Central Bureau of Invstigation Deputy Inspector General Manish Kumar Sinha, who was part the team investigating Special Director Rakesh Asthana’s role in a corruption case, told the Supreme Court in a petition on Monday that investigation had turned up evidence of Union Minister of State for Coal and Mines Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary allegedly accepting kickbacks. He also accused National Security Adviser Ajit Doval of interfering in the investigation.
The Reserve Bank of India Board of Directors held a crucial meeting on Monday amid a standoff between the central bank and the government. The meeting comes amid speculation that the government wants a change in rules that will enable it to supervise the central bank better.
The Kerala Police took 68 people into preventive custody in Sabarimala on Sunday night, following fresh protests against police action on devotees demonstrating against the Supreme Court verdict granting women of all ages the right to enter the shrine.
Here are the day’s top stories:
Not linking Aadhaar with bank account is not grounds for withholding salary, says Bombay High Court
The Bombay High Court on Monday said a person’s salary cannot be withheld if their bank account is not linked to Aadhaar. The court was hearing a petition filed by a Mumbai Port Trust employee. The court directed the government to pay the man his arrears and adjourned the case to January 8 for a final hearing.
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Bhima Koregaon case: Congress leader Digvijaya Singh’s number found in evidence, say reports
The Pune Police have purportedly found mention of Congress leader Digvijaya Singh’s mobile number in the letters they seized as evidence while arresting activists in the Bhima Koregaon case. While Pune Deputy Commissioner of Police Suhas Bavche did not identify any names, he said that they are investigating the phone numbers mentioned in the seized letters.
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Rajasthan elections: Congress leader Sachin Pilot to contest against BJP minister Yunus Khan in Tonk
Congress leader Sachin Pilot will contest the December 7 Rajasthan Assembly elections against Transport and Public Works Department Minister Yunus Khan from Tonk. Pilot and Khan filed their nomination papers on Monday. Pilot said the elections were a fight between different ideologies.
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Amritsar attack is a clear case of terrorism, says Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday said the grenade attack in Amritsar the day before was a “clear case of terrorism”. Three people were killed and at least 20 were wounded in the attack at the Nirankari Bhawan in Adliwala village on Sunday afternoon. The Nirankaris are followers of an independent spiritual movement who claim to be unaffiliated with any religion and reject the authority of Sikhs over them.
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Mumbai: Ola and Uber drivers stopped from marching to Vidhan Bhavan, union leaders detained
The Mumbai Police on Monday stopped drivers of app-based cab aggregators Ola and Uber from taking out a march from the Bharat Mata junction in Parel to Vidhan Bhavan. The drivers are demanding better wages and incentives.
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K Chandrasekhar Rao will renew efforts to build Third Front after state elections, says his son
Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief K Chandrasekhar Rao will renew efforts to forge a new front opposed to the National Democratic Alliance and the United Progressive Alliance after Assembly elections in the state, reported PTI quoted his son and party leader KT Rama Rao as saying on Monday.
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Sabarimala: Devaswom board moves SC, seeks more time to implement order on women’s entry into shrine
The Travancore Devaswom Board, which administers the Sabarimala temple in Kerala, moved Supreme Court on Monday seeking more time to implement its September 28 order allowing women of menstruating age to enter the shrine, Bar and Bench reported. The board, in its petition, said it was seeking more time because of lack of basic amenities at the temple.
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#MeToo: SC dismisses petition seeking registration of FIRs based on sexual harassment allegations
Advocate Manohar Lal Sharma filed the petition demanding the court to direct law-enforcement agencies to take suo motu action on the matter, record the statements of complainants and register first information reports under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. Sharma also sought the setting up of fast track courts to hear such cases and said the National Commission for Women should provide security to the women who have come out in the open with their allegations.
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Malegaon blasts: Supreme Court asks Bombay High Court to hear Shrikant Purohit’s petition
Purohit has claimed there is no valid sanction for his prosecution under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. The bench asked the High Court to hear the plea on November 21.
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CBI row: Alok Verma responds to CVC’s inquiry report on corruption allegations against him
Central Bureau of Investigation Director Alok Verma on Monday filed his response to the Central Vigilance Commission’s inquiry report on corruption allegations against him. The court had earlier asked Verma to file his reply “as quickly as possible” after he sought more time.
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PM Modi inaugurates Western Peripheral Expressway expected to divert 50,000 vehicles from Delhi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the Western Peripheral Expressway in Haryana’s Gurugram. He also flagged off the Escorts Mujesar to Ballabhgarh line of the Delhi Metro.
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Sabarimala: State government has turned temple complex into war zone, says minister KJ Alphons
Union minster KJ Alphons on Monday criticised the Kerala government for turning the Sabarimala temple complex into a “war zone” as fresh protests erupted near the hill shrine. At least 68 people have been taken into preventive custody for allegedly defying prohibitory orders.
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2002 Gujarat riots: Supreme Court adjourns Zakia Jafri’s petition till November 26
The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned till November 26 the hearing on a petition moved by Zakia Jafri against the clean chit granted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a case related to allegations of a “larger conspiracy” behind the 2002 Gujarat riots.
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Delhi air quality remains ‘very poor’ due to slow wind speed, high humidity
The air quality in Delhi was in the “very poor” category on Monday due to slow wind speed and high humidity on Monday. The overall Air Quality Index was 322, according to Central Pollution Control Board data.
