Morning digest: Judges panel constituted to hear sexual harassment allegations against CJI, ECI examining Modi’s speeches, and more

A select list of stories to read before you start your day.

April 24, 2019 08:03 am | Updated 08:03 am IST

Justice S.A. Bobde. File

Justice S.A. Bobde. File

Panel of judges led by Justice S.A. Bobde to hear sexual harassment allegations against CJI

A three-member committee of Supreme Court judges led by Justice S.A. Bobde, the No. 2 judge in the apex court, was formed on April 23 to look into allegations of sexual harassment raised by a former employee against Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi.

The other two members of the committee are Justice N.V. Ramana and Justice Indira Banerjee. Justice Ramana is the number three judge in the apex court.

Election Commission examining Narendra Modi’s speeches

The Election Commission on Tuesday said the speeches of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which according to the Opposition parties violated the model code of conduct (MCC), were still being examined. Asked about the status of complaints pertaining to Mr. Modi’s speeches on April 1 and April 9 in Maharashtra, where he was alleged to have made references to the defence forces when making an appeal for votes, EC officials told the media that it had taken some time in getting the authorised translated transcripts of the statements.

Sri Lanka links Easter blasts to Christchurch mosque attacks

The serial bomb attacks on Easter Sunday, which claimed over 320 lives in Sri Lanka, were a retaliation for the Christchurch mosque shootings in New Zealand on March 15, State Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardene told Parliament on Tuesday, based on “initial evidence” available with investigators.

Also on Tuesday, over 48 hours after the coordinated blasts, the Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the attack, media reports said, citing the group’s AMAQ news agency. Sri Lanka had on Monday said a local Islamist radical organisation, the National Thowheed Jamaath (NTJ), was responsible for the attacks but suspected it had links with international groups.

Sri Lanka Easter blasts: Number of Indian victims touches 10

The Indian High Commission in Colombo on Tuesday confirmed that at least 10 Indians had been killed in Sunday’s serial blasts. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had earlier said that officials on the ground were identifying the victims.

Eight of the 10 dead are from Karnataka, including seven members of a JD(S) team, who were on vacation in Colombo. While six of the JD(S) workers were declared dead on Monday, a seventh member, Puttaraju, 37, was confirmed as dead on Tuesday. A city-based businessman Nagaraj Reddy, 46, who was critically injured in the blast and under treatment, succumbed to his injuries. The tenth victim has been identified as Vemuri Tulsi Ram, 35, from Hyderabad, who was killed at the Shangri-La hotel.

India may stop oil imports from Iran

Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday said the country plans to increase imports from major oil producing nations other than Iran, indicating that it will be acceding to the U.S. plan to reduce Iran’s oil exports to zero, a move criticised by the Congress.

The U.S. on Monday announced that it would be cancelling the waivers from sanctions it had granted eight countries, including India, allowing them to import oil from Iran. Following the revocation of this waiver, any country violating the ban would face U.S. sanctions.

Opinion | The problem with cherry-picking data

Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri said last week, “we definitely have a data crisis,” and blamed academics for creating a “false narrative”. Yet, at the heart of the data crisis in India is the Central government, which has been holding back important data.

‘P&G India guilty of not passing on GST rate cut’

The GST profiteering investigation arm has found FMCG firm P&G India guilty of not passing on GST rate cut benefits to the tune of about ₹250 crore by commensurate reduction in prices.

Based on a complaint filed before the standing committee, the Directorate General of Anti-profiteering (DGAP) investigated the books of accounts of P&G India pre and post-November 15, 2017, and concluded that the consumer goods manufacturer had not lowered the prices of certain products despite a cut in GST rate to 18% from 28%.

Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina’s 8-year-old relative killed in Sri Lanka blasts

An 8-year-old relative of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is among the 45 children who were killed in the devastating suicide bomb attacks in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, media reports said Tuesday.

Ruling Awami League leader Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim’s grandson Zayan Chowdhary, who was reported missing after bombings in Sri Lanka, has died, the reports said.

Saudi Arabia executes 37 prisoners for terrorism crimes

Saudi Arabia beheaded 37 Saudi citizens for what it said on Tuesday were terrorism-related crimes, the Interior Ministry said, publicly pinning two of the bodies to a pole as a warning to others.

Super Kings ride on Watto power to wrest top spot

Stephen Fleming’s mantra as coach of Chennai Super Kings has been ‘consistency in selection’. And it was hard to argue with that after Tuesday’s game when an out-of-form Shane Watson repaid the faith with a match-winning knock of 96 (53b, 9x4, 6x6) as the home side defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets to maintain its unbeaten run at the MAC Stadium this season.

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