A look at the headlines right now:

  1. At Uttar Pradesh rally, Narendra Modi criticises Rahul Gandhi for hugging him in Parliament: N Chandrababu Naidu called the prime minister arrogant, and Arun Jaitley said the Congress president had hurt the image of Indian politicians in the international community.  
  2. GST Council exempts sanitary napkins from taxation, removes a number of items from 28% tax slab: A number of items such as marbles, rakhi, wooden deities and sal leaves also will not be taxed, Finance Minister Piyush Goyal announced.  
  3. Bullet-riddled body of abducted constable found in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam: Saleem Ahmed Shah was kidnapped by suspected militants on Friday night from his home in Muthalhama village.  
  4. Mob lynches man on suspicion of cow smuggling in Rajasthan’s Alwar district: Police said villagers in Ramgarh allegedly attacked two men while they were transporting cattle to Haryana.
  5. 19-year-old man sentenced to death in Rajasthan for raping infant: This is the first death sentence ordered under a new law passed by the state Assembly in March.
  6. Malayalam novelist S Hareesh withdraws his novel citing threats on social media: Hareesh said his family had received threats from followers of Hindutva organisations and that he cannot take on ‘the people who rule the country’.  
  7. China is waging a cold war to replace United States as leading superpower, says top CIA official: Michael Collins, who works at the intelligence agency’s East Asia mission centre, talked of concerns in the US about China’s efforts to steal business secrets.  
  8. Flexi fare system in premium trains reduced occupancy, increased revenue, shows CAG report: A Comptroller and Auditor General report for year ending March 2017 showed that Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto trains have carried 6.75 lakh fewer travellers.
  9. Mamata Banerjee says she will launch ‘BJP hatao’ campaign: The West Bengal chief minister confirmed that Chandan Mitra, who resigned from the BJP this week, has joined Trinamool Congress.
  10. United States concerned about Lashkar-e-Taiba affiliates contesting Pakistan general elections, reports Dawn: The US state department said it was satisfied that the country’s Election Commission had refused to register militant leader Hafiz Saeed’s political party.