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Minister accepted bribe, NSA Doval interfered in Asthana case: CBI deputy inspector general’s petition in SC
A senior Central Bureau of Investigation official, who was part of the team investigating Special Director Rakesh Asthana’s role in a corruption case, filed a petition in the Supreme Court on Monday claiming that National Security Adviser Ajit Doval’s name had come up during the inquiry and that there were allegations of a Union minister having received a bribe.
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Tamil Nadu: Cyclone Gaja toll goes up to 45, villagers protest against lack of relief operation
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edapaddi K Palaniswami on Sunday said the toll from Cyclone Gaja had gone up to 45 as protests erupted in a few districts over the administration’s alleged failure to provide assistance.
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NDA government accounts for 58% of all disinvestments since 1991: The Hindu
The current National Democratic Alliance government has disinvested almost twice the amount the United Progressive Alliance government divested during its two terms in power, The Hindu reported on Monday. This accounts for 58% of all the disinvestment since 1991, shows data released by the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management.
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Railways plans to build 3,000 km of walls guarding tracks to prevent trespassing: Report
The Indian Railways has planned to build 3,000 km of walls to guard its tracks from trespassers after the train accident in Amritsar last month claimed 62 lives, The Indian Express reported on Monday. The project is estimated to cost Rs 2,500 crore. The reinforced cement concrete walls will be 2.7 metres high and will be built along railway tracks that are flanked by residential areas in suburban and non-suburban areas.
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Tamil Nadu: At least 2 tonnes of oil spills into sea near Chennai after tanker’s fuel hose snaps
An oil tanker stationed at Tamil Nadu’s Ennore released at least two tonnes of oil into the sea north of Chennai on Sunday. The spill occurred at the Kamarajar Port in Ennore, around 20 km from the state capital. It started around 4 am after a flexible hose transferring fuel from tanker MT Coral Star broke.
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Rajasthan polls: BJP MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja quits party after he is denied ticket
Rajasthan Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja, who claimed in 2016 that 3,000 used condoms and 3,000 liquor bottles are found daily at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, quit the saffron party on Sunday. Ahuja’s resignation came after his name did not figure in the BJP’s second list for the Assembly elections in the state.
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Amritsar blast: AAP leader HS Phoolka courts controversy for comment about Army Chief Bipin Rawat
Punjab Aam Aadmi Party leader HS Phoolka on Sunday courted controversy after he suggested that Indian Army Chief Bipin Rawat’s comments about Punjab militancy may have been responsible for the explosion at Amritsar’s Nirankari Bhawan, which killed three people.
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IRCTC scam: Court adjourns hearing to December, asks Lalu Prasad to appear via videoconferencing
The Patiala House Court in New Delhi on Monday adjourned the hearing in the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation scam and posted the matter for next hearing on December 20. The court directed Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, an accused in the case, to appear through videoconferencing and asked the Central Bureau of Investigation to make all arrangements.
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Sensex rises 100 points, Nifty breaches 10,700 mark ahead of crucial RBI board meeting
The BSE Sensex rose more than 100 points and the National Stock Exchange Nifty crossed the 10,700 mark in Monday’s opening trade on the back of widespread gains amid capital inflows by foreign funds ahead of a meeting of the Reserve Bank of India’s board of directors.
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Punjab: BJP leader Harmohan Dhawan joins the Aam Aadmi Party
Former Union minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Harmohan Dhawan officially joined the Aam Aadmi Party in Chandigarh on Sunday. Punjab MP and AAP leader Bhagwant Singh Mann and several other party MLAs were present at the occasion.
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‘For Hindus, it is Ram temple before the government,’ says Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday intensified his party’s campaign for the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, in which he called for “temple before government”. “Har Hindu ki yahi pukar, pehle mandir fir sarkar [This is every Hindu’s call – first the temple then the government],” Thackeray said at a press conference after a meeting with party leaders in Mumbai.
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PMO’s refusal to disclose Raghuram Rajan’s letter on bad loans not legal, says CIC
The Central Information Commission has directed the Reserve Bank of India and the Prime Minister’s Office to disclose the list of wilful defaulters as well as a letter on bad loans written by the former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan to the Centre.
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RBI Board of Directors to meet on Monday amid central bank’s standoff with Centre
The Reserve Bank of India will hold a meeting of its board of directors on Monday, amid speculation that the Centre has proposed a change in rules that will enable it to supervise the central bank better. The government has recommended that the RBI board draft regulations which will allow panels to be set up to oversee the bank’s functions.
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Sabarimala row: At least 68 devotees detained for allegedly defying prohibitory orders
The Kerala Police on Sunday night took at least 68 people into preventive custody after fresh protests started at Sabarimala. The agitators allegedly defied police orders at Nadapanthal near the hill shrine and violated Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which prohibits more than four people from gathering at a spot. They were taken to the Pamba police station.
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Jammu and Kashmir: CRPF head constable killed, two soldiers injured in militant attack in Pulwama
A head constable of the Central Reserve Police Force was killed on Sunday and two soldiers injured when suspected militants attacked a camp in Pulwama district of South Kashmir, the CRPF said. The militants allegedly hurled grenades at the camp at around 7.30 pm and fired at the CRPF personnel near Kakapora railway station in Pulwama.
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Amritsar grenade attack: Akali Dal lashes out at Chief Minister Amarinder Singh
Former Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal criticised the Congress government after the grenade attack in Amrisar on Sunday that killed three people. “Peace and communal harmony [are] in danger in Punjab under Congress rule,” claimed the Shiromani Akali Dal leader.
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Maratha quota: Maharashtra government agrees to community’s demand for reservation
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said the Maratha community in the state would be accorded reservation under the socially and educationally backward class category. The government took the decision after studying the report that the State Backward Class Commission submitted on November 15.
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