A look at the headlines right now:

  1. Grand Opposition alliance is adulterated, people will reject it, Narendra Modi tells Parliament: He also accused the Congress of trying to scuttle the Rafale deal and claimed the Opposition party had neglected the needs of the armed forces. Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi claimed ‘Narendra Modi is a coward’ and challenged the prime minister to a debate on the Rafale deal.
  2. BJP accuses Congress of appeasement after it vows to scrap the law banning triple talaq if it is elected: BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra claimed Muslim women will not forgive Rahul Gandhi.
  3. RBI lowers repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.25%, first cut since August 2017: This was the first RBI policy meeting since Shaktikanta Das took over as the RBI governor in December.
  4. Supreme Court reprimands CBI for transferring the officer investigating the Muzaffarpur rape case: The top court summoned former interim chief Nageswara Rao and moved the trial from Bihar to Delhi.
  5. Centre to take away medals of six IPS officers who participated in Mamata Banerjee’s dharna, says report: The Ministry of Home Affairs has also reportedly decided that the officers will not be assigned central government duties in the future.
  6. Last four years warmest ever on record, rate of heating is ‘exceptional’, says UN weather body: Extreme weather events last year included the floods in Kerala, California wildfires and drought in South Africa.
  7. In Uttar Pradesh Budget, Rs 447 crore allocated for cow shelters by Adityanath government: The Opposition, however, accused the government of presenting a ‘populist’ budget and of betraying the people in the name of development.
  8. From a temple and sari to gender inclusive couples – here’s what the new emojis of 2019 include: A new emoji showing a drop of blood has also been introduced to represent menstruation.
  9. Kashmir Valley experiences heavy snowfall, all flight operations cancelled: Meanwhile, a hailstorm hit parts of NCR and the cold wave is likely to intensify.
  10. Sri Lanka to resume executions within two months, ending 43-year moratorium, says president: Convicts sentenced to death for drug violations will be the first to be hanged, Maithripala Sirisena said on Wednesday.