A look at the top developments of the day:

  1. India’s first case of new Coronavirus  XE strain found in Mumbai, says civic body: The Union health ministry, however, denied saying the variant is of a different genetic composition than XE.
  2. Sharad Pawar meets Narendra Modi, raises matter of Enforcement Directorate inquiry against Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut: Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation took former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh into its custody in a corruption case.
  3. Al-Qaeda chief’s remark on hijab ban shows ‘unseen hands’ behind protests, says Karnataka minister: Ayman Al Zawahiri had praised a student for shouting ‘Allah-hu-Akbar’ as a Hindu mob heckled her. But, the student’s family distanced itself from his remarks.
  4. Rajya Sabha passes Criminal Procedure Identification Bill: The Bill seeks to store and analyse physical and biological samples, iris and retina scans, signatures and handwriting of prisoners.
  5. Amnesty India chair Aakar Patel says he was not allowed to leave country from Bengaluru: Patel said that the CBI has put him on an exit control list, but pointed out that a Gujarat court had allowed him to travel to the US. airport: 
  6. CPI(M)’s Sitaram Yechury urges Opposition parties to defeat ‘Hindutva communalism’ together: All democratic parties must isolate BJP, Yechury said.
  7. Bengaluru Police start seizing microphones from religious places amid campaign by Hindutva groups: The police chief called for ‘scrupulous adherence’ to the High Court’s directive on noise pollution.
  8. New Delhi Municipal Council withdraws circular allowing Muslim employees to leave early during Ramzan: The council’s vice chairperson had opposed the order saying it was contrary to the principle of secularism.
  9. Press Club of India condemns attack on journalists at Hindutva event in Delhi: The association also demanded the release of journalists arrested in connection with the Uttar Pradesh Board Class 12 English exam paper leak.
  10. India has chosen the side of peace, says S Jaishankar in Parliament on Ukraine war: The foreign minister condemned the civilian killings in Bucha, a Ukrainian town north of Kyiv.