Supreme Court bans 15-year-old petrol vehicles and 10-year-old diesel ones from plying in NCR

The Supreme Court on Monday banned 15-year-old petrol vehicles and diesel vehicles that are a decade old from plying in the National Capital Region. The court instructed the transport department to impound such vehicles if they are found on the road. A list of these vehicles should be published on the websites of the Central Pollution Control Board and the transport department, and an advertisement should be published in newspapers, the court added.

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Delhi High Court initiates contempt proceedings against RBI Director S Gurumurthy

The contempt proceedings were initiated against Gurumurthy for his tweets against Justice S Muralidhar for quashing activist Gautam Navlakha’s transit remand and house arrest order on October 1. Gurumurthy, a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ideologue, had retweeted a link to an article on a blog called “Drishtikone”, which alleged that the judge’s wife is a close friend of Navlakha and said Muralidhar’s reason behind quashing the house arrest order flimsy.

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India, Japan sign six agreements after Narendra Modi and Shinzo Abe hold delegation-level talks

The agreements were signed after delegation-level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe in Tokyo. These included pacts on a high-speed train project and naval cooperation. Modi is on a two-day visit to Japan to attend the 13th India-Japan annual summit. Both nations also agreed to hold a 2+2 dialogue between their foreign and defence minister.

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Two students told to vacate campus due to indiscipline, not harassment complaint: Symbiosis Law School

Hyderabad’s Symbiosis Law School on Sunday denied it had asked two of its female students to vacate the campus on Friday because they had reported sexual harassment. The action against the two students was for “repeated disciplinary violations”, the institute said, refuting media reports that earlier suggested that the action was because of their complaint.

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Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut calls ‘Make in India’ a scam

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday claimed that the Narendra Modi government’s Make in India initiative was “an employment scam” and that the figures provided to show the employment generation and foreign investment did not add up.

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Ayodhya land dispute case: Hindus cannot eternally wait for a court judgement, says VHP

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Monday said Hindus cannot wait forever for a court judgement on the Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid land dispute case and urged the National Democratic Alliance government to bring in a legislation to build a Ram temple in Ayodhya.

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Indonesia: Indian pilot Bhavye Suneja, captain of Lion Air flight, killed in crash

The pilot of a Lion Air flight that plummeted into the sea on Monday morning was Indian national Bhavye Suneja who died in the crash. Lion Air in a statement said Suneja had 6,000 flight hours.

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CBI tussle: Delhi High Court gives Rakesh Asthana protection from arrest till November 1

The Delhi High Court on Monday directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to maintain status quo in its proceedings against its senior official Rakesh Asthana till November 1 and gave him interim relief from arrest. The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government last week sent the CBI’s top two officials – Director Alok Verma and Asthana – on leave after allegations of corruption and bribery. On October 23, the High Court said no coercive action can be taken against Asthana till October 29.

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Looking into reports that snipers may have entered Kashmir Valley, says Army Chief Bipin Rawat

Army chief General Bipin Rawat on Monday said the Army was looking into reports that snipers may have entered the Kashmir Valley to target security forces. The Army was yet to find any sniper weapons, he said. Since mid-September, suspected militants affiliated to the Jaish-e-Mohammed have killed three defence personnel in sniper attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.

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TN approaches Supreme Court, asks that firecrackers be allowed early on Diwali morning

The Tamil Nadu government on Monday approached the Supreme Court seeking to extend the timing to burst firecrackers, reported ANI. The state government said bursting of firecrackers should be allowed between 4.30 am and 6.30 am on Diwali.

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Air quality has improved after closure of Sterlite Copper plant, says Tamil Nadu government

The Tamil Nadu government on Sunday told the National Green Tribunal that the ambient air quality around the Sterlite Copper plant in Thoothukudi has improved since its closure in May.

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Devotees of all religions have the right to enter Sabarimala temple, observes Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court on Monday observed that devotees of all religions have the right to enter the Sabarimala temple. The High Court expressed dissatisfaction on the application filed by the Bharatiya Janata Party’s TG Mohandas who sought a ban on the entry of non-Hindus into the temple.

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Delhi: Thick haze remains over city, air quality improves but still ‘very poor’

Most air quality monitoring stations in Delhi continued to show “very poor” or “severe” readings on Monday. The overall air quality index for the national capital was 354 at noon – better than the reading of 381 on Sunday afternoon, but still “very poor”, data from the Central Pollution Control Board showed. A thick haze has remained in the city since Sunday, when the air quality was at its worst of the season so far.

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Kashmir: PDP worker killed in Srinagar

Suspected militants on Sunday shot dead Peoples Democratic Party worker Mohammed Amin Dar in Gangbugh area of Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir. Dar was taken to the hospital, where he succumbed to the bullet injuries.

