Breaking News, April 26 | HIGHLIGHTS

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami and other party leaders met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda in Delhi.

The Punjab Police on Wednesday said it has arrested Nitin Nahar, a suspected member of the Jaggu Bhagwanpuria gang. Two suspected associates of Nahar were also nabbed and three weapons and nine live cartridges recovered by the anti-gangster task force and the police in Amritsar.

"In a major breakthrough, #AGTF and CIA @cpamritsar have arrested Nitin Nahar, an absconding criminal of the Jaggu Bhagwanpuria gang, along with his two associates and seized three weapons with nine live cartridges," Director-General of Police Gaurav Yadav said in a tweet. "With the arrest of these criminals, three planned murders and a number of extortion attempts have been averted. Further investigation is in progress," he added.

 IndiGo on Wednesday said it has offered services for chartered flights to Jeddah to bring back Indians evacuated from Sudan. Under the evacuation mission 'Operation Kaveri', India is taking the evacuees from Sudan to the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah from where they are returning home.

As per official data, the total number of Indians evacuated so far from Sudan stands at 534. "We have offered our services for charter flights to Jeddah under the Indian Government's Operation Kaveri rescue mission of our citizens from Sudan. "We are still awaiting details from the ministry to launch these flights, nothing has been confirmed as of yet," the airline said in a statement.

The Special Task Force of Uttar Pradesh Police arrested a suspected conman who allegedly posted "morphed" images with BJP leaders based in the state and duped people, officials said on Wednesday. A senior Special Task Force (STF) official said on the condition of anonymity, "We arrested one Sanjay Rai, a native of Ghazipur. He used to live in Delhi and posted morphed images with Uttar Pradesh-based BJP leaders. He also duped people."

"Rai was arrested by an STF team on Tuesday and sent to jail on Wednesday," he said. Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also shared a tweet of his party's media cell that signalled at Rai's close links with BJP leaders.

Mortal remains of former Punjab CM & Shiromani Akali Dal patron Parkash Singh Badal brought to his native place Lambi for last rites. His last rites will be performed tomorrow.

Delhi reports 1040 new cases, 1320 recoveries and 7 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Chief Minister of Tripura, Manik Saha called on Union Home Minister Amit Shah today in Delhi.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will chair the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers Meeting on 28th April, 2023 in New Delhi. Defence Ministers of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan will participate. He will hold bilateral meetings tomorrow with four Defence Ministers including his Chinese counterpart, informed Defence Ministry officials.

India has invited Belarus and Iran, currently observers in SCO, to participate in the SCO Defence Ministers’ Meeting. Defence Minister of Pakistan would be participating virtually. The Ministers will discuss matters related to regional peace and security, counter terrorism efforts within SCO and an effective multilateralism, it added.

Uttarakhand: The portals of Badrinath Dham will open tomorrow at 7.10 am. The temple has been decorated with 15 quintals of marigold flowers; visuals from earlier today.

Maharashtra reports 784 new cases, 1099 recoveries and 1 death in the last 24 hours. 

CM Bhagwant Mann handed over cheques worth Rs 1 crore as financial assistance to distressed family members of 4 brave hearts who lost their lives in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch on April 20.

Cabinet approves establishment of 157 new nursing colleges at a cost of Rs 1570 crores in co-location with existing medical colleges. Cabinet also approves the Policy for the Medical Devices Sector. It is expected to help the Medical Devices Sector, grow from present $11 Bn to $50 Bn in next five years.

National Medical Device Policy 2023 has been approved in the cabinet meeting today, said Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya.

India jumps 6 places to Rank 38 in World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index 2023, says Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel cancels his visit to Karnataka. He was scheduled to be there for election campaigning. He will visit Dantewada to pay tribute to the slain jawans and take stock of the situation there. 

IED attack by naxals:  Former Chhattisgarh CM and BJP leader Raman Singh said, "This is a heart-rending incident - both for Chhattisgarh as well as the country. I think it is high time for enhancing interstate joint operation and searching...Home Minister is extending all possible help."

Delhi | Union Home Minister Amit Shah releases a commemorative coin at the National Conclave on Mann Ki Baat@100.

Gujarat: A petition has been filed in the Metro Court of Ahmedabad against the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, Tejashwi Yadav to take strict action against him for allegedly calling Gujaratis as 'Thug, Dhootara'. Further hearing regarding this application will be held on May 1.

Mortal remains of former Punjab CM & Shiromani Akali Dal patron Parkash Singh Badal brought to his native place Lambi for last rites.

The IED was found in a plastic bag planted on the Makum bypass road passing through the overbridge. With the help of bomb squad team of Indian Army, we defused the object in a safe place. It is an IED-like object. Our investigation is on to find who had planted it and what was their motive, said Gaurav Abhijit Dilip, SP Tinsukia.

Former Bihar MP and murder convict Anand Mohan Singh reached Saharsa jail to surrender himself after 15 days of parole. Bihar govt recently amended the prison rules allowing the release of 27 convicts including him.

Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court defers pronouncement of order for April 28, 2023, on the bail plea of former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia in ED's money laundering case related to the Excise scam.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday expressed her sorrow over the demise of former Punjab Chief Minister and veteran Akali Dal leader Parkash Singh Badal. The Trinamool Congress supremo described Badal as a mass leader of indomitable courage contributing immensely to the development of Punjab.

Over Rs 45 crore was spent on renovating Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence, the BJP said on Wednesday while alleging that expenditure of such a big sum was a pointer to the ideological "renovation" of the AAP founder who claimed to promote honesty and simplicity when he entered politics. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra slammed the Aam Aadmi Party leader as a "maharaj" and said even kings will bow to Kejriwal for his choice of "superior" products in the residence and his "lust for luxury and comfort". He also alleged that Kejriwal offered Rs 20 crore to Rs 50 crore to media houses to not highlight the story but news channels and newspapers ignored the offer.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday appreciated the grand welcome accorded to the Vande Bharat Express at Thrissur railway station during its inaugural run the previous day by terming it as "terrific" and 'gambheera' in Malayalam. PM Modi had on Tuesday flagged off the train connecting the state capital with the northernmost Kerala district of Kasaragod. At Thrissur railway station, the train was accorded a grand reception with traditional folk music, drum beats and people thronging the platform to take its photographs and selfies with it. The Railway Ministry tweeted a video of the euphoric reception given to the train and in response to the same, Modi tweeted, "Terrific Thrissur". The PM also tweeted in Malayalam, "Gambheera Thrissur", which too means 'terrific' Thrissur.

The bodies of three sisters, aged between 2 and 6 years, were found in a well in Madhya Pradesh’s Dhar district, while their mother is missing, police said on Wednesday. The girls were found dead at Shyampura village, some 40 km from the district headquarters. Sub Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) Ram Singh Meda said that when complainant Jiwan Bamania reached his home on Tuesday afternoon, he found his wife and three daughters missing.

The crime branch of Mumbai police has rescued two Uzbek women who were forced into prostitution and arrested four persons involved in the racket from a hotel in suburban Andheri, an official said. Acting on specific inputs, the enforcement cell of the crime branch raided a hotel at Andheri East on Monday evening and rescued two women, he said on Tuesday. The arrested persons had made fake Aadhaar cards of the women to portray them as Indian nationals, he said. The accused had also taken away the passports of the women and demanded Rs 2 lakh to return them, the official added.

The third in-person Quad summit will be held in Sydney next month, to deepen cooperation on critical and emerging technologies, high-quality infrastructure, global health, climate change, and other pressing issues pertaining to the strategic Indo-Pacific region, the White House said. The Quad or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue comprises India, the US, Japan and Australia. The meeting in Sydney on May 24 will be the first time that Australia will be hosting this summit. “On May 24, President Biden will attend the third in-person Quad Leaders’ Summit in Sydney, Australia, with Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, hosted by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday.

The Taliban have killed the senior Islamic State group leader behind the August 2021 suicide bombing outside the Kabul airport that left 13 U.S. service members and about 170 Afghans dead, according to the father of a Marine killed in the attack who was briefed Tuesday by military officials. Over the weekend, the U.S. military began to inform families of the 11 Marines, the sailor and the soldier killed in the blast at Abbey Gate during the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. And those family members shared the information in a private group messaging chat, according to the mother of another Marine. The account from the families to The Associated Press was confirmed by three US officials and a senior congressional aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details that had not yet been made public.

A Russian missile hit a museum building in a Ukrainian city on Tuesday, killing at least two people and wounding 10 others, part of a relentless barrage that comes as Ukraine is readying its forces for an expected spring counteroffensive. Ukrainian officials said the Russian military used S-300 air defense missiles to attack Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region, hitting the museum of local history in the city centre. The Russian military has repeatedly used S-300s, which Ukraine's air defences can't intercept, to attack ground targets. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted a video from the site that shows the ruined building and emergency responders examining the damage.

A Japanese company lost contact with its spacecraft moments before touchdown on the moon Wednesday, saying the mission had apparently failed. Communications ceased as the lander descended the final 33 feet (10 metres), travelling around 16 mph (25 kph). Flight controllers peered at their screens in Tokyo, expressionless, as minutes went by with no word from the lander, which is presumed to have crashed. “We have to assume that we could not complete the landing on the lunar surface,” said Takeshi Hakamada, founder and CEO of the company, ispace. An hour later, he said he could not confirm the lander had crashed, telling The Associated Press that engineers should have a better idea later in the day of what went wrong.

A 25-year-old man was injured after being allegedly hit by a car and dragged in central Delhi’s Feroz Shah Road, police said. The victim, identified as Manoj, works in housekeeping, the police said. A Maruti Suzuki Swift allegedly hit a rickshaw and dragged Manoj for some distance on Tuesday, they added. The 25-year-old driver- Farman from Murad Nagar in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad- was apprehended at the spot, Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Pranav Tayal said. A crime team arrived at the spot and legal action is being taken, he added. According to the police, the medical examination of the accused driver will be conducted to ascertain if he was under the influence of alcohol.