A look at the headlines right now:

  1. Two dead in Assam as protests against Citizenship Act intensify, internet blocked in Meghalaya:  Congress mocked Modi’s assurances to Assam, said they can’t read his tweet due to internet shutdown. Singer Papon cancelled his Delhi concert as North East protests over CAB and filmmaker Jahnu Barua withdrew his film from Assam film festival. Meanwhile, Indian Union Muslim League filed a writ petition in Supreme Court against the amendments to Citizenship Act.
  2. Now, Bangladesh home minister cancels India visit amid anti-Citizenship Act protests: The Ministry of External Affairs played down persecution claims after theBangladesh foreign minister cancelled his Delhi visit.
  3. All 18 review petitions of Ayodhya verdict rejected by Supreme Court: The petitions were heard by a five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde.
  4. India’s amended citizenship law an attempt to make Muslims second-class citizens: US Congressman: Andre Carson said the ‘citizenship ‘exercises’ and new laws strike at the heart of India’s founding tradition as a multicultural society’.
  5. Rape complainant warned of fate ‘worse than Unnao’, police arrest accused: The accused, who is from her village in Baghpat district, allegedly raped her in Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar area last year.
  6. Retail inflation rises to three-year high of 5.54% in November: This is only the second time since July 2018 when the Reserve Bank of India’s medium-term inflation target of 4% has been breached.
  7. SC orders judicial inquiry into Telangana encounter, says police version needs probe: The inquiry will be headed by former Supreme Court judge VS Sirpurkar.
  8. CAG flags diversion risks in Ujjwala scheme, cites abnormally high numbers of refills by many families: The auditor noted that 1.98 lakh beneficiaries consumed more than 12 cylinders on average, which seem ‘improbable for their BPL status’.
  9. US accuses Pakistan of misusing F-16 jets, stops short of mentioning post-Balakot dogfight, says report: The letter was sent by a US State Department official to the Pakistan Air Force chief in August, months after the February 27 aerial skirmish.
  10. Harvey Weinstein reaches tentative $25-million settlement in sexual misconduct lawsuits: The proposed global agreement has received initial approval from the major parties involved in the matter.