Breaking News, June 1

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday claimed that investigators have found possible involvement of Islamic outfit Popular Front of India (PFI) in the burning down of the Batadrava Police Station in Nagaon district.

A delegation of the Punjab Congress on Wednesday met Governor Banwarilal Purohit seeking a probe by the central agency NIA or CBI into the brutal murder of party leader and singer Sidhu Moosewala.

The Director-General of Punjab Police, VK Bhawra on Wednesday reconstituted a six-membered Special Investigation Team (SIT) to expedite the investigations in Sidhu Moose Wala Murder case.

Maharashtra on Wednesday recorded 1,081 fresh COVID-19 cases, the highest daily rise after February 24, and zero fatality, the state health department said in a bulletin. With fresh infections, the state's COVID-19 tally rose to 78,88,167 and the toll to 1,47,860.

Traffic, pedestrians and joggers reappeared on the streets of Shanghai on Wednesday as China's largest city began returning to normalcy amid the easing of a strict two-month COVID-19 lockdown that has drawn unusual protests over its heavy-handed implementation.

Telangana Finance Minister T Harish Rao on Wednesday said the state is supposed to get over Rs 34,000 crore from the Central government by way of grants and schemes while alleging that they were denied by the NDA government at the Centre.

Police used a garbage van Wednesday to take the body of a man who came under the wheels of a bus to hospital as shocked passersby looked on.
Police ordered a probe and the Rajasthan State Human Rights Commission stepped in after a video clip of the incident in Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's hometown surfaced on social media.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will pay a five-day visit to Slovakia and the Czech Republic from Thursday to impart further momentum in ties with the two central European countries. The visit comes at a time Europe is grappling with the implications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the issue is likely to figure in the external affairs minister's talks in both Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

Six persons have been arrested in connection with the murder of builder Sanjay Biyani in Maharashtra's Nanded district, police said on Wednesday. Biyani was shot dead by two motorcycle-borne men when he was about to enter his Sharda Nagar home in Nanded on April 5.

A Kansas City woman accused of decapitating her 6-year-old son has been found mentally unfit to stand trial. A Jackson County judge last week placed Tasha Haefs, 35, in the custody of the Missouri Department of Mental Health after finding her incompetent to stand trial, the Kansas City Star reported.

Home Minister Amit Shah will chair a high-level meeting on June 3 to discuss the situation in Jammu and Kashmir with Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and others, officials said here on Wednesday.

The ED on Wednesday said it seized "incriminating documents" after it raided a former managing director of the Industrial Cooperative Bank in Assam as part of a money laundering probe against him and others.

Gold in the national capital on Wednesday declined by Rs 353 to Rs 50,509 per 10 grams amid muted global trends along with rupee appreciation, according to HDFC Securities. In the previous trade, the precious metal finished at Rs 50,862 per 10 grams.

The ED has attached at least 33 bank accounts of Islamist organisation PFI and a linked organisation called Rehab India Foundation as part of an anti-money laundering investigation against them, officials said on Wednesday.

The Telangana government has submitted proposals to the Centre for development of different tourism projects, costing over Rs 475 crore, in the State. Under the Swadesh Darshan scheme, the State government proposes to develop three projects -- Pilgrimage and Nature Tourism Circuit in Mahaboobnagar District (Rs 101.72 crore), Eco Tourism Circuit in Mancherial District (Rs 98 crore) and Fort Circuit Rs 101 crore), said an official report.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday condoled the demise of renowned singer Krishnakumar Kunnath, popularly known as KK, and said his songs will continue to rule the emotions of millions of people.

Capital markets regulator Sebi on Wednesday said Ashwani Bhatia, former managing director of State Bank of India (SBI), has taken charge as its whole-time member. Bhatia will handle the department of debt and hybrid securities, alternative investment fund and foreign portfolio investors department, market intermediaries regulation and supervision department, corporation finance investigation department and office of investor assistance and education, Sebi said in a statement.

A Meghalaya government's initiative to swiftly implement various development projects has got international recognition with a Geneva-based organisation honouring state Chief Minister Conrad Sangma for the project.

Protests against the killing of a Hindu school teacher in Kulgam continued to rock several parts of Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts of Jammu and Kashmir on the second consecutive day on Wednesday.

