Adani Green Energy has announced its withdrawal from two proposed wind power projects in Sri Lanka, a month after Colombo began negotiations to reduce costs. In January, the country revoked a power purchase agreement with the Adani Group amid concerns over high tariffs.

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government had launched inquiries into Adani Group projects after a United States court indicted Gautam Adani in November over alleged corruption in India’s solar sector. Dissanayake pledged to cancel the project during his election campaign, calling it a threat to Sri Lanka’s energy sovereignty.

Activists had also argued that smaller providers offered cheaper alternatives. Despite reports of cancellation, Adani maintained that the project was under review. In June 2022, an official of the country’s electricity board, deposing before a parliamentary committee, alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi pressured Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the Sri Lankan president at the time, to grant the project to the Adani Group. Read on.

The Delhi Police on Thursday detained several students of Jamia Millia Islamia during protests against show-cause notices issued to two PhD scholars for organising a demonstration on December 15. Organised under the banner of “Jamia Resistance Day”, the event marked the fifth anniversary of violence on campus during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act movement.

The students, who were released after about 12 hours, alleged they were manhandled in custody and denied contact with their families. The university accused the protestors of vandalising property, which the students denied.

Since Monday, several students led by the Left-affiliated All India Students’ Association have been demanding the withdrawal of the notices and a November memorandum restricting protests without prior approval.

The university said it removed the students from the campus as a “preventive measure”. A disciplinary committee will review the case against the two PhD scholars on February 25. Read on.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the 2025 Income Tax Bill in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. The draft law was referred to a select committee, which will examine the changes being proposed to the law and submit a report to Parliament by the first day of the next session.

While the draft legislation does not propose major structural changes to the law, Sitharaman said it aimed to simplify the language of the tax code and remove redundant provisions. The Union government has proposed that the bill, if cleared by Parliament, will take effect in the financial year 2026-’27.

Once enacted, it will replace the 1961 Income Tax Act, which has been amended several times. The new Income Tax Bill comprises 536 sections, as compared to 298 in the current law. The Opposition criticised the Centre for making the proposed legislation overly complex. Read on.

Palestinian militant group Hamas said on Thursday that it would continue implementing its ceasefire agreement with Tel Aviv in Gaza and release the next group of Israeli hostages as planned. The group added that Egypt and Qatar, with United States support, had pledged to “remove all hurdles” for it.

Under the agreement, three more Israeli hostages are set to be freed on Saturday. The ceasefire, which began on January 19, has so far resulted in the exchange of 16 Israeli hostages for 566 Palestinian prisoners.

Hamas had on Monday said it would delay hostage releases, accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that if hostages were not freed by Saturday noon, the military offensive would resume.

The war, which began on October 7 after Hamas’ attack on Israel, has killed over 62,000 people in Gaza. The UN says 92% of Gaza’s housing has been damaged or destroyed. Read on.

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