A look at the headlines right now:

  1. At least 41 dead as thunderstorms, dust storms wreak havoc in Delhi, UP, Bengal and Andhra Pradesh: In the national Capital, at least 40 flights were diverted and 24 delayed.  
  2. Voting begins in West Bengal for panchayat elections amid tight security: The Trinamool Congress has already won 34% of the seats uncontested.
  3. Collegium system is blocking way of Dalits, OBCs in higher judiciary, says Union minister: On May 20, Upendra Kushwaha’s party will start a campaign to raise awareness about the under-representation of marginalised communities in the higher judiciary.  
  4. Siddaramaiah says he is okay with a Dalit chief minister for Karnataka if MLAs agree: The incumbent chief minister said this would be his last election.
  5. Pakistan’s US diplomat involved in car accident in Islamabad stopped from flying out of country: The Interior Ministry said Colonel Joseph Hall was on a blacklist.  
  6. At least six people drown as footbridge collapses in Neelum Valley in PoK: While eight people were rescued, around six were still missing, the police said.
  7. Andhra Pradesh TDP worker arrested for allegedly raping 14-year-old girl in Guntur district: The minor was found to be three months pregnant. 
  8. Nine killed, nearly 36 injured in multiple blasts in Afghanistan’s Jalalabad: A suicide bomber detonated the explosives near the Customs Finance building, according to a local news channel.
  9. Chargesheet against Chidambaram is Congress’ Nawaz Sharif moment, says Nirmala Sitharaman: The defence minister dared Rahul Gandhi to investigate the senior party leader.  
  10. Dogs kill child in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur, the seventh fatal attack this month: The 12-year-old girl was mauled when she was going to the fields alone in Maheshpur Chilwara village.