The BJP on Wednesday appointed Union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat its in-charge for Rajya Sabha polls in Rajasthan and Haryana respectively, two states which are headed for a keen contest with the entry of party-backed independents. 

The CBI has brought ABIL group chairman Avinash Bhosale, who was arrested in Mumbai in connection with an alleged corruption case involving Yes Bank founder Rana Kapoor and Kapil Vadhawan of DHFL, to Delhi for questioning, officials said on Wednesday. 

Delhi BJP leaders and party workers on Wednesday staged a massive protest at the Delhi Secretariat over water woes of the city residents. The protesters led by BJP MP Parvesh Verma also demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. People in many parts of Delhi are deprived of water supply and Kejriwal is busy campaigning in other states and patting his own back by issuing advertisements, Verma said during the protest. The protesters, carrying pitchers and bottles of dirty water, marched from IGI stadium to the secretariat where the chief minister and his cabinet members have offices, and raised slogans against the government.

The Bombay High Court has granted pre-arrest bail to a pregnant woman accused of abetting her husband's suicide, saying it was the duty of the court to ensure the woman and the baby are protected. A vacation bench of Justice Milind Jadhav in its May 30 order, a copy of which was made available on Wednesday, noted that the offence registered against the woman is serious. "But, since the applicant is a pregnant woman, it is the duty of the court to ensure that she and the baby are protected," the HC said.

The CBI has brought ABIL group chairman Avinash Bhosale, who was arrested in Mumbai in connection with an alleged corruption case involving Yes Bank founder Rana Kapoor and Kapil Vadhawan of DHFL, to Delhi for questioning, officials said on Wednesday. Bhosale, who was being investigated in Mumbai, was brought to the national capital Tuesday night, they said. The agency is probing if the Yes Bank and DHFL scam had spread its tentacles across noted builders of Maharashtra and their companies were allegedly used to route the proceeds of crimes in the form of loans, among others, officials said. The agency had carried out searches at the premises of noted builders of the state on April 30 to further probe this aspect of the case, they said.

The BJP on Wednesday appointed Union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat its in-charge for Rajya Sabha polls in Rajasthan and Haryana respectively, two states which are headed for a keen contest with the entry of party-backed independents. The party also appointed Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in-charge for Rajya Sabha elections in Maharashtra, another state headed for a contest. Union minister G Kishan Reddy has been appointed in-charge for the polls in Karnataka. 

Three doses of the same COVID-19 vaccine or a combination of different jabs work well in preventing infections, even against different variants, according to the largest study of its kind. The findings, published in The BMJ, suggest that the number of vaccine doses seems to be the key to improving immunity rather than the combinations of vaccine types, and should help inform future public health decision making.

Polling stations opened in Denmark for voters to decide on Wednesday whether to abandon their country's 30-year-old opt-out from the European Union's common defence policy. The referendum is the latest example of European countries seeking closer defence links with allies in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It follows Sweden and Finland's historic bids to join NATO, which plans to take up their applications at the end of the month.

Hinduja flagship firm Ashok Leyland on Wednesday reported a four-fold jump in total commercial vehicle sales at 13,273 units in May. The company had sold 3,199 units in the COVID-hit May last year, Ashok Leyland said in a regulatory filing. Domestic sales stood at 12,458 units, as against 2,738 units in May 2021, it added. Medium and heavy commercial vehicle sales last month stood at 7,268 units, as compared to 1,513 units in the year-ago month. Sales of light commercial vehicles in the domestic market stood at 5,190 units in May, as against 1,225 units in May 2021, the company said. 

Jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who is suspected to be involved in Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala's killing, on Wednesday withdrew from the Delhi High Court his plea in which he had sought necessary safeguards as he apprehended a "fake encounter" by the Punjab Police. At the outset, his counsel submitted before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma that he wishes to withdraw the petition and wants to file it before the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The court said, "the petition is dismissed as withdrawn".

Israeli troops shot and killed a knife-wielding Palestinian woman in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said. The Israeli military said that an assailant armed with a knife approached a soldier “conducting routine security activity” north of the West Bank city of Hebron and that soldiers opened fire. It said that no soldiers were hurt in the incident.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday visited his party lawmaker Azam Khan, who is admitted to the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, sources said. Khan was admitted to the Medicine Department of the facility on Sunday for a routine medical check-up. "Akhilesh Yadav visited the hospital and met Azam Khan who is admitted at the facility," a hospital source said. The condition of Khan is "perfectly stable", hospital sources had said on Tuesday. Khan was released from Sitapur Jail in Uttar Pradesh on May 20, a day after the Supreme Court granted him interim bail in a cheating case. 

