Breaking News, August 1 | LIVE UPDATES

A 31-year-old man was arrested in Jalna in Maharashtra on Monday for allegedly killing a widow, a police official said. The body of the woman was found under a bridge in Bodhlapuri village on Sunday and the face was smashed beyond recognition, he said.

A three-month-old baby died after allegedly being administered a faulty vaccine in Odisha’s Jajpur district, police said on Monday. Babu Sethy, a resident of Sankha village in Dharmasala block, had taken her three-month-old son to an anganwadi centre on July 20 for a pentavalent vaccine, which provides protection to a child from five life-threatening diseases.

At least 10 people died and 14 others were injured in West Bengal’s Cooch Behar district, after a pickup van carrying passengers en route to neighbouring Jalpaiguri got electrocuted, police said on Monday.

A woman allegedly killed her infant-daughter, reportedly of unsound mind and unwell, by dumping her in a sump here on Monday and tried to give an impression that some chain-snatchers were responsible for the death, police said. The woman had initially claimed that the one-year-old baby died after falling into the sump following an attempt to snatch her chain near her house, the police said. But, investigation ruled out chain-snatching as the cause, they said.

Telangana on Monday recorded 771 new COVID-19 cases, taking the statewide tally to 8,20,617. Hyderabad district reported the highest number of cases with 289.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday dismissed allegations that the Modi government was working only for 'Ambani and Adani', and said Opposition-ruled states were also signing agreements with the two leading business houses.

In a shocking incident, a woman in Telangana's Jangaon on Monday threw her one-year-old daughter in a water sump and tried to enact a drama that she was killed by a chain-snatcher. Hours after the woman claimed that a man threw the baby in the sump after she resisted the robbery attempt, police picked up her on the suspicion of killing the daughter. The woman, identified as Prasanna, reportedly confessed to her crime.

Sebi on Monday imposed penalties totalling Rs 16 lakh on four entities for failing to give information and not complying with summons issued by the regulator in the matter of Ejecta Marketing Ltd.

The Allahabad High Court on Monday allowed the Uttar Pradesh government and the CBI to file their objections to the maintainability of a criminal appeal against the acquittal of all 32 accused, including BJP stalwarts L K Advani and M M Joshi, in the Babri mosque demolition case, and fixed September 5 as the next date of hearing. A bench of Justices Ramesh Sinha and Saroj Yadav passed the order.

Rajasthan has reported its first suspected case of monkeypox. 

A history-sheeter, in his mid-30s, was shot dead and his associate was injured after they were shot at here following an argument over a land dispute in the early hours of Monday, police said. The incident happened in Madhapur police station limits around 4 AM when they were travelling in a car, they said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sent a congratulatory letter to his newly-appointed Sri Lankan counterpart Dinesh Gunawardena and assured India's support to the people of the island nation, which is facing its worst economic crisis in decades, the High Commission of India here said on Monday.

Seven tourists from Punjab have been feared drowned in Gobind Sagar lake in Himachal Pradesh's Una district on Monday, officials said.  As per initial reports, eleven tourists from Punjab's Mohali entered the lake near Garib Nath temple in Bangana Sub Division to take bath, the state disaster management department said. 

Seven tourists from Punjab have been feared drowned in Gobind Sagar lake in Himachal Pradesh's Una district on Monday, officials said.  As per initial reports, eleven tourists from Punjab's Mohali entered the lake near Garib Nath temple in Bangana Sub Division to take bath, the state disaster management department said. 

A massive fire broke out in Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur's New Life Medicity hospital on Monday afternoon. 8 people were killed in the fire while 23 were reported injured. 

Senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Sanjay Arora Monday took charge as the commissioner of Delhi police. Arora was accorded the ceremonial guard of honour by the police force upon his arrival at the Delhi Police Headquarters at the Jai Singh Marg.

A record over Rs 1.5 lakh crore worth of 5G telecom spectrum was sold in a seven-day auction ending on Monday, which saw billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Jio emerging as the top bidder to consolidate its leadership position. Sources with direct knowledge of the matter said provisional data puts the total bids at Rs 1,50,173 crore.

The Nationalist Congress Party's youth wing will send 6,000 letters to Maharashtra Governor B S Koshyari in protest against his "anti-Mumbai" remarks. The letter wished the governor to recover from the "illness of hatred against Maharashtra". “You consistently insult Maharashtra and the great people in Maharashtra. We, as the youth of Maharashtra, face the question of whether you are the governor of Maharashtra for the welfare of the state or the hatred. You shall honestly follow the oath you had taken to hold the Constitutional post. Hope you will get well soon from the illness of hatred of Maharashtra,” the letter stated. Nationalist Youth Congress (NYC) office-bearers and local NCP leaders gathered at the General Post Office (GPO) in Nashik and posted a few letters as part of their campaign.

