Breaking news, December 9 | HIGHLIGHTS

Former Delhi University professor Hany Babu, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, has moved the Bombay High Court seeking temporary bail on health grounds. Babu has been in jail for almost two years.

A special court in Mumbai has sentenced a fruit seller to five years of rigorous imprisonment for sexually harassing a 4-year-old girl in suburban Bandra in 2019. The 24-year-old accused was convicted under Indian Penal Code section 354 A (sexual harassment of the nature of unwelcome physical contact ) and relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act by Judge SC Jadhav on Thursday.

Elections in Jammu and Kashmir may be held next year after winter conditions subside, and the timing would depend on the security scenario in the union territory, sources said on Friday.

A meeting of newly elected Congress MLAs got underway in Himachal Pradesh capital Shimla Friday evening. The MLAs are expected to pass a resolution authorising the Congress president to pick the legislature party leader who will be the next chief minister.

A New Delhi-bound Air India aircraft with 173 people on board was forced to abort its flight from Kathmandu on Friday after it suffered a flat tyre before take off, an official said.

The Indian Air Force has a maximum of 13.69 per cent women officers followed by six per cent in the Navy and 3.97 per cent in the Army, according to details provided by the government in Lok Sabha on Friday. 

Messaging platform WhatsApp on Friday told the Delhi High Court it cannot take action in relation to the circulation of a “sexually explicit” video of a judicial officer with a woman unless specific mobile numbers are provided and an appropriate order is passed. WhatsApp's made the statement before Justice Yashwant Varma who was hearing a lawsuit by one of the aggrieved parties whose identity was earlier allowed to remain concealed by the court.

The rupee appreciated by 10 paise to close at 82.28 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday, tracking the weakening of the American currency in the overseas market.

Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) leader Chirag Paswan on Friday raised in Lok Sabha the issue of alleged rise in crimes, especially against Dalits, in Bihar and said Parliament can't be mum when the state government is maintaining "silence".

Special Force carries out special ops exercises at the western command

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that Pakistan is ready to play its part in revitalising the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to tap the vast potential of the region.

Two people were killed in a head-on collision between a motorcycle and a vehicle here, police said on Friday. The incident took place on Thursday night in Fatehganj west police station area, they said.

Govt seeks Parliament nod for net additional expenditure of Rs 3.25 lakh crore this fiscal. 

The Meghalaya High Court has ordered an interim stay on physical demarcation or erection of boundary posts on the ground in connection with an interstate border pact signed by chief ministers of Assam and Meghalaya earlier this year.

Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda has given the  Suspension of Business Notice under Rule 267 in the Rajya Sabha to discuss the “Medical Bond Policy implemented in several states, including Haryana, causing a worrisome situation”, seeking that the policy be scrapped.

India recorded 249 fresh coronavirus infections on Friday, while the number of active cases declined further to 4,228, according to Union health ministry data. With this, the total number of Covid cases in the country stands at 4,46,74,439. The death toll has climbed to 5,30,653 with six fatalities reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am stated.

Three persons were arrested after contraband drugs estimated to be worth around Rs 7 crore were seized from two trucks in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district, a police officer said on Friday. The arrests and seizure were made in the Khatkhati area near the Assam-Nagaland border late on Thursday night, he said.

Equity benchmark Sensex climbed 115 points in early trade on Friday, helped by buying in auto, metal and FMCG stocks amid a firm trend in global markets. A strong rupee against major rivals also supported the domestic equities, traders said.

The rupee appreciated 19 paise to 82.19 against the US dollar in early trade on Friday on broad dollar weakness and a firm trend in domestic equities. Forex traders said sustained foreign fund outflows weighed on investor sentiments and restricted the appreciation bias.

Three persons were arrested after contraband drugs estimated to be worth around Rs 7 crore were seized from two trucks in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district, a police officer said on Friday. The arrests and seizure were made in the Khatkhati area near the Assam-Nagaland border late on Thursday night, he said.

India will not be an ally of the United States but will be another great power, a top White House official said Thursday asserting there is no other bilateral relationship that is being "deepened and strengthened" more rapidly than between the two countries over the last 20 years.