A look at the headlines right now:

  1. MJ Akbar and Alok Nath file defamation cases against their accusers: Journalists outfits demanded Akbar’s resignation and investigations into each sexual harassment complaint. A directors’ body issued showcause notice to filmmaker Sajid Khan. 
  2. Narendra Modi urges global oil firms to ease payment terms to help rupee recover: The prime minister sought a better partnership between producers and consumers of oil.  
  3. Uttar Pradesh Opposition parties criticise BJP government’s plan to rename Allahabad as Prayagraj: The Congress called it an attempt to distort history while Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav said it ‘mocks tradition and belief’.  
  4. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet King Salman to discuss Saudi journalist’s disappearance: Donald Trump has said the Saudi king has denied any knowledge of whatever may have happened to Jamal Khashoggi, who has been missing since October 2.   
  5. Shashi Tharoor says media distorted his comment on Ram Temple: The Congress MP said he was asked for his personal opinion on the construction of a temple in Ayodhya.
  6. Gujarat CM blames Congress for attacks on migrants, claims ‘complete peace now’: Vijay Rupani and his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Adityanath addressed a joint press conference where they said the western state was safe for all.  
  7. Shrine board invites stakeholders for talks on Sabarimala verdict, protests continue: Hindutva leader Pravin Togadia’s new outfit said it would organise a strike on October 18 if the Kerala government implements the Supreme Court verdict.  
  8. Cyclone Titli toll in Odisha rises to 24; flood situation improves marginally in three districts: Special Relief Commissioner BP Sethi said villages in Mayurbhanj district are still flooded.  
  9. IMF should objectively evaluate CPEC projects while granting Pakistan bailout package, says Beijing: A senior official said loans Beijing has provided for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor were not the ‘reason for Pakistan’s financial difficulties’.
  10. Toll in Shahjahanpur building collapse rises to three: Fifteen workers were injured in the accident.