A look at the biggest developments of the day:

  1. Karnataka High Court to direct students to not wear ‘religious clothes’ till judgement is passed: Hijab ban a pretext to impose apartheid on Muslim women, say democratic groups in open letter.
  2. Union minister’s son Ashish Mishra gets bail four months after his arrest in Lakhimpur Kheri case: His lawyer claimed that he was not driving the car that allegedly mowed down the protestors.
  3. Uttar Pradesh records 60% turnout recorded as first phase of voting ends: Polls were held in 58 Assembly seats spread across 11 districts in the western part of the state.
  4. First phase date of Manipur polls revised to February 28, second round to be held on March 5: The earlier dates were February 27 and March 3.
  5. India lifts mandatory seven-day quarantine for international passengers that was imposed amid rising Covid-19 cases: Under the new guidelines, international passengers are required to ‘self-monitor’ their health for 14 days after arriving in India.
  6. ‘Can’t afford a system where conspiracies are endless,’ Sharjeel Imam’s lawyer tells Delhi court: Imam, who was arrested in January 2019, cannot be held for conspiring the Delhi riots which took place in February 2020, the counsel said.
  7. ‘Why should I listen to Narendra Modi,’ says Rahul Gandhi while responding to Prime Minister’s criticism: Referring to the Congress leader, the prime minister had said on Wednesday that he could not hold dialogue with person who ‘does not listen’.
  8. Activist Rona Wilson, an accused in Bhima Koregaon case, was targeted by two separate hacker groups, says report: One of the groups has reportedly been linked to cyberespionage efforts against military targets in China and Pakistan.
  9. Piyush Goyal refuses to answer DMK MP’s question in English, triggers protest: The Union minister said he can speak in any language he desires.
  10. Mumbai Police arrest a man for death, rape threats to journalist Rana Ayyub: The accused person, a salesman, was remanded in judicial custody. He was jailed after Covid-19 test.