A look at the top headlines of the day:

  1. Mamata Banerjee sacks Partha Chatterjee as minister, suspends him from Trinamool Congress: She also removed him from all party posts after he was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate for alleged corruption in recruitment of teachers.
  2. Lok Sabha witnesses acrimonious scenes as Smriti Irani seeks apology from Sonia Gandhi: BJP MPs demanded that the Congress chief should apologise for party MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury’s remarks referring to President Droupadi Murmu as ‘rashtrapatni’.
  3. ‘Yogi model’ will be implemented in Karnataka if needed, says Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai: His comments came as protests erupted against the Karnataka government and several BJP youth wing leaders resigned after the murder of a party leader. The police arrested two men in connection with the killing.
  4. India criticises Pakistan for pulling out of Chess Olympiad over torch relay passing through J&K: Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said it was ‘highly unfortunate’ that Islamabad has politicised a prestigious international event.
  5. Two pilots killed as IAF fighter plane crashes in Rajasthan’s Barmer district: A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the crash.
  6. Jharkhand court convicts two men for murder in Dhanbad judge death case: Judge Uttam Anand died on July 28 last year in Dhanbad after a three-wheeler ran over him.
  7. Mere membership of WhatsApp groups can’t make me criminally liable, Umar Khalid tells High Court: The activist had remained silent in two groups, counsel Trideep Pais said.
  8. 22.05 crore applied for government jobs since 2014, only 7.22 lakh got recruited, shows data: The highest recruitment was made in 2019-’20 – the year of Lok Sabha elections – even as the least number of aspirants applied that year.
  9. No data available on attack on minorities, Centre tells Rajya Sabha: Union minister Smriti Irani said that it was up to the state governments to maintain law and order and prosecute crimes against citizens, including minorities.
  10. Ahmedabad, Botad SPs transferred as 42 residents die after drinking spurious liquor: Ninety-seven persons are still being treated at hospitals.