Tata Motors on Monday reported a 51.12 per cent increase in total sales at 81,790 units in July 2022, driven by the strong performance of its passenger vehicles in the domestic market. The company had sold a total of 54,119 units in domestic and international markets in July last year, Tata Motors said in a statement. The total domestic sales were at 78,978 units last month compared to 51,981 units in July 2021, a growth of 52 per cent, it added. Sales of passenger vehicles in the domestic market stood at 47,505 units as compared to 30,185 units in the year-ago month, up 57 per cent. Passenger electric vehicle sales were at 4,022 units, up from  604 units in July last year, the company said. Tata Motors said its sales of commercial vehicles in the domestic market stood at 31,473 units in July 2022 compared to 21,796 units in the same month last year. 

The government has agreed for a discussion in the Rajya Sabha on rising prices of essential commodities on Tuesday, as the Opposition Congress and other parties disrupted proceedings over the arrest of Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut and other issues. When the House re-assembled at noon for Question Hour, the Opposition parties continued with their protests as several MPs reached the well of House and raised slogans against the central dispensation. However, Bhubaneswar Kalita, who was in the Chair, went ahead with the Question Hour. As sloganeering continued, Leader of the House and Union minister Piyush Goyal appealed to the protesting members to allow legislative business and Question Hour to function smoothly as the debate on price rise is listed in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

The Madhya Pradesh government on Monday (August 1) announced a Dearness Allowance (DA) hike of 3 per cent for the state government employees bringing them on par with the Central government employees. Now, the state government employees will be getting a total 34 per cent DA, equal to that of the Central government employees, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced through a video message. Currently, the Madhya Pradesh state government employees gets a total 31 per cent DA. The government had hiked 11 per cent DA to it's employees in March this year. The hiked DA will be implemented from current month (August) and therefore, the state government employees will receive it in September month's salary, he announced. "It would add around Rs 625 crore additional financial burden to the Madhya Pradesh government," Chouhan said.

Trinamool Congress MPs protested in Parliament premises on Monday demanding a discussion in the House on the issue of safety of women. TMC Lok Sabha members Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Dola Sen and Rajya Sabha MP Mausam Noor had submitted notices for a discussion on the "need for prevention of crimes against women" in light of "latest reported incidents". The MPs had moved the notices after Gujarat Rural Development Minister and BJP MLA Arjunsinh Chauhan was accused of raping and illegally confining a woman. Holding placards that read "Stop crimes against women in Gujarat" and shouting slogans, the TMC MPs held a protest against gate number 12 of Parliament House. "There are allegations against Gujarat’s rural development minister Arjunsinh Chauhan of raping and illegally confining a woman. We demanded a discussion on this in the House," said Sen. 

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Bombay High Court refuses urgent hearing of two petitions challenging Maharashtra govt's decision to rename Aurangabad and Osmanabad cities. 

Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 2 pm on Monday amid massive sloganeering and protest by Congress and other opposition parties over various issues, including price rise. When the House reassembled at 12 noon for Question Hour after adjournment during the morning session, opposition parties again started protesting. Some MPs from the opposition benches also came into the Well of the House and shouted slogans. However, Bhubaneswar Kalita, who was in the chair, went ahead with the Question Hour. Several questions were taken up amid the protest. It was at around 12.40 that the proceedings were again adjourned till 2:00 pm. Before adjourning the proceedings, Kalita told protesting members that the leader of opposition (Mallikarjun Kharge) has demanded discussion on the issue of price rise.

A kanwariya was killed and two others sustained injuries when their motorcycle was hit by a car near here on Monday, police said. The incident took place around 3.30 am, they said. Vinay (22) died while Prem Kishore and Lalu sustained injuries and were taken to a hospital, they said. Additional Superintendent of Police, Dhananjay Khushwaha said the car occupants were en route to Soro town to immerse the ashes of a relative in the Ganges river. 

A woman was killed, while her husband and two sons were injured on Monday after a tree fell on their car on Delhi-Dehradun Highway, police said. The incident took place when the family of four was on its way to Haridwar, Station House Officer (Katholi) Sanjiv Kumar said. He said Ritu (40) died on the spot, while her husband Rahul (41) and sons were rushed to a hospital where their condition is stated to be stable.

