Top news: Neighbourhood is cooperative except for one country, Jaishankar tells World Economic Forum

Auto sector crisis: Ashok Leyland shuts various facilities for up to 15 days this month

Commercial vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland on Friday said that its facilities at various locations will not operate for two to 15 non-working days during the month of October. The company did not specify which facility will stay shut for how many days.

Sensex, Nifty 50 fall by over 1% each as RBI lowers GDP growth projection

Indian stock markets performed poorly on Friday, despite the Reserve Bank of India cutting the repo rate, or the interest rate at which it lends to commercial banks, from 5.40% to 5.15%. The BSE Sensex lost 433.56 points to close at 37,673.31, while the National Stock Exchange Nifty 50 declined 139.25 points to finish at 11,174.75.

Bengaluru: Police advisory warns cab drivers of action if they take unsafe routes to the airport

The Bengaluru Police on Friday issued an advisory to all cab aggregators in the city, saying that they must not take “unsafe” routes to the city’s international airport between 7 pm and 7 am, The News Minute reported. The police advisory came after a cab driver asked a 32-year-old woman to alight from the vehicle on Monday night as he did not want to take the tolled Ballari road to the airport.

Terror funding case: NIA files supplementary chargesheet against separatist leader Yasin Malik

The National Investigation Agency on Friday filed a supplementary chargesheet against Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chief Yasin Malik and others before a Delhi court in connection with a case related to funding of separatists and militant groups, PTI reported.

NEET impersonation fraud: Madras HC says scam could be spread across India, not just Tamil Nadu

The Madurai bench of the Madras High Court on Friday said that the impersonation fraud involving the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test could have ramifications across India and sought a reply from the central government, News18 reported.

Sanjay Nirupam says he is being sidelined, alleges conspiracy against Rahul Gandhi within Congress

Maharashtra Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam on Friday said he would not be able to continue in the party for long if his voice was not heard, ANI reported. He alleged there was a conspiracy within the Congress to throw out people close to former party chief Rahul Gandhi.

Jammu and Kashmir: Criticisms by Turkey and Malaysia at UNGA were biased, claims India

India’s External Affairs Ministry on Friday criticised the stands taken by Turkey and Malaysia on the Kashmir matter, calling them “biased”. Turkey and Malaysia had criticised India after New Delhi revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 of the Constitution and imposed a curfew on August 5.

RBI cuts repo rate again, Centre says it will complement measures to boost economy

The Ministry of Finance said on Friday that the reduction in the repo rate by the Reserve Bank of India will complement the recent measures it has taken to boost economic growth. Earlier in the day, the RBI reduced the repo rate, or the interest rate at which it lends to commercial banks, from 5.40% to 5.15%.

Nationalism is not a negative ideology, S Jaishankar tells World Economic Forum

India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday told the World Economic Forum that nationalism is not a negative ideology, ANI reported. “India is an exception as we are more nationalistic,” Jaishankar told the forum. “But at the same time we don’t see a tension between being nationalistic and being international, in the sense of engaging more with the world, so nationalism is not a negative sentiment.”

FIR against 49 celebrities: Rahul Gandhi attacks BJP, says India becoming an authoritarian state

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government at the Centre on Friday, a day after a first information report was filed against 49 eminent personalities who had written an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi against mob lynchings. Gandhi said the FIR was evidence that the country was moving towards becoming an authoritarian state, PTI reported.

Bhima Koregaon case: SC extends Gautam Navlakha’s interim protection from arrest till October 15

The Supreme Court on Friday extended the interim protection from arrest granted to activist Gautam Navlakha till October 15 in the Bhima Koregaon case, PTI reported. On September 13, the Bombay High Court had extended Navlakha’s interim relief from arrest in the case for three weeks, allowing him to appeal in the top court.

Citizenship Bill: Protests in Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland against controversial legislation

Largescale protests were held in Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya and Nagaland on Thursday against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. This came two days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the legislation would be introduced in the new session of Parliament.

Maharashtra elections: BJP drops Eknath Khadse in fourth list but fields his daughter

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday released its fourth list of candidates for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections. However, the names of former senior ministers Eknath Khadse, Vinod Tawde, and Prakash Mehta have been left out.

Ravidas temple demolition: ‘Find a better location to rebuild the shrine,’ SC tells petitioners

The Supreme Court on Friday urged the parties involved in the petition to rebuild Ravidas temple to find an amicable solution on a better location for the shrine. The Delhi Development Authority had demolished the 15th-century temple on August 10 based on the orders of the top court after a petition against encroachment by temple authorities.

INX Media case: Supreme Court asks CBI to file response on Chidambaram’s bail plea

The Supreme Court on Friday sent a notice to the Central Bureau of Investigation, asking it to reply to former Union minister P Chidambaram’s bail plea in the INX Media case. The Congress leader, who is lodged in Tihar jail at present, had moved the top court on Thursday to seek bail after the Delhi High Court dismissed the plea on Monday.

‘Big mistake’: Air force chief admits Budgam helicopter crash in February was IAF’s own fault

Indian Air Force chief Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria admitted on Friday that the Mi-17 chopper, which crashed in Budgam in Jammu and Kashmir on February 27, was the force’s own mistake. The incident, which killed six military personnel and a civilian, took place a day after the security forces conducted strikes in Balakot, Pakistan, and on the day of a dogfight between Indian and Pakistani jets.

J&K: National Conference leaders seek permission from governor to meet Farooq and Omar Abdullah

The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference on Thursday urged Governor Satya Pal Malik to allow a delegation of senior party leaders to meet party President Farooq Abdullah and Vice President Omar Abdullah.