In the aftermath of a mass shooting on a New York City subway train, the mayor floated a high-tech idea: deploy scanners that can spot someone carrying a gun into the transit system before they have a chance to use it. The technology to scan large numbers of people quickly for weapons does exist, and is used now to screen people at places like sports stadiums and theme parks. But security experts say installing such a system in the city's sprawling, porous subway system in a way that would make a difference would be difficult, if not impossible.

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's plan to introduce the 21st Amendment to the Constitution to empower Parliament over the executive president has met with resistance within the ruling SLPP coalition, party sources said on Wednesday. Wickremesinghe on Sunday batted for the 21st Amendment to the Constitution, saying it will curb the president's unlimited powers while enhancing the role of Parliament in governing the debt-ridden country which is also facing an unprecedented political turmoil.

A college professor here was sent on compulsory leave after a video showing him performing 'namaz' in the college lawns went viral and Hindu right-wing youth leaders demanded action against him. The incident was reported in Sri Varshney College following which Professor SR Khalid was on Tuesday sent on one month's compulsory leave. A spokesman of the college told media that an inquiry has been ordered into the matter after some youth leaders belonging to the Bhartiya Janata Yuwa Morcha (BJYM) charged the teacher of indiscipline and trying to disturb peace by offering prayers at a public place.

A murder case accused has escaped from police custody in Maharashtra's Palghar district, an official said on Wednesday. The police had arrested the accused, Vijay Choudhary (29), in connection with a murder case on May 25, the official from Mokhada police station said. On Monday, he was taken to Nashik for interrogation. While he was being brought back to Mokhada taluka here, the police van developed a snag enroute following which the security personnel and the accused got down from the vehicle. The accused then gave police the slip, the official said. The police have registered an offence against the accused and efforts are on to trace him, he said. 

Kolkata Police has registered a case of unnatural death over the demise of renowned Bollywood singer Krishnakumar Kunnath popularly known as KK, a senior officer said on Wednesday. The case has been lodged with New Market Police Station under whose jurisdiction falls the five-star hotel where KK had put up and felt unwell before being taken to a hospital on Tuesday night, he told news agency PTI.

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Wednesday said the second phase of Ram temple construction in Ayodhya will start after the foundation laying of the sanctum sanctorum. Maurya reached Ayodhya's Ram Katha Park helipad to receive Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who will be laying the foundation stone of the sanctum sanctorum of the Ram temple later in the day. 

Telangana has attracted investments to the tune of over Rs 2.34 lakh crore since the formation of the state in 2014, an official report said. To accelerate industrial growth in the state and to make Telangana a favoured destination for investment, the state government had enacted the TS-iPASS( Telangana State Industrial Project Approval and Self Certification System) Act for granting approvals to the entrepreneurs at a single point within set time limits based on a self-certification furnished by the entrepreneurs.

IndiGo will conduct an internal case study on how to better handle specially abled passengers, especially when they are feeling distressed, its CEO Ronojoy Dutta has said. The aviation regulator DGCA had last week imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on the airline for denying boarding to a specially abled child at Ranchi airport on May 7. IndiGo had on May 9 said the boy was denied permission to board the Ranchi-Hyderabad flight as he was visibly in panic. Dutta, in an interview to PTI on Tuesday, said the airline would not appeal against the Directorate General of Civil Aviation's (DGCA) decision to impose the fine.

The Sensex jumped 225 points in early trade on Wednesday, but later pared all the initial gains as volatility emerged amid mixed trends from Asian markets. The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex jumped 225.08 points to 55,791.49 in early trade. The broader NSE Nifty also climbed 64.65 points to 16,649.20. Both the benchmark indices later pared the gains to trade flat. The Sensex traded 64.36 points lower at 55,502.05, while the Nifty quoted flat, just 2.20 points higher at 16,586.75.