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SC adjourns hearing in Ayodhya case till January

The Supreme Court on Monday said it will decide on the bench to hear the Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid land dispute case only in January. A bench of Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and KM Joseph ordered that the matter will be listed in January.

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Bhima Koregaon case: SC stays Bombay HC’s refusal for more time for police to file chargesheet

The Supreme Court on Monday stayed a Bombay High Court order declining an extension to the Maharashtra Police to file its chargesheet against five activists it had arrested in the Bhima Koregaon case. The activists were arrested on June 6. The 90-day deadline for them to be chargesheeted was to expire on September 3, but a special court in Pune granted the police 90 more days. The Bombay High Court quashed the order on October 24, prompting the Maharashtra government to move the top court.

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Delayed northeast monsoon to enter country by November 1, says IMD

The India Meteorological Department on Sunday forecast the onset of the northeast monsoon by November 1, PTI reported. The northeast monsoon brings the southern states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry around 48% of their annual rainfall. It has been delayed by nearly 10 days this year.

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‘I don’t believe in crushing terrorism by killing terrorists,’ J&K governor says

Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik said that he does not believe in crushing terrorism by killing terrorists and that terrorism “is in the mind”, the Hindustan Times reported on Monday. Malik said it was his job to regain the trust of the youth in the state as they have no faith in the political parties and are annoyed the Indian government.

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Tata Sons says its contract with Suhel Seth’s consultancy will end next month

Tata Sons said on Monday its contract with Counselage India, the consulting company founded by consultant Suhel Seth, will end on November 30. This comes days after at least seven women publicly accused the high-profile brand consultant of sexual misconduct.

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Sensex recovers around 200 points, rupee rises 14 paise against the dollar

Indian benchmark indices rose around 0.6% each in early trade on Monday, with the Sensex rising by 200 points and the Nifty 50 moving close to the 10,100-mark again. By 10.25 am, they trimmed the gains slightly – the Sensex was up 157.47 points at 33,506.78, and the Nifty 50 was higher by 41.40 points, at 10,071.40.

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2019 elections: BJP President Amit Shah says Opposition alliance neither has policy nor a leader

Bharatiya Janata Party chief Amit Shah on Sunday claimed the “grand alliance” of Opposition parties was “breaking India”, while the Narendra Modi government was working for “making India”. Shah said the Opposition’s alliance neither has a policy nor a leader nor any principles.

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Indonesia: Flight crashes minutes after taking off from Jakarta, says official

A Lion Air passenger flight from Indonesia’s capital Jakarta to Pangkal Pinang crashed into the sea minutes after taking off on Monday. The flight was carrying around 188 people. There is no confirmation yet on the number of survivors.

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Petrol, diesel rates dip for 12th day

Fuel prices continued to drop for the 12th straight day on Monday. The price of a litre of petrol reduced by 30 paise in Delhi costing Rs 79.75. A litre of diesel was Rs 73.85 in the national capital, declining by 20 paise.

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Trump likely to skip Republic Day celebrations

United States President Donald Trump has turned down India’s invitation to be the chief guest at the 70th Republic Day celebrations. The White House has reportedly expressed regrets to the Narendra Modi government for Trump’s inability to travel to India in January, citing the US president’s “crowded calendar”.

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Ayodhya case in Supreme Court from today

A Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi is likely to hear appeals challenging the Allahabad High Court’s 2010 verdict in the Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid land dispute from Monday. The High Court had ordered for a three-way division of the land on which the Babri Masjid stood before Hindutva activists demolished it in December 6, 1992.

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India is going through a massive transformative phase, Modi says in Japan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that India is undergoing a transformative phase and was making tremendous progress in the field of digital infrastructure. Modi is on a two-day visit to Japan to attend the 13th India-Japan annual summit. Modi met his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe on Sunday in Yamanashi city.

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Attack on YSR Congress chief: Visakhapatnam police seek 15-day custody of accused

The Visakhapatnam police have requested that the man who attacked YSR Congress Party leader and Leader of the Opposition in Andhra Pradesh, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, be remanded to 15 days of police custody.

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SC must take cognisance of Shah’s statement against judgements, says Opposition

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday urged the Supreme Court to take cognisance of Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah’s statement against its verdicts. Kejriwal claimed Shah was creating anarchy by “actively encouraging people to violate” Supreme Court orders.

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Tharoor triggers row by citing 2012 article comparing Modi to a scorpion on a shivling

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Sunday stirred up a controversy by referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “scorpion sitting on a shivling”. Speaking at the Bangalore Literature Festival on Sunday morning, Tharoor said Modi’s “personality cult” has not sat very well with many people in the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh.

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