The Opposition on Monday forced adjournments in the Lok Sabha, demanding the revocation of suspension of four Congress members. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla adjourned the proceedings till noon soon after the House convened for the day. Opposition members resorted to sloganeering when the House reassembled at 12 noon. BJP member Rajendra Agarwal, who was in the Chair, adjourned the proceedings till 2 pm after laying of parliamentary papers on the table of the House and the introduction of the Central Universities (Amendment) Bill by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

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Rajya Sabha proceedings on Monday were adjourned for about an hour after protests over arrest of Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut and other issues. Even as officials papers were being laid, Shiv Sena MPs were up on their feet protesting against the arrest of Raut. Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said the matter has nothing to do with the House and asked them to go back to their seats. Other opposition MPs also joined in raising issues such as price rise. The Shiv Sena as well as TMC MPs then moved into the well of the House. "Go back to your seats. You cannot use the House to settle the scores outside," Naidu said before adjourning the proceedings till 12 noon. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Raut in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the redevelopment of a Mumbai 'chawl' after conducting a nine-hour search at his residence.

Delhi government has extended licences of country liquor vends by two months till September 30 as fresh tenders are yet to be finalised, officials said on Monday. Meanwhile, vends selling Indian and Foreign liquor brands will remain shut despite the one month extension granted by Delhi government on Sunday as a nod from Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena is awaited, they said. The excise department of Delhi government, in an order issued on Saturday, extended the licences of over 250 country liquor shops in the city. "The extension is subject to payment of pro-rata fee for the extension period," said the order. Tenders for country liquor licence were floated twice in recent months. On the first occasion, the tender failed to attract adequate number of bidders while the excise department scrapped it the second time after finding out that bidders were "pooling" to keep the bids low, they added. 

Four people were injured after being attacked by a group in Chhapia area here, police said on Monday. The incident took place on Sunday night and the injured were taken to a hospital where their condition is stated to be stable, they said. Dipanshu (18), Harsh (19), Piyush (18) and Sujal (15) were attacked by one Daddu Gupta and his accomplice with knives and rods, police said. An FIR was lodged against 11 people and two were arrested, Superintendent of Police, Akash Tomar said. 

Monsoon session of Parliament: Congress will raise the issue of ED arrest of Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut, alleged misuse of Central investigation agencies by Centre and the suspension of its four Lok Sabha MPs from this session. 

Uttar Pradesh news: The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has removed the Police Commissioners of Lucknow and Kanpur. Five other IPS officers have also been transferred. Lucknow Police Commissioner DK Thakur has been attached to the police headquarters and put on waiting list. He has been replaced by SB Shirodkar. Kanpur Police Commissioner Vijay Kumar Meena has also been wait-listed. He has been replaced by B.P. Jogdand.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted isolated rain with thunderstorms in many parts of Tamil Nadu from Monday to Thursday. Meanwhile, heavy rain is likely to lash Kanniyakumari, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi, Theni, Erode, Nilgiris, Dharmapuri, and Salem districts. The IMD said that a cyclonic circulation over Tamil Nadu is the reason for the widespread rain in the state. Winds at a speed of 40-50 kph are likely to prevail over the Comorin area, Gulf of Mannar, South Tamil Nadu coast, and South West Bay of Bengal. On Tuesday, heavy to very heavy rains are likely to occur at isolated places over Kanniyakumari, Thoothukudi, Tenkasi, Nilgiris, Salem, Cuddalore, Dharmapuri, Tiruchirapalli districts.

The Trinamool Congress has sought a debate in both Houses of Parliament on Monday on the issue of crimes against women, as it targeted the government after a BJP MLA in Gujarat was accused of rape. TMC Lok Sabha members Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar and Dola Sen and Rajya Sabha MP Mausam Noor had submitted notices for a discussion on the "need for prevention of crimes against women" in light of "latest reported incidents". The sources said the TMC MPs moved the notices after Gujarat Rural Development Minister and BJP MLA Arjunsinh Chauhan was accused of raping and illegally confining a woman.

As heavy rains continued to lash Kerala, Monday was declared a holiday for educational institutions in some parts of the state.

District Collectors of Pathanamthitta and Kollam declared August 1 as a holiday for educational institutions in certain taluks in their respective districts.

In Ernakulam, in view of an Orange alert issued for the district till August 4, all departments have been directed to be prepared and fishermen have been instructed not to go to sea, the control room of the district said.

Water levels of rivers flowing through the district are being monitored in view of the heavy rain warnings and a meeting of the District Disaster Management Authority is also scheduled to be held during the day, the control room said.

The Delhi High Court is scheduled to hear on Monday a plea by former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala in connection with his conviction and four-year sentence in a disproportionate assets (DA) case.  Justice Yogesh Khanna had earlier called for the politician's jail record before it to decide the issue of his release during the pendency of the appeal.  On May 27, a trial court had convicted Chautala and awarded a four-year jail term to him while also imposing a fine of Rs 50 lakh in the case of acquiring disproportionate assets from 1993 to 2006. Besides this, a bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Rajnish Bhatnagar will hear former JNU student Umar Khalid's plea seeking bail in a UAPA case related to the alleged conspiracy behind the riots here in February 2020. 

