Opposition hits out at govt. over Rafale
The Congress led the Opposition parties in attacking the Narendra Modi government over the Rafale fighter aircraft deal both in Parliament and outside following Monday’s report in The Hindu that crucial anti-corruption safeguards were dropped from the final agreement. While Congress president Rahul Gandhi said the government had waived anti-corruption clauses to open the door for Anil Ambani to “steal” ₹30,000 crore, former Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said the deal was “unravelling faster than the government thought.”
NRC verification to begin on Thursday
The process of verifying the documents of some 36 lakh applicants who were excluded from the published list of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) would begin on Thursday. Nearly 40.07 lakh of the 3.29 crore applicants were left out of the complete draft of NRC published on July 30 last year.
60% children adopted in India between 2015 and 2018 are girls
The number of female children placed for in-country adoptions and inter-country adoptions between 2015 and 2018 are relatively higher than male children. During this period, about 11,649 children were put up for in-country adoptions; of them 6,962 were girls and 4,687 were boys. Of the 3,011 children that were placed for in-country adoption in 2015-16, as many as 1,855 were female children.
Pakistan cleric’s remarks on Kashmir red-flagged
Pakistani cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri’s visit to India has run into trouble after security agencies red-flagged his recent speech that “Kashmiris should be able to choose freedom through a plebiscite.” His visa was cleared by the Ministry of External Affairs, but the Home Ministry is learnt to have blocked it, sources said. Mr. Qadri has been associated with Prime Minister Imran Khan’s campaigns in the past, and his visit was being seen as a confidence-building measure.
Naidu’s political fortunes declining, says Amit Shah
BJP president Amit Shah reacted to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s fast demanding special category status for the State, by writing an open letter to the people of the State, accusing him of “theatrics and histrionics” to cover up the decline in his political fortunes. “Telugu Desam Party leader and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu is back to theatrics and histrionics. His desperation for headlines is understandable as he is aware that his political fortunes are declining rapidly,” he wrote.
New immigration checkpoint for Kartarpur Sahib corridor
The Home Ministry has designated the Dera Baba Nanak land check post in Gurdaspur district, the exit and entry point in Punjab for visiting the Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara in Pakistan, as an authorised immigration checkpoint. In a notification, the Ministry said on Monday that anyone with valid travel documents could exit or enter through the check post.
Bhupen Hazarika’s Bharat Ratna tied to Citizenship Bill
Tez Hazarika, the U.S.-based son of music maestro Bhupen Hazarika, has said that accepting or rejecting the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award bestowed posthumously on his father, depends on “how the Centre moves” on the issue of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
Thai Princess disqualified from running for PM post
Thai Princess Ubolratana was on Monday formally disqualified from running for Prime Minister, ending her brief and ill-fated political union with a party allied to the powerful Shinawatra clan, just days after a stern royal command rebuking her candidacy was issued by her brother, the King.
‘No-deal Brexit could cost 6,00,000 jobs’
Researchers at the IWH institute in Halle, eastern Germany, examined what would happen if U.K. imports from the remaining EU fell 25% after Brexit. They reckoned that some 1,03,000 jobs would be under threat in Europe’s largest economy Germany and 50,000 in France.
Irani Cup: Ranji champion Vidarbha chasing history
After scaling another peak, by retaining the Ranji Trophy a few days ago, Vidarbha will have to hit prime form against a strong Rest of India (ROI) side as it chases history in the Z.R. Irani Cup which begins at the VCA stadium on Tuesday. Unlike the previous season, this year’s Ranji triumph for Vidarbha came after a battle of attrition with Saurashtra. The Vidarbha players will have to be back at their best against ROI for doing an encore in the Irani Cup and become only the third team to do so.
St. Lucia Test: Root century helps England build huge lead against West Indies
Joe Root became the first England player to score a century during the series as the visitors strengthened their stranglehold in the third Test against West Indies on Monday. The England captain compiled a patient, unbeaten 111 in St Lucia as the visitors closed in on a consolation victory after losing the first two Tests in the three-match series.
