Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday that the Centre cannot rule out the possibility of a major terrorist attack on India’s west coast. Speaking in Kollam in Kerala, Singh said: “As a defence minister, I would like to assure that our country’s maritime security is absolutely strong and solidified.”
The Enforcement Directorate on Friday told Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar to not come to the agency’s office for questioning in the Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank scam, hours before he was scheduled to reach it.
India at UN: Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address General Assembly soon
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on Friday. He will speak after the leaders of Mauritius, Indonesia and Lesotho. Modi’s Pakistani counterpart Imran Khan is the seventh speaker.
‘We cannot rule out terror incident along western coast,’ says Rajnath Singh
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said the government cannot rule out a “big incident” carried out by terrorists from the neighbouring country on India’s western coast, PTI reported. The government was completely committed to coastal and maritime security, he added.
India’s GDP growth is likely to slow down to 6% this year from 7.4% in 2018, says UN trade body
India’s economic growth rate is likely to slow down to just 6% in 2019 from 7.4% the previous year, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development said in a report released on Wednesday. If the forecast turns out to be correct, this will be the slowest annual economic growth rate in India since 2012.
INX Media case: Delhi High Court reserves order on P Chidambaram’s bail plea
The Delhi High Court on Friday reserved its order on Congress leader P Chidambaram’s bail application in the INX Media case, Live Law reported. Chidambaram is in Tihar Jail at present. He was sent there after a special Central Bureau of Investigation court in Delhi extended his judicial custody till October 3.
Assembly bye-polls: Congress set for easy win in Dantewada; BJP victorious in Hamirpur, Badharghat
The Congress looked set for a comfortable victory in the Dantewada Assembly bye-elections in Chhattisgarh, with its candidate Devti Karma leading the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Ojaswi Mandavi by more than 10,000 votes. The BJP has conceded defeat in the race, the newspaper added.
After cross-border drones are detected in Punjab, Union minister says there is no need for concern
Union Minister of State for Defence Shripad Yesso Naik on Friday said India was capable of dealing with any situation after Punjab government claimed that drones were being used to smuggle arms and ammunitions from across the border from Pakistan.
Rajasthan: At least 13 people killed and several injured in Jodhpur accident
At least 13 people were killed in Rajasthan and several people were injured after a collision between two vehicles near Dhadhaniya village in Jodhpur.
Need stricter laws, not just punishment, to curb mob lynchings, says Tabrez Ansari’s family: Report
The family of Jharkhand lynching victim Tabrez Ansari said that such crimes would not stop with just punishment for the guilty and stricter laws were also needed, The Quint reported on Friday.
Two pilots killed as Indian Army helicopter crashes in eastern Bhutan: Reports
An Indian Army pilot and a Bhutanese Army officer were killed when their helicopter crashed in Bhutan on Friday. The Indian pilot was of the lieutenant colonel rank, said unidentified officials. The Bhutanese officer was a pilot with the Indian Army.
Kerala: Left storms Congress-led UDF’s bastion after 54 years, wins Pala seat by over 2,000 votes
Left Democratic Front candidate Mani C Kappan won the bye-election in the Pala Assembly constituency in Kerala’s Kottayam district on Friday. The bye-poll was necessitated after the death of Kerala Congress (M) leader and former state Finance Minister KM Mani in April. He held the seat for more than 52 years.
Restrictions reimposed in parts of Kashmir for Friday prayers, says report
Prohibitory orders were imposed in parts of Kashmir on Friday to maintain law and order during prayers, unidentified officials told PTI. They empower the government to prohibit an assembly of more than four persons in an area.
India at the UN: PM Modi and Iran President Hassan Rouhani discuss Chabahar Port
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on Thursday. This came a day before the prime minister is scheduled to address the world body.
‘Stay away from politics,’ Chiranjeevi advises Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan
Telugu actor Chiranjeevi on Thursday advised Tamil actors-turned-politicians Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan to “stay away from politics” in an interview to Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan.“Politics today is all about money and I was defeated in my own constituency using crores of rupees,” Chiranjeevi added. “Same happened to my brother Pawan Kalyan in the recent elections.”
Blackbuck case: Salman Khan fails to appear in Jodhpur court, case to be heard on December 19
Bollywood actor Salman Khan on Friday failed to show up at a Jodhpur court in Rajasthan after being summoned in connection with the 1998 Blackbuck poaching case The actor had challenged his conviction order by a lower court that had given him a five-year jail term for killing two blackbucks during a film shooting.