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A 28-year-old man, working as a security guard at a society here died after a malfunctioning sliding gate at the entrance of the society fell on him, a police official said on Sunday. According to the police, the incident took place at Sikka Karmic Greens society in Sector 78, Noida when the security guard, identified as Ramhit, was closing the sliding gate of the residential apartments. "The alignment of the sliding gate malfunctioned and it accidentally fell upon the security guard," the official told media.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the redevelopment of a Mumbai 'chawl' after conducting a nine-hour search at his residence, during which Rs 11.5 lakh in cash was seized, officials said. Raut, 60, was arrested after over six hours of questioning at the ED's zonal office in south Mumbai's Ballard Estate shortly after Sunday midnight. He was taken into custody at 12:05 am on Monday under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) as he was not cooperating in the probe, the officials claimed.

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The Rajasthan government has transferred 18 bureaucrats, including seven Indian Administrative Service officers. The Department of Personnel released the transfer lists late on Sunday night. According to the lists, Rajasthan Pollution Control Board chairman Sudhansh Pant has been appointed as the director general of the Rajasthan Institute of Public Administration (RIPA). Project director of Rajasthan Urban Infrastructure Development Project (RUIDP) Kumarpal Gautam has been appointed as the excise commissioner. Local Self Government Department secretary Joga Ram has been given the additional charge as RUIDP project director.

A Maryland auction house has sold a wristwatch that once belonged to Adolf Hitler for USD 1.1 million. Alexander Historical Auctions in Chesapeake City had estimated the value between USD 2 and USD 4 million, describing the watch as a "World War II relic of historic proportions." Newsoutlets report that Jewish leaders and others objected to the sale this week, saying it had little to no historical value. The auction house's president, Bill Panagopulos, defended the auction and said the buyer is a European Jew. The watch features the initials AH and a swastika. The auction house said a French soldier who was in the first unit to close in on Hitler in May 1945 at his Berchtesgaden retreat seized it as spoils of war. 

A young Indiana police officer was killed when a man got out of his car during a traffic stop and opened fire, authorities said. The suspect was caught roughly 30 minutes later on Sunday after a car chase, state police said. Noah Shahnavaz, 24, was an officer at the Elwood police department, 50 miles (80 kilometers) northeast of Indianapolis. He stopped the driver of a Buick LaCrosse just after 2 a.m. "For an unknown reason, the suspect exited the Buick and fired multiple rounds, striking the officer at least one time," state police said.

Weightlifter Achinta Sheuli (73kg) lived up to his top billing as he clinched India's third gold in the Commonwealth Games. Favourite to win the event, debutant Sheuli heaved 313kg (143kg+170kg) to grab the gold at NEC Hall here on Sunday. Malaysia's Erry Hidayat Muhammad, who gave Sheuli a tough competition, ended as the second best lifter in the event. He had a best effort of 303kg (138kg+165kg). Canada's Shad Darsigny was third with a total lift of 298kg (135kg+163kg).

Outgoing Delhi Police Commissioner Rakesh Asthana on Sunday said although he has retired, his desire to work for the force and the public remains intact, and asserted that he did not feel a "headache even for a minute" while performing his duty. The 1984-batch Gujarat cadre IPS officer, who has in the last one year brought some notable changes in the Delhi Police, such as merging Police Control Room units with police stations and separating law and order from the investigation unit, said he believes his team "did well".

A Minnesota teenager died and four other people were critically wounded after being stabbed while tubing down a Wisconsin river, authorities said. St. Croix County Sheriff Scott Knudson the victims and suspect, a 52-year-old Minnesota man, were all on the Apple River when the attack happened Saturday afternoon. Knudson said investigators were working to determine what led to the stabbings and whether the victims and suspect knew each other. They were tubing with two different groups that included about 20 people. "We don't know yet who was connected to who, who knew each other or what precipitated it," Knudson said.

Preempting chaos due to liquor shortage in the city, Delhi government on Sunday decided to extend existing licences of liquor shops till August 31, officials said. The private liquor stores numbering 468 in Delhi were scheduled to shut shop from Monday after expiry of their licences on July 31. However, the liquor shops will open only after the excise department's order following the LG's nod, they said. "The government has sent decision of its Cabinet to extend existing liquor vend licences for one month, up to August 31, to the Lt Governor. Orders allowing the liquor stores to remain open after July 31 will be issued after L-G's approval," officials said.

A small explosive device carried by a makeshift drone blew up at the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea Fleet on the Crimean Peninsula, wounding six people and prompting the cancellation of ceremonies there honouring Russia's navy, authorities said. Meanwhile, one of Ukraine's richest men, a grain merchant, was killed in what Ukrainian authorities said was a carefully targeted Russian missile strike on his home.