Breaking News, July 26

Congress leader Adhir Chowdhury has urged West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee "to immediately sack" minister Partha Chatterjee, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a school jobs scam in the state. In a letter written to Banerjee, Chowdhury said “irregularities” in the recruitment process by the School Service Commission (SSC) is "an open secret”. "I am writing this letter regarding the misdeed of Partha Chatterjee. He was the Education Minister from 2014-2021, during which the alleged irregularities in teacher recruitment occurred. It was only after court's intervention that investigation agencies started acting upon it.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Gujarat and Tamil Nadu on July 28-29 during which he is scheduled to inaugurate and lay foundation stones for several projects and attend programmes. On July 28, he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone for multiple projects of Sabar Dairy at Gadhoda Chowki, Sabarkantha in Gujarat. Thereafter, the Prime Minister will travel to Chennai and declare the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai. After attending the 42nd Convocation of Anna University, the Prime Minister will return to Gujarat and visit GIFT City in Gandhinagar, where he will launch and lay the foundation stone of various projects. While in Gujarat, he will visit Sabar Dairy and inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of multiple projects worth more than Rs 1,000 crore on July 28. "These projects will empower local farmers and milk producers and increase their income. This will also give a boost to the rural economy in the region, the Prime Minister's Office said.

Moroccan authorities say the bodies of eight migrants have washed ashore in southern Morocco after their dinghy capsized. The bodies were found early on Monday in the coastal town of Akhfennir, on Morocco's Atlantic coast facing the Spanish Canary Islands, authorities said. They said 18 other migrants who'd been in the capsized dinghy were later found alive. They were from sub-Saharan African countries. Morocco's Atlantic coast has become a departure point for African migrants aiming to reach Europe via the Canary Islands. 

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A local train derailed when it moved in reverse direction at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus in Mumbai on Tuesday morning, affecting suburban services on the Harbour Line, an official said. No one was injured in the incident which took place on platform no. 1 of the CSMT around 9.40 am, Central Railway's chief public relations officer Shivaji Sutar said. Later, services from the platform resumed after about two-and-a-half hours, according to the Central Railway.

The Israeli military demolished the homes on Tuesday of two Palestinians suspected of killing an Israeli security guard in a West Bank settlement in April. Vyacheslav Golev was killed in a shooting at the entrance of a Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank on April 29. The Palestinian militant group Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack. The Israeli military later apprehended two Palestinians suspected of carrying out the attack. On Tuesday, the army said it demolished their residences in the northern West Bank village of Qarawat Bani Hassan. In a statement, the military said forces faced a violent protest, with firebombs and burning tires thrown at the troops.

The Mumbai Police on Tuesday registered a First Information Report (FIR) against Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh over his nude pictures on social media, an official said. A Mumbai-based Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) had approached the Chembur police with a complaint against the actor. Based on it, the police registered the FIR against Singh under various Indian Penal Code Sections like 292 (sale of obscene books, etc), 293 (sale of obscene objects to young people), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) and provisions of the Information Technology Act, an official from the Chembur police station said. An office-bearer of the NGO had alleged that the actor hurt the sentiments of women in general and insulted their modesty through his photographs, police earlier said.

Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former US President Donald Trump, was diagnosed with thyroid cancer while he was serving as a senior adviser in the White House during his father-in-law’s presidency, according to a media report. The New York Times in its report on Monday said that according to Kushner’s memoir ‘Breaking History: A White House Memoir’ set to be published next month, Kushner was treated for the cancer but kept his diagnosis a secret from most around him. The NYT report said that Kushner’s thyroid cancer was detected in October 2019, “as he was involved in discussions over a trade deal with China." Kushner, 41, wrote in the memoir that the cancer was caught “early” but required removing a “substantial part of my thyroid”.

A group of people, allegedly Bajrang Dal activists, disrupted a party conducted by college students at a pub in the city Monday night, police sources said. The activists barged into the pub alleging that drunk undergraduate students were indulging in indecent behaviour in the name of a farewell party. The activists hurled abuses at the partying crowd and forcibly stopped the party, the sources said. Police rushed to the spot and dispersed the activists. The students also stopped the party half-way and left the place. The incident occurred under Mangaluru north police station limits. Police have not yet registered any case in connection with the incident, the sources said. 

The Congress on Tuesday said it will stage a 'satyagraha' all over the country to protest the Enforcement Directorate's summons to party President Sonia Gandhi in the money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper. Gandhi has appeared before the ED for questioning for the second time on Tuesday. Congress MPs met at the office of Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge in Parliament premises and are likely to stage a march towards the ED office to protest the questioning. 

Rajya Sabha adjourned till 12 pm, minutes after proceedings of the House began for the day, amid the Opposition's ruckus on various issues.

Two persons including a woman were killed when lightning struck them in Jharkhand's Palamu district, police said on Tuesday. The victims Balram Yadav (56) and Manmati Devi (45) were grazing cattle in a field when thunderbolt struck, killing them on the spot on Monday, the police said. The bodies have been sent to Medinirai Medical College and Hospital for post-mortem. Deputy Commissioner Anjaneyulu Dodde told PTI that a compensation of Rs 4 lakh would be provided to the victims family from Disaster Management fund. 

Equity benchmark indices continued to fall for the second day running on Tuesday with the BSE Sensex sliding 283 points in early trade amid foreign funds outflow and mixed trends in global markets. The 30-share BSE benchmark fell 282.85 points to 55,483.37. The broader NSE Nifty declined 88.8 points to 16,542.20.

