A look at the headlines right now:

  1. O Panneerselvam says he was forced to resign as CM to pave way for VK Sasikala: His announcement came after Jayalalithaa’s niece said Tamil Nadu did not vote for Sasikala, and AIADMK leader PH Pandian said Jayalalithaa’s death was unnatural.
  2. ‘Earthquake finally took place’, Narendra Modi speaks about demonetisation, in Parliament: Rahul Gandhi had earlier said that there would be an earthquake if he spoke about note ban in the Lok Sabha.
  3. At least 20 killed in suicide bombing near Supreme Court in Kabul: The explosion occurred in the parking lot. 
  4. US moves United Nations to designate JeM chief Masood Azhar a terrorist, China blocks it again: The Ministry of External Affairs said it would take up the matter with the Chinese government.
  5. West Bengal Advocate General Jayanta Mitra resigns after differences with TMC government: The senior advocate said he was sometimes asked to ‘bend the law’.
  6. Principal suspended after making students parade skirtless in Uttar Pradesh school as punishment: Meena Singh allegedly made 15 Class 8 girls run around the playground without their skirts for not doing their Sanskrit homework.
  7. Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy ordered to face trial over 2012 election funds: Sarkozy, who has always denied any wrongdoing in the matter, will appeal against the order.
  8. New Salman Rushdie novel, The Golden House, to be published in September: Penguin Random House India said the ‘modern-day thriller’ is about ‘where we were before 26/11’.
  9. Facebook shareholders seek to replace Mark Zuckerberg with independent board chairperson: In a proposal submitted by four SumOfUs members, they said an independent chair will be able to provide a balance of power between the CEO and the board.
  10. Can’t issue guidelines on how people should react to jokes, SC tells Sikh petitioners: Advocate Harvinder Chowdhary had argued that the community, like SCs and STs, needs a ‘vigorous law’ to protect themselves from being the topic of fun.