The Centre on Monday submitted an affidavit to the Supreme Court on the Rafale aircraft deal on Monday and said the procurement process laid down in the Defence Procurement Procedure, 2013, was followed.
The Supreme Court on Monday declined early hearing of the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha’s petition in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute case.
Earlier in the day, Union minister Ananth Kumar died in Bengaluru, after which the government declared three days of mourning and a holiday in Karnataka. Kumar will be given a state funeral.
Here are the day’s biggest stories:
Retail inflation eases to 3.31% in October, food prices decline by 0.86%
Retail inflation eased to 3.31% in October from 3.7% in September, government data released on Monday showed. Consumer Price Inflation stood at 3.58% in October the previous year. In rural areas, retail inflation was 2.82% in October compared to the corresponding month in 2017. In urban areas, this figure stood at 3.97%.
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Sikkim: Indigenous groups demand National Register of Citizens to curb ‘influx of illegal migrants’
Indigenous groups in Sikkim on Sunday asked the government to compile a National Register of Citizens to curb the “influx of illegal migrants”, PTI reported. The groups, which addressed a press conference in Gangtok, also demanded strict implementation of Article 371 that was enacted in 1975. The law grants Sikkimese people special rights and privileges.
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Supreme Court pulls up Bihar Police for failing to arrest former minister Manju Verma
The Supreme Court on Monday summoned Bihar’s director general of police on November 27 to explain why the police have failed to arrest former state minister Manju Verma in a case related to the recovery of ammunition from her in-laws’ house. The ammunition was found during a search conducted in connection with the Muzaffarpur shelter home rapes.
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Rafale deal: Centre submits affidavit in Supreme Court, says aircraft procured as per rules
The Centre on Monday submitted an affidavit on the Rafale aircraft deal in the Supreme Court. The Narendra Modi government told the court that the procurement process laid down in the Defence Procurement Procedure, 2013, was followed.
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Pahlaj Nihalani’s plea against censor board to be heard by Bombay High Court on November 13
The Bombay High Court has agreed to hear former Central Board of Film Certification chief Pahlaj Nihalani’s plea against the panel’s decision to order cuts to his upcoming movie Rangeela Raja on November 13, ANIreported. The film is scheduled for release in theatres on November 16.
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BJP ally Upendra Kushwaha meets Sharad Yadav, accuses Nitish Kumar of trying to poach his MLAs
Rashtriya Lok Samata Party President and Bharatiya Janata Party ally Upendra Kushwaha met Opposition leader Sharad Yadav on Monday, fuelling speculation that he may break away from the National Democratic Alliance over his differences with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar regarding proposed seat-sharing arrangements in the state for next year’s Lok Sabha elections.
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SIT summons ex-CM Parkash Singh Badal, actor Akshay Kumar for questioning
The Special Investigation Team looking into cases related to sacrilege in Punjab has summoned former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, former Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal, and actor Akshay Kumar for questioning.
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Manipur alleged fake encounters: Supreme Court dismisses pleas urging judges to recuse themselves
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed petitions filed by former and serving Army officers requesting that Justices MB Lokur and UU Lalit recuse themselves from hearing the Manipur alleged fake encounter cases. A Special Investigation Team of the Central Bureau of Investigation is probing the cases.
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Flying licence of Air India director of operations suspended for 3 years after he fails alcohol test
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Monday suspended the flying licence of Air India Captain and Director of Operations AK Kathpalia for three years after he failed a breathalyser test on two attempts. The airline had grounded Kathpalia on Sunday following the breathalyser tests he took before he was to operate the Delhi-London flight AI 111.
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‘Why should schemes in Tamil Nadu be named in Hindi’: AIADMK leader M Thambidurai to The Hindu
The Centre is trying to impose Hindi on states such as Tamil Nadu, Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai told The Hindu in an interview published on Monday. Thambidurai, the propaganda secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, said all languages in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution should be granted official status at the national level.
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Supreme Court dismisses petition to make anti-rape law gender neutral
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea filed by a non-governmental organisation seeking to amend the law against rape to make it gender-neutral, ANI reported. The court said Parliament should decide on the matter instead.
