Breaking News, April 13 | HIGHLIGHTS

"I’m glad to say that there is a greater acceptance among all G20 members that any action on crypto assets will have to be global... they agree that it's not going to be possible to have independent stand-alone country dealing with crypto assets," said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

Police barricading being done outside Dhoomanganj Police Station in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh where mafia-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf have been brought. They were sent to 4-day police custody by Prayagraj CJM court today in the Umesh Pal murder case.

Former MLC and Congress leader Raghu Achar will join JD(S) tomorrow in the presence of party chief HD Deve Gowda and HD Kumaraswamy.

"In the last 9 years, PM Modi made India a powerhouse of export in several sectors. For India to emerge as an exporter in the Railway sector too, a dedicated test track is essential... work ongoing rapidly on it. It'll yield major benefits...," said Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Thursday met Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and party leaders Rahul Gandhi & KC Venugopal in Delhi in a bid to unite the opposition ahead of the 2024 general elections. 

Speaking to the media after the meeting, Sharad Pawar said, "Our thinking is exactly what Kharge ji told you. But mere thinking will not help. A process needs to be started...This is just the beginning. After this, talks will be held with other important opposition parties - be it Mamata Banerjee, Arvind Kejriwal or others - to try to integrate them into this process..."

UK PM Rishi Sunak, in a telephonic conversation with PM Modi, conveyed that the UK considers the attack on Indian High Commission totally unacceptable and assured of the security of the Indian Mission and its personnel.

PM Modi also raised the issue of economic offenders who have sought refuge in the UK. He sought progress on the return of these fugitives so that they can appear before the Indian judicial system.

PM Modi invited PM Sunak for the G20 Summit to be held in September 2023. PM Sunak appreciated the progress made under India’s Presidency of the G20 and reiterated the UK’s full support to India’s initiatives and their success.

PM Modi on Thursday held a telephonic conversation with UK's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

The leaders reviewed progress on a number of bilateral issues, particularly in trade and economic sectors.

PM Modi raised the issue of the security of Indian diplomatic establishments in the UK and calls for strong action against anti-India elements.

India is the mother of democracy. There are several historical references. Of them, one of the most significant references is on Tamil Nadu where a place called Uthiramerur is very special. Several things on India's democratic values are written on an 1100-1200 years old inscription. It is like a local Constitution for the gram sabha of those times... It states how should an Assembly be run, what should be the qualification of members, and the process of electing members as well as disqualification of members, PM Modi said on Thursday while addressing a gathering on the occasion of Tamil new year.

Congress is divided into three factions - Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar and Mallikarjun Kharge. There will be a pitched battle in Congress when election seats are announced. In the last election. V Somanna is very popular in Varuna constituency and it's certain that Siddaramaiah will certainly lose. R Ashok, who is fighting against DK Shivakumar will defeat him, said Arun Singh, BJP Karnataka in-charge on upcoming Karnataka polls.

PM Modi will take part in the Tamil New Year celebrations at the residence of his ministerial colleague Thiru L. Murugan Ji in a short while from now.

"As someone who is a great admirer of Tamil culture, I greatly look forward to this programme," PM Modi tweeted.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah will lay the foundation stone of the BJP party office in Birbhum and address a public meeting at Benimadhab School Ground on April 14.

Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar distributes the 'B' form to the party candidates ahead of their nomination filing for Assembly elections.

2008 Jaipur serial bomb blast victims' families move Supreme Court against Rajasthan High Court order acquitting four accused and setting aside the trial court order.

Speaking on gangster Atiq Ahmed's son Asad's encounter in Uttar Pradesh, TMC MP Mahua Moitra said, "The other name for Mr Ajay Bisht was 'Mr Thok Do'... so this kind of complete lawlessness, jungle raj, encounter killings always flourished under the gentleman & continue to do so."

The way BJP has distributed election tickets in Karnataka has created a negative image for itself in the state. People are unhappy, and their leaders rebelling and quitting. When our opposition is in disarray, it's a big advantage for us. We are united, doing well, announced so many tickets. Our campaign is also better, said Congress leader Dinesh Gundu Rao in Bengaluru.

An Indian Air Force (IAF) contingent will be departing tomorrow for France, to participate in Exercise Orion at Mont-de-Marsan, an Air Force base of the French Air and Space Force (FASF). The exercise will be conducted from 17 April to 5 May, with the IAF Contingent comprising four Rafale, two C-17, two ll-78 aircraft and 165 air warriors. This would be the first overseas exercise for the IAF's Rafale aircraft.

Besides the IAF and the FASF, Air Forces from Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, UK, Spain and USA would also be flying in this multilateral exercise.

The Surat Court will pass order on an interim application filed by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi seeking stay on his conviction in 2019 defamation case on 'Modi surname' remark on April 20.

