pankaj Chaudhary while responding to a question in the Lok Sabha. The ED has seen a dramatic increase in money laundering pro

LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh government on Monday announced the formation of a Special Investigating Team (SIT) to dismantle an organised racket involving the illegal diversion of codeine-based cough syrup for narcotic abuse. The smuggling case came to light around 20 days ago when a truck loaded with codeine-based cough syrup was seized in Sonbhadra. Speaking to the media, FSDA Secretary Roshan Jacob, accompanied by Principal Secretary Sanjay Prasad and DGP Rajeev Krishna, said the SIT had been f

MUMBAI: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation-appointed panel investigating the flight disruptions at IndiGo is likely to summon the airline's CEO Pieter Elbers and Chief Operating Officer Isidre Porqueras on Wednesday as part of the ongoing probe, according to a source on Monday. The four-member panel, comprising Joint DG Sanjay Brahamane, Deputy Director General Amit Guupta, senior Flight Operations Inspector Kapil Manglik, and FOI Lokesh Rampal, has been tasked with identifying the root c

CHANDIGARH: With the assembly elections in Punjab scheduled to be held after 14 months, Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Monday made the surprise announcement that he will fight these polls from Gidderbaha assembly constituency instead of Jalalabad. Interestingly, the Gidderbaha seat was represented by his late father and former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal from 1969 to 1985. Sukhbir made the announcement following an intense demand from party workers while inaugurating

KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday accused the BJP-led Central Government of the ongoing flight disruptions across the country. She also said that the passengers could even go to court over the crisis. The Chief Minister made a scathing attack on the Centre this afternoon while speaking to the reporters at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport before leaving for an official visit to the north Bengal district Cooch Behar. She said the situation had escala

AHMEDABAD: The accused in the rape of a disabled girl in Gujarat attacked the police during crime scene reconstruction and attempted to escape. The Police Inspector opened fire, injuring him in the leg, while a head constable was also hurt in the scuffle. Both have been shifted for treatment. The accused, Moinuddin Badshah, was brought to the crime spot to recreate the sequence of events, when he suddenly lunged at the officers, attempting to snatch the service weapon of Police Inspector Imran G

NEW DELHI: DMK MP A Raja on Monday claimed that historically documented events show that Vande Mataram was projected in ways that excluded Muslims in the early 20th century, arguing that the controversy surrounding the song was not created by the community but by those who framed it as a Hindu-only anthem. Participating in a Lok Sabha discussion marking 150 years of Vande Mataram, Raja said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech prompted four fundamental questions in his mind. The prime minister

RANCHI: The Jharkhand government has ordered an immediate, state-wide safety audit of all bars, restaurants, hotels and hospitals, directing district administrations to submit their reports within a week. The decision comes in the wake of the horrific fire at a restaurant-cum-nightclub in Goas Arpora on Saturday night , which claimed 25 lives, including three youths from Jharkhand who had recently migrated there for work. The victims have been identified as 24-year-old Pradeep Mahato and 22-year

LUCKNOW: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, on Monday, urged people to remain alert, ensuring proper verification of individuals before hiring him/her for a job at home or commercial establishments. This comes amid the campaign going on in Uttar Pradesh to identify Bangladeshis and Rohingya residing and working illegally in the state, along with the setting up of detention camps. He said that illegal immigrants could not be given protection at any cost. The state government had commenced an extensi

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi on Monday participated in the discussion on '150 years of Vande Mataram' in the Lok Sabha and questioned why the House was conducting a debate on the national song, 79 years after India's independence, when there were more important issues to discuss. The topic that we are discussing is part of the soul of the country. When we mention Vande Mataram, it reminds us of the history of our freedom struggle. This debate is strange; this song has made a place in people's

KOLKATA: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday appointed five more IAS officers as Special Roll Observers (SROs) to oversee the second phase of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in West Bengal. The second phase of the three-tier SIR process begins after the draft roll is published on 16 December. The five bureaucrats--Neeraj kumar Bansor (Home Affairs), Kumar Ravikant Singh (Defence), Alok Tiwari (Finance), Pankaj Yadav (Rural Development) and Krishna kumar Nirala

RANCHI: The Jharkhand government on Monday presented a supplementary budget of Rs 7,721.25 crore for the 202526 financial year in the state assembly. Finance Minister Radhakrishna Kishore placed the second supplementary budget of the fiscal year before the House. The first supplementary allocation, amounting to Rs 4,296.62 crore, had been approved during the monsoon session on August 25. Earlier, in March, Kishore had introduced the states annual budget of Rs 1.45 lakh crore for 202526. Shortly

NEW DELHI: Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav on Monday hit out at the BJP, claiming that those who did not participate in the freedom struggle were now talking of the values of Vande Mataram and asserted that the national song should not be used as a tool to impose one's beliefs on others. Participating in a discussion on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram in the Lok Sabha, Yadav said that Vande Mataram should be followed in spirit, as it is a song which bonded people during the freedom

NEW DELHI: Union Minister for Civil Aviation K Rammohan Naidu on Monday said that IndiGo flight operation crisis is the result of the problem in crew roster and internal planning of the airline. There will be no compromise and the Government will take strict action, he said. The IndiGo crisis occurred due to problems in its crew rostering and internal planning systems. IndiGo was supposed to manage crew rosters through its day-to-day operations. We are ensuring that the FDTL is properly implemen

