Breaking news on January 18

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said on Saturday that the state government will set up shooting training centres for the police in every district.

West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday objected to state education minister Partha Chatterjee's remarks questioning why he was accompanied by his wife to official functions and asked him to publicly apologise.

Congress Leader Kapil Sibal on Saturday lashed out at the BJP led government, saying it was propagating lies about the Citizenship Amendment Act and that the Prime Minister, instead of solving issues being faced by the country, talks and even "dreams" about Pakistan.

Two persons were arrested with elephant tusks and rhino bones in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district on Saturday, officials said.

Just like IRCTC which pays compensation for delays in its Tejas trains, railways' freight customers could soon be compensated for late arrival of their goods, Railway minister Piyush Goyal indicated on Saturday, demanding a commitment of timely delivery.

BJP's West Bengal president Dilip Ghosh said on Saturday that civil society members who are saying that they won't show papers if the government asks for proof of citizenships, will soon shy away from showing their faces.

A woman spectator and her two children had a close shave while attending a bull-taming event in the district on Saturday when a bull vaulted over them as they were crossing its path.

At least 10 children have died of a mysterious disease and six others taken ill in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir, prompting the Centre to deploy a team of medical experts to join the probe to ascertain the cause of deaths, a senior officer said on Saturday.

A delegation of legislators from different states, including Assembly speakers of six legislative assemblies, visited the temple town of Ayodhya on Saturday, officials said.

Congress releases list of candidates for 54 out of 70 seats for upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. Alka Lamba to contest from Chandni Chowk, Arvinder Singh Lovely from Gandhi Nagar and Adarsh Shastri from Dwarka.

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal Saturday expanded his ministry and allocated portfolios giving the charge of education to powerful minister
Himanta Biswa Sarma in addition to the existing departments of finance, health, family welfare and PWD, a CMO spokesperson said.

Actor Shabana Azmi, who was injured in a car accident near Kahalpur on Mumbai-Pune Expressway earlier today, has been shifted to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Mumbai.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman flagging high GST on accessories used in "cochlear implants".

Former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Adarsh Shastri, who joined Congress earlier in the day, has accused Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of selling off the ticket for the Dwarka assembly constituency for a whopping sum of Rs 10 crore.

BJP's West Bengal unit chief Dilip Ghosh was stopped by police on Saturday from visiting Nandigram in Purba Medinipur district where he was scheduled to address a rally in support of the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

A cache of explosives was recovered from a Maoist hideout in Chhattisgarh's Kanker district on Saturday, police said.

The first phase of panchayat elections in Rajasthan has recorded a total voter turnout of 81.51 per cent, an official said on Saturday.

BJP working president J P Nadda on Saturday accused the Opposition of misleading people on the CAA and said Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Manmohan Singh supported the idea of helping religious minorities facing persecution in neighbouring countries.

The CBI has arrested two persons for allegedly threatening and demanding bribe from a bank fraud case accused impersonating as senior officers of the agency by spoofing the landline number of the central agency, officials said.

As many as 91 people lost their lives while 175 others were injured in the total 352 road accidents on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway in the year 2019, as per the data prepared by the Maharashtra Highway Police.

Light to moderate rain and thundershower occurred at isolated places in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday, the meteorological department said.

In order to refute the allegations of being paid, the protesters at Shaheen Bagh have placed posters which read 'No cash, no Paytm'.

Urging all parties opposing CAA and NPR to come together, the Congress on Saturday extended the olive branch to Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and other leaders who skipped January 13 Delhi deliberations hoping they would turn up in some other meeting that might be convened on the twin issues.

After days of wrangling over seat allocation in local polls, the Congress and DMK on Saturday buried the hatchet and decided to address issues internally and avoid going public.

A delegation of JNU faculty members from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities on Saturday accused the university administration of discrimination against teachers and students from these underprivileged sections and requested Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan to take up the matter with the government.

China and Myanmar on Saturday inked 33 deals aimed at speeding up key infrastructure projects to provide Beijing a stepping stone to the Indian Ocean after a meeting between President Xi Jinping and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, as the Communist nation ramped up support to cement its hold over the Southeast Asian country under fire for its treatment of Rohingya Muslims.

AAP's Dwarka MLA in the outgoing assembly Adarsh Shastri on Saturday joined the Congress at the party's Delhi unit office in presence of state president Subhash Chopra and AICC incharge PC Chacko.

Shastri quit the AAP after it denied him ticket to seek re-election from Dwarka constituency. He is expected to be fielded from the seat by his new party to contest the February 8 polls.

Projecting a Rs 5.38 lakh crore requirement over the next five years for providing primary healthcare, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has said it will help deal with 90 percent of the healthcare demands.

A 47-year-old man was arrested by the Kerala police on Saturday for allegedly raping his four minor daughters.

Relatives of MGP leader Prakash Naik, who allegedly committed suicide, said on Saturday that they would not accept his body until the two men he had named in a WhatsApp message before his death were arrested.

The charred body of a 28-year-old woman was found at a village in Uttar Pradesh's Bijnor district, police said on Saturday.

Veteran actress Shabana Azmi's car rammed into a truck at Bombay-Pune Highway. The veteran actress has been grievously injured in the accident, that took place at around 4 PM on Saturday. She was along with her husband Javed Akhtar, who escaped unhurt. More details are awaited.

Pakistani refugees, who have been living in Haryana & Delhi, reach BJP headquarters to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah and party's working president JP Nadda for implementation of CAA.

Dense fog hit the Taj city on Saturday after two days of heavy showers. 

Pakistan carried out ceasefire violation twice on Saturday by firing with heavy arms across the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir, Indian Army said.

