Delhi: BJP, Congress criticise Bharti over remarks

Aam Aadmi Party leader and former Delhi Law Minister Somnath Bharti  triggered a controversy on Monday after he said that "beautiful women" in the national capital would be able to go out at midnight if the state government was granted control its police force. Both Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congres criticised Bharti strongly over his remarks. "It is absolutely disgusting and derogatory towards women, but it is not surprising coming from someone who defied law even when he was law minister," Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee chief spokesperson Sharmistha Mukherjee said. Meanwhile, BJP leader Vijendra Gupta also criticised state Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for not censuring Bharti over his statement, even though it was made in his presence.



West Bengal: Kolkata on edge as police intercept 62 children traveling without documents

Protests broke out at the Rajabazaar crossing in the West Bengal capital of Kolkata after Sealdah police intercepted 62 children and a cleric, who were found traveling without any documents. The protests turned grim by the end of the day as many agitators assembled demanding immediate release of the children. Agitators pelted stones at the Sealdah station resulting in the closure of the main gate for several hours. The children were reported to have been traveling from Purnia in Bihar to a madrasa in Maharashtra with the cleric. After they failed to produce any documents, Government Railway Police officials shifted them to State-run child Welfare Commission’s home in Barasat and contacted their family members to investigate the case. Senior Kolkata Police official Rajeeev Mishra said that the children would be sent back to their homes on Monday night itself, adding that the police was in "full control of the situation".



Assam: Tarun Gogoi blames Centre for lack of funds

On Monday, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi alleged that the Central government had not released funds totalling up to Rs 1,274 crore to solve issues pertaining to erosion and flooding in the state. Gogoi said that while the state government had been taking measures to find solutions to the two problems, the Centre had not taken any similar initiatives. "The Central government is yet to release a whopping Rs 25,707.97 lakh earmarked by the 11th Finance Commission against 100 schemes," Gogoi said, adding that the Narendra Modi-led government had adopted a "lackadaisical attitude" towards solving various issues, including flooding and erosion.




Gujarat: Contempt notice to Gujarat Chief Secretary for not complying with court order

The Gujarat High Court on Monday issued a contempt of court notice to state Chief Secretary GR Aloria for not taking a decision on a teacher's appointment as per the previous order of the court. The division bench of Justices Jayant Patel and RH Shukla also issued a notice to Commissioner of Schools Mukesh Kumar for not complying with the court's June 10 order, in which the authorities had been directed to decide on the appointment of Dipesh Sheth within a fortnight. The next hearing of the court in the matter will take place on August 17.




Uttar Pradesh: Allahabad High Court stays bailable warrant against Kejriwal

The Allahabad High Court on Monday stayed a bailable warrant against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for an allegedly inflammatory speech given by him during the Lok Sabha elections held last year. Apart from staying the warrant for a period of four weeks, the division bench of the court also permitted Kejriwal's counsel to move a fresh application for being exempted before appearing before the magistrate court. The bench further directed the concerned lower court to expedite the case. The AAP chief had allegedly made the speech while campaigning for party candidate Kumar Vishwas, who had taken on Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Smriti Irani in the Amethi constituency of the state.