NEW DELHI: The Congress on Monday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech during the discussion on Vande Mataram in the Lok Sabha was intended to ewrite history and give a political colour to it, and asserted that no matter how much the BJP tries, it will not be able to put a single blot on the contribution of Jawaharlal Nehru. The opposition party also said it was the Congress that gave Vande Mataram the importance it deserved and the status of national song. Speaking during the day-long di

GUWAHATI: A Manipur MLA and former minister from the majority Meitei community mustered the courage and showed the inclination to break the ice by visiting two Kuki-Zo villages on Monday. Yumnam Khemchand Singh, who is also a former Speaker of the Manipur Assembly, visited the Kuki villages, Litan and Chassad, and interacted with the villagers. Litan falls under Ukhrul while Chassad lies in Kamjong, both Naga-majority districts. This is the first time since the bloody ethnic violence engulfed th

The ministry of civil aviation said on Monday that IndiGo plans to operate 1,802 of its 2,300 daily flights to 137 of its 138 destinations, with nearly 500 cancellations for the day. The airline has delivered 4,500 bags to the passengers out of the total 9,000, and will deliver the remaining in next 36 hours, the ministry said in a statement. Today (Monday) IndiGo plans to operate 1,802 flights to 137 out of 138 destinations, with 500 cancellations. (Also) 4,500 bags were delivered to customers

Saurabh Luthra, co-owner of Birch by Romeo Lane in Arpora, North Goa, where a devastating fire killed 25 people on Saturday night has expressed deep grief over the tragedy and assured full support to those affected. In an Instagram statement posted on Monday, Luthra said the management was deeply shaken by the incident and stood in unwavering solidarity with the families of the 20 staff members and five tourists who lost their lives. He added that the club would extend every possible form of ass

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday accused the Congress of breaking into pieces national song Vande Mataram under the guise of social harmony, and said it was still following the politics of appeasement. He also targeted former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru for agreeing with the suggestion that Vande Mataram could antagonise Muslims. Speaking in the Lok Sabha during a discussion on Vande Mataram, Modi cited a letter written by Nehru to Subhash Chandra Bose claiming that the back

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday lamented that the Constitution was hrottled and the nation chained by the Emergency when national song Vande Mataram completed 100 years. Initiating a day-long discussion on 150 years of Vande Mataram in the Lok Sabha, Modi noted that Vande Mataram stood like a rock and inspired unity despite British oppression. When Vande Mataram completed 100 years, the nation was chained by the Emergency. At that time, the Constitution was throttled and those

SRINAGAR: As parliament holds a soecial debate on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram in Lok Sabha, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said the ruling BJP at the Centre was busy in empty symbolism instead of addressing emergent issues like the crisis caused by turmoil in IndiGo airlines. Prime Minister Narendra Modi initiated the debate on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram in Lok Sabha on Monday, which is expected to bring to light several important and previously unknown facets abou

RAIPUR: A total of 12 cadres renounced the ideology of the CPI (Maoist) and surrendered with their weapons in Rajnandgaon district, around 100 km west of Raipur, in the early hours of Monday. Among those who laid down arms was a senior Maoist leader of the MaharashtraMadhya PradeshChhattisgarh (MMC) zone and Central Committee member, Ramdher Majji, who carried a bounty of Rs 1 crore on his head. Four Divisional Committee members and several other cadres also surrendered. The surrender of these s

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday noted that the IndiGo crisis is a very serious matter, as lakhs of people are stranded at airports, but it refused to grant an urgent hearing on a mentioning by a lawyer in the issue. The two-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and also comprising Justice Joymalya Bagchi, observed that the Centre had already taken note of the situation and initiated steps to address it. The lawyer who mentioned the matter before the court sough

Guwahati: Three persons from Assam were among the 25 people who had died in the Goa nightclub fire on Saturday, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said. The three victims Assam Rahul Tanti, Manojit Mal (both from Cachar district) and Diganta Patir (from Dhemaji district) were working as staff members. Deeply anguished by the tragic loss of lives in the Arpora fire incident in Goa, where three of our own lost their precious lives. Offering my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. Pray

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday sought response from Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on a plea challenging his election from the Varuna assembly constituency in the 2023 state elections. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta issued notice to Siddaramaiah seeking his reply on a plea filed by one K Shankara. Issue notice, the bench said. Shankara has moved the apex court challenging an April 22 order of the Karnataka High Court which dismissed his plea seeking to declare t

RANCHI: The mortal remains of three migrant workers from Jharkhand, who were among the 25 people killed in the fire at the Goa nightclub , were brought to Ranchi on Monday morning, officials said. Pradeep (24) and Binod Mahto (20), two brothers from Fatehpur village in Lapung, and Mohit Munda (22) of Govindpur village in Khunti district's Karra block died in the inferno that ravaged the North Goa club post-midnight on Sunday. Agriculture Minister Shilpy Neha Tirkey, who coordinated with the Goa

NEW DELHI : An employee of a Goa nightclub where a fire claimed 25 lives has been detained by the state police in Delhi, official sources said on Monday. The employee has been identified as Bharat Kohli, a resident of the Sabzi Mandi area here. He was responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the nightclub and his name surfaced during the questioning of a club manager, the police sources said. Kohli will be taken to Goa for questioning, they said. The fire broke out at Birch by Romeo La