The minimum temperature in the city dipped slightly to settle at 26.4 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, even as the weather office forecast generally cloudy sky with light rain or drizzle later in the day. Parts of the national capital had received scattered rainfall on Monday and the maximum temperature settled at 35.2 degrees Celsius, a notch above the season's average. The city reported 2 mm of rainfall from 8:30 AM on Monday to 8:30 AM on Tuesday, as per data shared by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The relative humidity at 8:30 AM stood at 84 per cent. The maximum temperature on Tuesday is expected to rise to 36 degrees Celsius. 

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Three people were rescued from flash floods by the administration and the Army in Kargil district of the Union territory of Ladakh, officials said on Tuesday. The administration was informed on Monday evening that three people were trapped in Taisuru's Youljuk village due to a sudden rise in the water level in a river following heavy rainfall, they said. A State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) team supported by police personnel and the Army launched an operation and rescued them, the officials said. They were identified as Mohd Sharief, Ghulam Mehdi and Mohd Hassan. 

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will offer prayers at the Somnath temple and interact with traders in Rajkot on Tuesday during his third visit to Gujarat where elections are due this year. The national convener of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) reached Gujarat on Monday evening. He is scheduled to offer prayers at the temple of Lord Somnath in the state's Gir Somnath district before holding a town hall in Rajkot city. After his visit to Ahmedabad and Surat this month, his focus is now on the Saurashtra region, which accounts for around 50 out of the total 182 Assembly seats in the state.

President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday said 'Kargil Vijay Diwas' is a symbol of extraordinary valour of the armed forces, and people will always be indebted to the brave soldiers who laid down their lives to protect Mother India. On July 26, 1999, the Indian Army had announced the successful culmination of "Operation Vijay", declaring victory after a nearly three-month-long battle on the icy heights of Kargil in Ladakh. The day is observed as 'Kargil Vijay Diwas' to commemorate India's victory. "Kargil Vijay Diwas is a symbol of extraordinary bravery, valour and determination of our armed forces. I bow to all the brave soldiers who laid down their lives to protect Mother India. The country will always be indebted to them and their family members. Jai Hind," Murmu said in a tweet in Hindi. The country lost more than 500 soldiers in the Kargil war. 

The appeal of Ukraine's first war crimes conviction was adjourned on Monday, as prosecutors keep pushing to hold Russia legally accountable for atrocities even as fighting rages in the south and east of the country. Thin and subdued, Vadim Shishimarin, a 21-year-old captured Russian soldier who pleaded guilty to killing a civilian and was sentenced in May by a Ukrainian court to life in prison, sat in a glass box in the courtroom as he faced news cameras. The hearing was postponed until July 29 due to his lawyer's ill health.

President Joe Biden said Monday that he's “feeling better every day” as he recovers from his coronavirus infection, and the White House plans to hold a summit on Tuesday to discuss developing a new generation of vaccines that could more effectively guard against contagious variants. After participating in a virtual meeting to talk about computer chip manufacturing, Biden said “everything's on the button” with the medical tests he's been receiving each evening. He also said he's been sleeping better, joking that his dog had to wake him up this morning.

More than 14 million children in the US have tested positive for Covid-19 since the onset of the pandemic, according to the latest report by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children's Hospital Association. More than 92,000 child Covid-19 cases were reported for the week ending July 21, the second consecutive weekly increase of reported cases, according to the report. More than 311,000 child Covid-19 cases have been added in the past four weeks. Nearly 6.1 million reported cases have been added in 2022, Xinhua news agency reported.

Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei visited Ukraine on Monday and expressed his solidarity with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Giammattei met with Zelenskyy in the capital, Kyiv, becoming the first Latin American president to make the trip. Many Latin American leaders have avoided taking a stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. That reflects in some cases decades-old ties to Russia and in others a wariness of US foreign policy goals. “We stand in solidarity with the Ukrainian people, who have resisted with courage,” Giammattei said at a joint news conference. “As long as human lives are lost, we cannot silence our voices.”

Senior AAP leader and former minister Harsh Dev Singh Monday accused the Jammu and Kashmir administration of allowing some BJP leaders to retain government bungalows despite the dissolution of assembly in 2018. He alleged not only were these leaders allowed to retain the estates department bungalows but several of them had been permitted to stay without any rent. "Despite the assembly having been dissolved in 2018, the bureaucrats had allowed the BJP leaders to retain the government mansions including ministerial bungalows in defiance of the SOPs and in blatant circumvention of the orders of the High Court," Singh said.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Monday paid homage to the martyrs and heroes of Kargil war on the eve of Vijay Diwas. “I salute the valour and courage of our immortal heroes who fought till their last breath to protect the sovereignty and integrity of our great Nation, and recaptured territory of our motherland in Kargil from the enemy," he said. On July 26, 1999, the whole world witnessed the unparalleled courage of our brave soldiers who overcame the challenges of impossible peaks and displayed the might of the country, he said. "I pay homage to those self-sacrificing and devoted sons of Maa Bharti. I also salute the undeterred courage of the families of our bravehearts," the Lt Governor said.

President Joe Biden said Monday that he's “feeling better every day” as he recovers from his coronavirus infection, and the White House plans to hold a summit on Tuesday to discuss developing a new generation of vaccines that could more effectively guard against contagious variants. After participating in a virtual meeting to talk about computer chip manufacturing, Biden said “everything's on the button” with the medical tests he's been receiving each evening.

A 76-year-old man suspected of a 2021 rape has been arrested in the killings of two women that had been unsolved for decades, authorities said. James Ray Gary, of Fairfield, was arrested last week in the 1980 killing of Latrelle Lindsay of Union City and the 1996 killing of Winifred Douglas of Berkeley, the Solano County Sheriff's Office said. DNA collected during a 2021 rape investigation matched DNA collected from both crime scenes. On July 18, the office was notified that a DNA sample from Gary matched all three crimes. A warrant was obtained for his arrest and to search his home. He was arrested the following day, officials said.