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CBI row: SC defers hearing to Friday after CVC submits inquiry report against Alok Verma
The Supreme Court on Monday deferred till November 16 the hearing of the Central Vigilance Commission’s preliminary inquiry into allegations of corruption against Central Bureau of Investigation Director Alok Verma. On October 26, the Supreme Court had given the commission two weeks to complete the inquiry and had appointed former Supreme Court judge AK Patnaik to supervise it.
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Assam: Citizenship Bill has given ‘fresh lease of life’ to ULFA(I), says senior police officer
A senior Assam Police official on Sunday said that the banned United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) has received a shot in the arm due to the growing public sentiment against the Centre’s move to amend the Citizenship Act, PTI reported.
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Ayodhya dispute: Supreme Court declines Hindu Mahasabha’s petition for early hearing of appeals
The Supreme Court on Monday declined the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha’s petition seeking early hearing of the pleas in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute case. Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and Justice SK Kaul said the court had already listed the appeals before an appropriate bench in January.
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Tamil Nadu: 22-year-old man arrested for allegedly raping Adivasi girl
The Tamil Nadu Police on Sunday arrested one of the men accused of raping a 16-year-old Adivasi girl in Dharmapuri district last week. The girl died on Saturday, five days after the alleged assault. The accused was identified as 22-year-old Sathish. The police are still looking for an accused identified as Ramesh.
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Avni killing: Tigress was facing away from hunter when shot at, suggests post-mortem witness report
Avni, the “man-eating” tigress, was “facing away” from the shooter when he shot at her, The Indian Express reported on Monday, citing the post-mortem witness report. This contradicts the Maharashtra forest department’s earlier claim that the animal was shot dead in self-defence as she charged at the shooter.The report also said that the dart found in Avni’s left thigh did not show any impact of being “fired from a syringe projector [tranquillising gun]”.
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Jammu and Kashmir: Soldier killed in third sniper attack along Line of Control in as many days
A soldier of the Indian Army was allegedly killed by a Pakistani sniper along the Line of Control in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday. This was the third such incident in as many days.
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Arun Jaitley hits out at ‘critics and cynics’ who say that GST slowed India’s growth
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday hit out at “critics and cynics” who said that the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax led to an economic slowdown. Jaitley said the “disruptionist” impact on growth lasted only two quarters, as he called the new indirect tax structure a “monumental reform”.
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Tamil Nadu puts 13 districts on high alert with cyclonic storm Gaja expected to intensify
At least 32 revenue districts under 13 districts have been put on high alert in Tamil Nadu with a cyclonic storm expected to hit the state on November 15. Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami has directed the administration to remain vigilant and four high-level meetings have already been held to discuss preventive measures, said Tamil Nadu Minister for Disaster Management RB Udayakumar on Sunday.
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Union minister and BJP leader Ananth Kumar dies at 59, will get state funeral
Union minister and six-time Bharatiya Janata Party MP Ananth Kumar died at a hospital in Bengaluru early on Monday. The 59-year-old was suffering from cancer and was earlier treated at a hospital in New York.
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Chhattisgarh elections: Voting in first phase of polls begins amid Maoist threat
Chhattisgarh on Monday went to the polls amid tight security after a spate of Maoist attacks. The first phase of voting is being held in 18 seats across eight districts, including in multiple suspected Maoist hotbeds. A blast was reported in Katekalyan block of Dantewada early this morning, before voting began.
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Haryana says it is unfair to blame its farmers for Delhi’s poor air
Haryana’s chief secretary said on Sunday that it was unfair to blame the state for Delhi’s poor air quality, as its farmers have negligible role in the air pollution in the National Capital Region. There has been a reduction in the amount of crop residue burnt by farmers this year, said DS Dhesi.
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Supreme Court to examine CVC’s inquiry report against CBI Director Alok Verma on Monday
The Supreme Court on Monday will examine the Central Vigilance Commission’s preliminary inquiry report into allegations of corruption against Central Bureau of Investigation Director Alok Verma. The court on October 26 had given the commission two weeks to complete its inquiry and had appointed former Supreme Court judge AK Patnaik to supervise it.
Read more here.
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