Accused Arman Khatri remanded to police custody till April 15 in IIT-Bombay student Darshan Solanki suicide case.

At least four firefighters were killed and 14 others injured on Thursday when a massive fire destroyed a textile factory here in Pakistan's southern port city, officials said. The blaze in the factory, located in the heavily populated industrial area in New Karachi, was caused by a short circuit, Central District Deputy Commissioner (DC) Taha Saleem said. He added that further investigation was underway. Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori confirmed that four firefighters lost their lives while putting out the fire in the factory making bed sheets and towels. The blaze broke out early in the morning, and eight fire engines rushed to the scene to control it, Saleem said. He added that the firefighters were killed when the building collapsed while they were still in it. At least 14 people were also injured after coming under the building's debris and suffering from suffocation and burn wounds. The fire broke out in the early hours of the day in the bed sheets factory, located in a six-storey building, and quickly spread to four floors because of cloth material and other chemicals stored in the building, senior firefighter Adil Khanzada said.

Puducherry registered 104 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday out of 1,048 samples tested in the last 24 hours and also reported one virus-related death of an octogenarian, a senior health official said. Director of Health G Sriramulu, in a press release, said Puducherry region alone had 65 fresh cases out of the total daily count while Karaikal accounted for 29 and Yanam 10 cases. Mahe, an enclave of Puducherry in Kerala, did not report any fresh case, he said.

The Odisha government suspended internet services in Sambalpur district for 48 hours from 10 AM of Thursday to check the spread of false rumours which could incite fresh rioting after a Hanuman Jayanti procession a day before had turned violent. Some 43 people have been detained so far for the violence which broke out on Wednesday which also resulted in injuries to at least 10 police personnel including a policewoman. However, the number of civilians injured in the incident is yet to be made public.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday recorded the statement of RJD chief Lalu Prasad's daughter Chanda Yadav in a money laundering case linked to the alleged land-for-jobs scam in the railway, sources said. Chanda Yadav deposed before the agency and her statement was recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). She is the fourth child of the RJD chief, a former railway minister, to have deposed before the ED in this case till now. Lalu Prasad has nine children. On Wednesday, his another daughter Ragini Yadav was questioned even as his MP-daughter Misa Bharti. His son and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav has also been questioned at the agency's office in central Delhi.

The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to list for hearing a plea challenging the Karnataka government's decision to scrap the four per cent reservation for Muslims in the state. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala took note of the submissions of senior advocate Kapil Sibal that all the defects of the petition have been removed. “I mentioned this (petition) in court three yesterday. This is against the four per cent reservation being cancelled,” Sibal said.

The Odisha government suspended internet services in Sambalpur district for 48 hours from 10 AM of Thursday even as prohibitory order was in force after violence broke out during the Hanuman Jayanti rally, an official said. At least 10 police personnel including a woman cop were injured in the violence. However, police were yet to disclose the number of civilians injured in the incident. The administration clamped prohibitory order under section 144 CrPC in areas coming under six police stations - Town, Dhanupali, Khetrajpur, Ainthapali, Bareipali and Sadar - in Sambalpur city. "The situation is critical and miscreants are circulating false and inflammatory messages through social media to disturb public order in Sambalpur district," the notification issued by Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, DK Singh, prohibiting internet use and access in Sambalpur, said. Singh said internet is suspended to prevent circulation of "inflammatory and motivated messages", which have the "potential to inflame communal passion". No access to social media…WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & …. Suspension of internet/data services of all MSPs & ISPs and Broadband dial up system", the notification said.

Gangster-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother were produced before a court here on Thursday in connection with the Umesh Pal murder case. They were presented in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Dinesh Gautam around 11:10 am amid security deployment. While Atiq Ahmed was brought to Prayagraj via road from Sabarmati Jail in Gujarat for his production, his brother Khalid Azim alias Ashraf was brought from a Bareilly jail.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday conducted searches at multiple premises, including that of an IAS officer, in Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal in connection with a money laundering probe linked to an alleged land grab case, official sources said. The raids are taking place at a total of 22 places in these states and the premises of Jharkhand cadre Indian Administrative Service (IAS) Chhavi Ranjan, who served as the Deputy Commissioner in state capital Ranchi earlier, are being searched. The premises linked to some private persons and some other state government officers are also being searched, they said. The action is being undertaken under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

An Army soldier died of gunshot injuries at the Bathinda military station in Punjab on Wednesday, around 12 hours after four personnel from an artillery unit were killed in a firing incident. The Army said death of the soldier on Wednesday afternoon has no connection with the firing incident. "A soldier died of a gunshot wound at approximately 4:30 pm on April 12 at Bathinda Military Station. The soldier was on sentry duty with his service weapon," the Army said.  "The weapon and cartridge case from the same weapon was found next to the soldier. The gunshot wound was near the right temporal region," it said in a statement.