Ghulam Nabi Azad is ‘mentally bankrupt’ for saying democracy does not exist in J&K, says BJP
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday called senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad “mentally bankrupt” for his comment that democracy had ceased to exist in Jammu and Kashmir after Centre’s decision to revoke its special status. The Congress leader, who was on a six-day tour of the state, had on Tuesday described the situation in the region as “very bad”.
SC orders Kerala government to pay Rs 25 lakh interim compensation to each flat owner in Maradu area
The Supreme Court on Friday ordered the Kerala government to pay Rs 25 lakh as interim compensation to each flat owner in Kochi’s Maradu area within four weeks. More than 300 flats are being demolished in the area that falls under the Coastal Regulation Zone on court’s orders.
CBI officer accuses senior of fake encounters of 14 people in Jharkhand, writes to PMO
A Central Bureau of Investigation officer has accused his senior colleague of being involved in fake encounters of 14 people in Jharkhand. In a letter to the Prime Minister’s Office dated September 25, Deputy Superintendent of Police NP Mishra has sought the removal of AK Bhatnagar, a joint director (administration) in the CBI. Copies of the letter have also been sent to CBI chief and the chief vigilance commissioner.
Gorakhpur child deaths: Probe absolves Dr Kafeel Khan of all charges, praises him for saving lives
Two years after the deaths of 63 children in Gorakhpur’s BRD Medical College, a state government probe has absolved Dr Kafeel Khan of all charges against him as well as commended him for doing everything in his power to help save lives.
NRC: Registered voters left out of list won’t be marked ‘doubtful’, they can vote, says EC
The Election Commission on Friday said that registered voters who were excluded from the final list of the National Register of Citizens in Assam will not be marked “doubtful”. Doubtful, or D voters, are people whose citizenship is in dispute.
Mumbai: ED tells Sharad Pawar ‘no need to come’ for questioning hours before his visit
The Enforcement Directorate on Friday told Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar to not come to the agency’s office for questioning in the Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank scam, hours before he was scheduled to reach it.
Chandrayaan-2 had hard landing, says NASA; shares pictures of targeted site on moon’s south pole
The United States’ National Aeronautics and Space Administration on Friday said the Chandrayaan-2 lander had a “hard landing” on the moon’s surface on September 7. NASA also released images of the targeted landing site that were clicked by its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter during a fly-by on September 17.
Jammu and Kashmir: US wants ‘rapid action’ by India in lifting restrictions, releasing detainees
The United States on Thursday said that it wanted India to ease restrictions in Jammu and Kashmir. “We hope to see rapid action – the lifting of the restrictions and the release of those who have been detained,” said Alice Wells, the acting assistant secretary for the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, as she addressed the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Wells said the US was concerned by “widespread detentions” in the Valley.
New snake species named after Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray’s younger son
A new species of snake discovered in the Western Ghats in Maharashtra has been named after the younger son of Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray. Tejas Thackeray made immense contribution to the find, and hence the newly found species has been named ‘Thackeray’s cat snake’ (scientific name Boiga thackerayi). The new species was found in the Koyna region of Satara district in western Maharashtra.
Pakistan foreign minister boycotts S Jaishankar’s SAARC address as protest against Kashmir move
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Thursday boycotted External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s opening statement at the meeting of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Council of Foreign Ministers. Qureshi said he “will not engage with India until and unless they lift the siege and put an end to atrocities in Kashmir”. The meeting was held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session in New York.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval asks officials to intensify anti-militancy operations in J&K
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Thursday directed the police and paramilitary forces to intensify anti-militancy operations in Jammu and Kashmir, and ensure there is no collateral damage to civilians or their property in the state. Doval was on a day-long visit to the Valley and chaired a series of high-level meetings with officials.
Rajya Sabha bye-polls on October 16 to fill seats vacated by deaths of Arun Jaitley, Ram Jethmalani
The bye-elections for the Rajya Sabha seats vacated by the deaths of former Union ministers Arun Jaitley and Ram Jethmalani will be held on October 16, the Election Commission said on Thursday. The votes will be counted on the same day at 5 pm. Jaitley was less than a year and a half into his six-year term when he died on August 24, while Jethmalani died on September 9 with nearly three years of his tenure left.
‘Liquidity is not a problem for any bank,’ says Nirmala Sitharaman after meeting private lenders
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said that there was no liquidity crisis in private sector banks and expressed hope that demand would return to push the economy to grow faster. Sitharaman was addressing the press after meeting with private sector banks and financial institutions in New Delhi.