Madhya Pradesh: 18-month-old Adivasi child allegedly beaten to death in dispute over open defecation

An 18-month-old was allegedly beaten to death by a neighbour over a dispute about open defecation in Madhya Pradesh’s Sagar district on Thursday, The Wire reported. The incident occurred 10 days after two Dalit children were allegedly beaten to death in the state’s Shivpuri district, also for defecating on the street.

Mumbai: Bombay HC refuses to declare Aarey a forest area, clears tree-cutting for Metro project

The Bombay High Court on Friday dismissed a batch of petitions challenging the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s decision to allow the cutting of 2,646 trees in Mumbai’s Aarey forest in the city’s northern part for a metro car shed, NDTV reported. Last month, the government had told the court that the area cannot be given the status of a forest.

RBI lowers repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.15%, loans likely to get cheaper

The Reserve Bank of India on Friday lowered the repo rate, or the interest rate at which it lends to commercial banks, by 25 basis points to 5.15%. This is the fifth time this year that the central bank has cut the rate. The revision is likely to lower interest rates on new bank loans.

Bihar: FIR filed against 49 writers and filmmakers who appealed to PM Modi to stop mob lynchings

Forty-nine eminent personalities, including historian Ramchandra Guha and filmmakers Mani Ratnam and Aparna Sen, have been named in a first information report after a complaint was filed against them for writing a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about mob attacks and lynchings.

PMC case: Money laundering case against bank’s board members, top HDIL officials; ED conducts raids

A money laundering case has been registered against the board members of the Punjab and Maharashtra Bank and promoters of real estate company Housing Development and Infrastructure Limited, or HDIL. The Enforcement Directorate also conducted raids at six locations in connection with alleged financial irregularities at the bank.

Gorakhpur deaths: UP government registers new charges against Dr Kafeel Khan

The Uttar Pradesh government on Thursday said that a new departmental investigation had been launched against Dr Kafeel Khan for spreading incorrect information about the inquiry report and for making “anti-government” remarks during his suspension. Khan was a paediatrician at the Baba Raghav Das Medical College and Hospital in Gorakhpur, where 63 children died in 2017 due to lack of oxygen.

Government should lower personal income tax to boost growth, says Adi Godrej

Godrej group Chairperson Adi Godrej on Thursday called for a cut in personal taxes to boost the economy, and urged the government to act fast to speed up growth. “The government should provide more stimulus,” Godrej said on the sidelines of India Economic Summit in New Delhi.

There is no difference between Congress and Centre’s stand on Jammu and Kashmir, says Shashi Tharoor

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Thursday said there were no differences between his party’s stand and that of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party on Kashmir. The parliamentrian from Thiruvananthapuram said the BJP’s allegation that the Opposition party was backing Pakistan on the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status was surprising. Tharoor clarified that Congress leaders were only speaking about the way Kashmiris should be treated.

UP: Congress MLA Aditi Singh gets Y-plus security cover a day after defying party

The Uttar Pradesh government on Thursday provided Y-plus security to Congress MLA Aditi Singh, who represents Rae Bareli in the Assembly, a day after she skipped party General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi’s protest march in Lucknow, The Indian Express reported. Singh had instead attended a special Assembly session commemorating Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary.

The actions of Singh, who is a first time MLA and the daughter of former Congress leader Akhilesh Singh, have triggered rumours of infighting and a possible move to the Bharatiya Janata Party.

‘Not worried about NRC, had a talk with Modi in New York,’ says Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday said she was satisfied with her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi’s assurance that Bangladesh should not be concerned about the National Register of Citizens in Assam, The Indian Express reported.

This came a day after the Indian government admitted it had not discussed with Dhaka the question of deportation of those who would be declared foreigners by tribunals after being left out of the citizens’ database. The Ministry of External Affairs made the admission in response to a Right to Information query filed by Scroll.in.

Maharashtra: Aaditya Thackeray declares assets worth Rs 16 crore, says BMW costs Rs 6.5 lakh

Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Thursday filed his nomination from Worli constituency in South Mumbai for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections, PTI reported. The eldest son of party chief Uddhav Thackeray declared assets worth Rs 16.05 crore.

According to the affidavit filed, 29-year-old Thackeray declared movable assets worth Rs 11.38 crore and immovable assets worth Rs 4.67 crore. This includes cash, bank deposits, investment in bonds, and a BMW car valued at Rs 6.5 lakh. The president of Yuva Sena, the party’s youth wing, also owns jewellery, bullion and other valuables worth Rs 64.65 lakh.

PMC Bank: RBI again increases withdrawal limit from Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000

The Reserve Bank of India on Thursday once again increased the withdrawal limit for customers of Mumbai-based Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative Bank from Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000.

“The Reserve Bank of India again reviewed the bank’s liquidity position and, with a view to reducing the hardship of the depositors, has decided to further enhance the limit for withdrawal to Rs 25,000,” the central bank said in a press release.

Chinmayanand rape case: Court extends judicial custody of BJP leader till October 16

A local court in Shahjahanpur on Thursday extended the judicial custody of former Union minister Chinmayanand, who has been arrested after being accused of raping and physically exploiting a 23-year-old law student in Uttar Pradesh, PTI reported.

His lawyer Om Singh said the Bharatiya Janata Party leader was produced in court via videoconferencing because of security reasons. Chief Judicial Magistrate Omvir Singh extended his judicial custody by 14 days till October 16.