A fire broke out in a building here in the early hours of Wednesday, leaving an elderly couple dead, police said. The blaze in the four-storey building, housing a shop and residence, broke out at around 4 am probably due to a short circuit, Superintendent of Police, Jhansi, Vivek Tripathi said. Due to the fire, some LPG cylinders also exploded and the blaze engulfed the entire building and trapped the owner Sriram Agarwal (70) and his wife Shanti Devi (65). While the couple died, some other family members were injured and rushed to a hospital. A team of the fire department doused the blaze. A detailed probe is on in the matter. 

Four occupants of car were killed when their vehicle collided with a dumper in Gujarat's Bhavnagar city early Wednesday morning, police said. The impact of the collision was so severe that the car's front portion was completely crushed, trapping the two occupants of the front seats. It took time for the rescue team to pull out the victims from the car, a police official said. The accident took place on the city's Nava Bandar road when the car and the dumper coming from the opposite sides collided head-on, the official said. The car was heading towards the Nava Bandar Port, he said. The four car occupants died on the spot. They were identified as Dharmesh Chauhan (28), Haresh Rathod (30), Dharmesh Parmar (22) and Rahul Rathod (25), the police said. 

Shanghai residents visited the waterfront Bund and ate and drank along streets patrolled by police early Wednesday as people in China’s largest city savored the easing of its severe two-month COVID-19 lockdown. The lockdown set back the national economy and largely confined millions to their homes, while its ruthless and often chaotic enforcement prompted protests in person and online that are seldom seen under China’s strict authoritarian government. Full bus and subway service will be restored Wednesday, as will basic rail connections with the rest of China. Still, more than half a million people in the city of 25 million are still under lockdown or in designated control zones because virus cases are still being detected.

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Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath reached Ayodhya on Wednesday to attend an event regarding the under-construction Ram temple that marks a significant milestone in the process. The Chief Minister will be taking part in a ceremony to lay the foundation stone of the 'Garbh Griha' or the sanctum sanctorum of the temple by placing the first carved stone in it.

The toll from heavy rains in the northeastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco has risen to 100, primarily in the state capital Recife and its metropolitan area, rescue teams said. At least 16 people were still missing, according to reports, among them 14 were buried by landslides and two were swept away by water currents, while more than 6,000 residents were evacuated from their homes, Xinhua news agency reported.

A new Omicron subvariant made up nearly 60 per cent of all new US cases in the latest week, according to estimates released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The new subvariant, known as BA.2.12.1, spreads more rapidly than previous versions of Omicron, Xinhua news agency reported. It only made up about 3.4 per cent of new Covid-19 cases in the country in late March. The data increased to 31.8 per cent at the end of April, and 59.1 per cent the end of May, CDC data showed on Tuesday. The new version evolved from BA.2, which was more contagious than any previous coronavirus variant. The US is averaging more than 100,000 new confirmed cases per day, according to CDC data.

The WHO has said that it aimed to contain the monkeypox outbreak by stopping human transmission to the maximum extent possible, warning that the potential for further transmission in Europe and elsewhere this summer is high. In a statement, the WHO on Tuesday added that its European Region "remained at the epicenter of the largest and most geographically widespread monkeypox outbreak ever reported outside of endemic areas in western and central Africa". Responding to the rise in cases of monkeypox throughout Europe over the past two weeks, WHO's Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge outlined the steps required to "rapidly investigate and control this fast-evolving situation".

A former Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) terrorist was arrested by the State Investigation Agency (SIA) on Tuesday for remaining in touch with Kashmir-based militants and carrying out many terror activities in Doda, officials said. "SIA team that was deputed to Doda arrested ex-HM terrorist Abdul Rashid code Arsalan from Tantna-Ghat area," an SIA officer told PTI. The former terrorist was involved in a case of \RUnlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in Jammu in 2010, he said. The SIA team was directed to identify the terrorist involved in the FIR and after strenuous efforts, the team arrested him, the officials said.

Three teenaged girls drowned when one of them slipped into the Sharda river here and the two others tried to save her, police said on Tuesday. The dead have been identified as Priyanshi (17), Khushbu (18) and Ruby (19). They all were residents of Bajhera village under the Bhira police station area. SHO Siyaram Verma said the bodies have been sent for a post-mortem examination. According to police, the girls had gone to the Sharda river and while walking along the river, Priyanshi's slipped into it. Ruby and Khushbu attempted to pull her out but they they got stuck in deep waters. Hearing their cries for help, local villagers rushed to their rescue and managed to being them out. The girls were rushed to the Bijua community health centre, where they were declared brought dead, police said.