Unseasonal rain coupled with lightning and thunderstorm lashed parts of Mumbai in the wee hours of Thursday, bringing some respite from the hot and humid weather in the city, civic officials said. The island city and eastern suburbs received light rain, while the western suburbs witnessed heavy showers with lightning and thunder between 1 am to 2 am, they said. The Malwani fire station and Goregaon recorded 21 mm rainfall each, Borivali fire station 19 mm, HBT Trauma Care Hospital (Jogeshwari) 17 mm, Marol fire station 14 mm and Kandivali fire station 12 mm, an official said. Due to intense rain for a brief period, there was accumulation of water in some low lying areas.

The Income Tax Department has identified about two dozen 'benami' assets worth Rs 127 crore of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari in Uttar Pradesh and other locations as part of a "comprehensive" action against him and his associates, sources said Wednesday. The department's Lucknow benami assets investigation unit on Tuesday attached the first benami property in this case, a land parcel located in Ghazipur district worth about Rs 1.29 crore (book value). The market value of this property is about 12 crore, according to an attachment order of the department. The benamidar (in whose name a benami property is standing) in this case has been identified as an alleged associate and neighbour of Ansari, Ganesh D Mishra while the "beneficial owner" has been named as Ansari in the attachment order.

West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose Wednesday paid another surprise visit to a state university, where he underscored the importance of the National Education Policy to the faculty and students, officials said. Bose went to the West Bengal State University, Barasat. He had visited the Calcutta University (CU) unannounced on Monday. "College principals are creators of the future and need to depend on their inner strength to facilitate a change," the Raj Bhavan said in a statement late on Wednesday. Bose had on Monday met principals of 145 affiliated colleges of CU and dwelt on the salient features of the NEP. Asked about the governor’s surprise visits to universities, Education Minister Bratya Basu told reporters: "The state will take the call on NEP. The honourable governor has nothing to do on the issue. And, I don't have any clue about his visits, which are personal."

North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward the sea on Thursday, South Korea's military said, days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to enhance his nuclear arsenal in more “practical and offensive” ways. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staffs said the launch occurred on Thursday morning but gave no further details, such as how far the missile flew and exactly what weapon the North fired. Japan's prime minister's office warned residents in its northernmost main island of Hokkaido to immediately seek shelter inside sturdy buildings or underground. It said the North Korean missile was expected to land near Hokkaido at around 8 am. 

With the filing of nominations for the Karnataka assembly polls beginning from Thursday, the BJP has so far named 212 candidates for the May 10 elections to the 224-member House. The list does not include Jagadish Shettar who met BJP president J P Nadda on Wednesday to stake his claim to contest from his Hubli-Dharwad Central constituency. The party has not named its candidate from the seat yet. Shettar is a six-term MLA and a former chief minister. The BJP, which had on Tuesday named its candidates for 189 seats, aims to retain power in the southern state by winning a majority in the 224-seat assembly. Filing of nominations will begin on April 13 and continue till April 20.

The White House on Wednesday proposed a new federal rule to limit how law enforcement and state officials collect medical records if they investigate women who flee their home states to seek abortions elsewhere. The proposal, prompted by a string of blows to abortion across the country, comes as the White House is staring down a legal challenge to a commonly used abortion pill that could upend access to the care across the entire country by Friday. Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters that it's one of several new actions the administration is taking to push back against a wave of abortion restrictions that have been introduced since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion. The administration is also launching a hotline for people to call and ask questions about prenatal, infant and reproductive care.

India remains concerned about the global economic outlook and geopolitical environment, despite this year's projected growth rate of over six per cent for the country's economy, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said. She also told global leaders that the current headwinds and strained global supply chains have put a tremendous pressure on the global economy, marked by persistently high interest rates, northbound inflationary pressures and currency depreciation. The recent turbulence in the banking sector in some advanced economies has further increased the challenges to global economic recovery and increased fiscal pressures, especially on EMDEs and LDCs, she said at the 107th meeting of the Development Committee during the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. Continued disruptions to global supply chains are still straining food, fuel and fertiliser supplies, and endangering food and energy security. This is disproportionately impacting the poor, the disadvantaged and the marginalised, particularly in the developing world, the minister observed. "The need of the hour is a people centric, equity driven, consensus-based, and collective approach to face global developmental challenges," the Union minister said. These circumstances challenge multilateralism more than ever before, she told the 'Development Committee' and added that against the backdrop of the WBG's 'Evolution Road Map' discussion, "we encourage the World Bank Group (WBG) to evolve into a bigger and better bank, which is 'fit for purpose' to address the new world challenges".