Do not criminalise human rights defenders, UN experts urge India

They expressed concern about the arrests of activists in the Bhima Koregaon case, and urged the government to ensure that their cases are “promptly heard in line with international law”.

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Government cannot allow anyone to promote violence, says Rajnath Singh on activists’ arrests

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday that while people can believe in different ideologies, the government cannot allow anyone to promote violence.

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Rupee breaches 74 mark against dollar as RBI keeps interest rates unchanged

The rupee breached the 74 mark against the dollar on Thursday soon after the Reserve Bank of India decided to keep key interest rates unchanged.

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Reserve Bank of India keeps key interest rates unchanged

The Reserve Bank of India on Friday kept key interest rates unchanged. The repo rate, at which the central bank lends money to commercial banks, remains at 6.50%, and the reverse repo rate is 6.25%.

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Supreme Court dismisses plea of one accused seeking new investigation in Kathua case

The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a petition by one of the accused in the Kathua case seeking a new investigation. He alleged that the inquiries conducted earlier were biased.

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Two people killed in Srinagar

Suspected militants shot dead two people in Karfali Mohalla area in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar. One person was injured in the firing and was taken to a hospital. The shooting comes just two days ahead of polling.

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PM Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin sign deal for supply of S-400 missiles to India: Reports

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed a deal for the supply of the S-400 Triumf missile system from Moscow to New Delhi, media reports said. The two sides were expected to officially announce it during a press conference at 1.30 pm.

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TV producer Suhaib Ilyasi acquitted of murder

The Delhi High Court acquitted television producer Suhaib Ilyasi in his wife’s murder case. Ilyasi, who was the producer of television show India’s Most Wanted, was convicted in December for allegedly stabbing to death Anju Ilyasi at their East Delhi home on January 11, 2000.

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BJP imposes ‘single, suffocating ideology on 1.3 billion people’: Rahul Gandhi

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday said the Narendra Modi government is at war with people and accused it of imposing a “single, suffocating ideology on 1.3 billion people”, the Hindustan Times reported. He was speaking at a leadership summit organised by the newspaper.

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KCR colluding with BJP, says Chandrababu Naidu

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday accused former Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, also known as KCR, of colluding with the Bharatiya Janata Party to target him. “I speak on ideologies and policies. I never resort to personal attacks,” he said in response to KCR calling him a thief and traitor to Telangana on Wednesday.

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Modi will return to power in 2019, shows survey by ABP News and C-Voter

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will return for a second term in 2019, according to a survey conducted by ABP News and C-Voter. The survey predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance will get 276 seats while the Congress will win 112 seats in the 2019 General Assembly elections.

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Over 190 legislators submitted fake PAN details to EC, reveals Cobrapost

Investigative website Cobrapost on Thursday claimed that 194 Indian legislators, including six former chief ministers and 10 sitting ministers, submitted fake Permanent Account Number, or PAN, details to the Election Commission. The website studied poll affidavits filed by the politicians between 2006 and 2016 and the data on the website of the Income Tax Department.

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Vineet Nayyar appointed IL&FS head

The new board of Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services appointed Vineet Nayyar the vice chairperson and managing director of the debt-laden firm. Nayyar is the executive vice chairperson of Tech Mahindra, which helped revive failed computer services company Satyam following government intervention.

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US says it is trying to find India a substitute for Tehran’s oil

The United States reiterated that the Donald Trump administration was going an extra length for countries like India to find a substitute for Iranian oil so that they are not adversely affected after the second round of sanctions against Tehran come into effect in November.

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Congress, BJP attack Kerala over ‘undue haste’ in implementing Sabarimala verdict

The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party attacked the Kerala government for “showing undue haste” and “impulsiveness” in implementing the Supreme Court’s order allowing women of all ages to enter the Sabarimala temple. The state government, led by the Left Democratic Front and the Travancore Devaswom Board, has made it clear that the top court’s order will be implemented and they will not file a review petition.

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Bihar government ban

The Bihar government banned officials from carrying mobile phones to high-level meetings. “It is found that officials from time to time are busy on their mobile phones, which creates hindrance in smooth conduct of the meetings,” the order said. “After due consideration, it has been decided that at high-level meetings, carrying of mobile phones will henceforth be banned.”

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Congress MLA Alpesh Thakor detained briefly in Gujarat

The Gujarat Police detained Congress legislator Alpesh Thakor and his supporters as they stage a protest demanding waiver of farm loans and better water supply for farmers of his constituency, Radhanpur, in Patan district.

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