A look at the headlines right now:

  1. Counting continues in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elections: The BJP looked set to retain Gujarat and win back Himachal Pradesh.
  2. 12 workers dead after fire breaks out in Mumbai shop: The workers were sleeping on a loft inside the shop and got trapped when the fire broke out.
  3. Vladimir Putin says CIA helped thwart terrorist attack in St Petersburg, calls Trump to thank him: The Kremlin and the White House did not disclose details about the plot but said that the attack ‘could have killed large numbers of people’.
  4. Both houses of Parliament adjourned as Opposition demands apology from PM Modi: The Opposition demanded that PM Modi apologise for alleging that his predecessor Manmohan Singh spoke to Pakistani officials about the Gujarat polls.
  5. Chief election commissioner says no electronic voting machines were tampered with: Achal Kumar Joti said that the Voter Verified Paper Audit Trails had enabled people in Gujarat to see who they voted for.
  6. Adani drops contractor on controversial Australian coal mine project: The company announced its decision after the Queensland government refused to provide it with a tax payer-funded loan.
  7. Conservative billionaire Sebastian Piñera wins Chilean presidential election: In a speech, Pinera said he would be ‘president of all Chileans’.  
  8. Anybody living in India is a Hindu, says RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat: ‘Tortured’ Hindus from across the globe seek refuge in India, he said.
  9. Three men allegedly rape minor girl, assault her friend in park: The girl reported the incident the same day and filed a complaint, but the police are yet to identify her three attackers.
  10. Myanmar President instructs government to proceed with its case against two Reuters journalists: The reporters – Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo – were arrested on December 12 under the Official Secrets Act of 1923 and are facing a maximum 14 years in prison.