The Army said Pakistan resorted to unprovoked ceasefire violation in Mendhar sector in Poonch district from 12:30 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. Pakistani troops again started firing across the Line of Control in Nowshera Sector in Rajouri district.

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat on Saturday said his organisation has no connection with politics and it works only to uplift the moral, cultural and human values of the country.

Ashwani Lohani, Chairman & Managing Director of Air India: Due to runway repair work at Indore airport, the Indore-Dubai flight is affected. Air India in consultation with the Airport Authority of India, is taking necessary steps to ensure the continuance of this flight.

A Congress MLA from Madhya Pradesh on Saturday staged a sit-in protest on the premises of the Legislative Assembly in Bhopal against "non-fulfillment" of promises by the state government, which is headed by his party.

Odisha Transport Minister Padmanabha Behera on Saturday said that wearing helmets will be mandatory for pillion riders in the state.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today.

Veteran Congress leader and former Rajasthan minister Ratan Lal Tambi died at SMS Hospital here late on Friday night after prolonged illness, a party spokesperson said.

One of the two convicts in 2013 kidnapping and rape case of a 5-year-old girl in Gandhi Nagar, attacked journalists and tried to snatch their mobile phones also, while coming out from the court after hearing. 

Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan on Saturday said the amended citizenship law was a subject of the Union List and not a state subject and it will have to be implemented by states.

Ahead of BJP National President and Union Home Minister Amit Shah's visit to the city, a group of protesters raised "Go Back Amit Shah" slogans in Bengaluru and released black balloons in the air on Saturday.

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut: Policemen are escorting me and are taking me to an unknown destination from Belgaum Airport. 

Pakistan violated ceasefire along LoC in Mendhar sector of Poonch district from 1230 hours to 1315 hours today. Indian Army retaliated.

Jammu & Kashmir Principal Secretary, Rohit Kansal said: "After a careful review, the competent authority has ordered today that voice & SMS facilities shall be restored on all local prepaid sim cards across J&K."

CBI is conducting searches today at the premises of the accused in Delhi, Ghaziabad and Gurugram, in connection with a case related to allegations of various irregularities in the evaluation of OMR sheets in examination for recruitment of constables in Border Security Force (BSF)

Flight carrying three Union Ministers, Dr.Jitendra Singh,Ashwini Choubey and Arjun Ram Meghwal diverted to Srinagar from Jammu due to bad weather. Their visit is aimed at discussion of policies regarding the development of J&K post abrogation of article-370.

Suspended J&K Police Deputy SP Davinder Singh to be brought to Delhi by National Investigation Agency (NIA) for interrogation

Ranjeet Kumar Dass reappointed Bharatiya Janata Party's Assam unit President

Southern Army Commander Lt General SK Saini to take over as the new Vice Chief of Army Staff on January 25. This is also the first order of a senior military appointment issued through the Department of Military Affairs headed by Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat.

CJI SA Bobde in Nagpur said: "Universities are not about brick and mortar only. Certainly, universities are not supposed to function like an assembly line production unit. Most importantly, the idea of a university reflects what we want to achieve as a society."

J&K administration had released four more political leaders from house arrest yesterday evening.Nazir Gurezi of NC, Abdul Haq Khan of PDP, Mohd Abbas Wani of People's Conference& Abdul Rashid of Congress.They were under house arrest since 5 August(abrogation of article 370), 2019.

Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad bail modification matter adjourned till January 21 by Delhi Court.

Congress Election Committee meeting underway for upcoming Delhi Assembly Polls. 

Congress workers from Patel Nagar and Karawal Nagar constituencies protest outside Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi's residence over ticket distribution.

While addressing a public meet in Howrah, West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh said, "The intellectuals who are opposing the Citizenship amendment act are spineless, they are devils and parasites."

Body of a woman found in a field in Arrah with gunshot wounds in the head. Police at the spot.

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal's ministry expanded with induction of two new ministers.

Asha Devi on senior lawyer Indira Jaising's statement 'follow Sonia Gandhi's example and forgive convicts' said: "Who is Indira Jaising to give me such a suggestion? Whole country wants the convicts to be executed. Just because of people like her, justice is not done with rape victims."

"Can't believe how Indira Jaising even dared to suggest such thing. I met her many times over the years in Supreme Court,not once she asked for my wellbeing and today she is speaking for convicts.Such ppl earn livelihood by supporting rapists,hence rape incidents don't stop," she added. 

NCP leader Nawab Malik said: "Mohan Bhagwat ji wants a two-child law. He maybe doesn't know that Maharashtra already has several laws on this and many other states also.Still, if Bhagwat ji wants to forcefully do vasectomies then let Modiji make such a law.We saw in the past what happened with this."
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A layer of fog engulfs the national capital; visuals from India Gate.

Bar Council of Delhi issued notice to AP Singh, counsel for three Nirbhaya convicts and sought his reply in 2 weeks in view of HC order in the case. Recently, Delhi HC asked BCD to take action and also imposed Rs 25000 fine on Singh, who allegedly didn't appear before Court despite communication

A minor girl allegedly gangraped in Surir area. A Dubey,Circle Officer says 'A case is being filed on the basis of a complaint by victim's father. The victim has been sent for a medical examination, the accused will be arrested soon.'

US President Donald Trump on Saturday tweeted, "The so-called “Supreme Leader” of Iran, who has not been so Supreme lately, had some nasty things to say about the United States and Europe. Their economy is crashing, and their people are suffering. He should be very careful with his words."

India and Iran need to work together on the procurement of equipment for the construction of Chabahar Port as well as the rail network connecting the Iranian port city to Zahedan, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said here on Friday.

Responding to a question, Zarif said that the problem in the progress of the project is that India has found difficulty in procuring the necessary equipment for the port in spite of the US exemptions.