A special court in Delhi has granted the Central Bureau of Investigation five days custody of Christian Michel, the alleged middleman in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also brought up the matter of Michel’s extradition to India at a campaign rally in Sumerpur in Rajasthan on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday kept the repo rate, or the interest rate at which it lends to commercial banks, constant at 6.5%. The decision was taken at the central bank’s monetary policy meeting after three days of talks. The reverse repo rate and the bank rate were also not changed.

Here are the biggest stories of the day:

Bengaluru: Engineer killed, three injured in explosion at IISc lab

An engineer was killed and three persons were severely injured after an accidental explosion in a laboratory at the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

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Deepika Padukone is the first woman in top 5 of Forbes India’s list of highest-paid celebrities

Actor Deepika Padukone has become the first woman to break into the top five positions in the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list since its inception in 2012.

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Telangana: EC transfers police officer who ordered Congress leader Revanth Reddy’s arrest

The Election Commission on Wednesday ordered the transfer of the police officer who directed the arrest of Telangana Congress Committee Working President Revanth Reddy the previous day.

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Modi showed he can demean even Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel to prove himself superior: Rahul Gandhi

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had shown that he could demean even Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel to prove himself superior.

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Bulandshahr: Bajrang Dal leader denies role in violence, contradicts FIR on witnessing cow slaughter

In a video statement released on Wednesday, Bajrang Dal leader Yogesh Raj denied any role in the Bulandshahr violence. On Monday, a police officer and a 20-year-old man were killed in mob violence sparked following the discovery of cow carcasses in a field in Mahaw village in Uttar Pradesh.

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American missionary killed by Sentinelese was on a ‘planned adventure’, says scheduled tribes panel

Initial investigation suggests that the American missionary who was killed by indigenous people on an Andaman island last month was on a “planned adventure”, the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes said on Tuesday.

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CBI row: It was ‘absolutely essential’ to step in and act, Centre tells Supreme Court

Attorney General KK Venugopal on Wednesday argued before that Supreme Court that it was “absolutely essential” for the Centre to step in and relieve Central Bureau of Investigation’s Director Alok Verma of his powers and duties to save the public image of the institution.

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Bulandshahr violence was part of a ‘big conspiracy’, says Uttar Pradesh police chief

Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police OP Singh on Wednesday said the violence that erupted in Bulandshahr district two days ago after alleged cow slaughter was part of a “big conspiracy”, reported ANI.

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Coal scam: Ex-Coal Secretary HC Gupta, two others sentenced to 3 years in jail, get bail soon after

Delhi’s Patiala House Court on Wednesday sentenced former Coal Secretary HC Gupta and two other bureaucrats – KS Kropha and KC Samaria – to three years each in jail in connection with a coal scam case, PTI reported.

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AgustaWestland ‘middleman’ Christian Michel will reveal the secrets of politicians he served: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought up the extradition of alleged AgustaWestland middleman Christian Michel to India at a campaign rally in Sumerpur in Rajasthan on Wednesday, saying he will spill the secrets of the politicians he had served. Wednesday is the last day of campaigning for the Rajasthan Assembly elections, scheduled on December 7. The results will be out on December 11.

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Odisha: Defence analyst Abhijit Iyer-Mitra, who was arrested for satirical tweets, granted bail

The Odisha High Court on Wednesday granted bail to defence analyst Abhijit Iyer-Mitra more than a month after he was arrested for allegedly hurting the religious sentiments of the people of the state. The court’s order came a day after the state government accepted his plea and decided not to grant sanction to the police to prosecute him.

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Uttarakhand: Teacher arrested for allegedly molesting nine-year-old student

The Uttarakhand Police on Tuesday arrested a primary schoolteacher for allegedly molesting a nine-year-old student in Nainital district’s Bhimtal town. Senior Sub-Inspector JS Sandhu on Wednesday said that the accused has been identified as Ravi Choudhary.

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Robert Vadra claims ED summons in Bikaner land case is a political witch hunt

Businessman Robert Vadra on Wednesday said the Enforcement Directorate summoning him for questioning in the Bikaner land deal case was a political witch hunt. Vadra is the brother-in-law of Congress President Rahul Gandhi. Vadra was summoned by the agency on November 30 after he reportedly sent a legal representative instead of appearing himself on November 20.

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‘Pakistan is using Taliban as hedge against India,’ says incoming head of US troops in West Asia

Pakistan is using Taliban as a shield against India instead of facilitating talks between the organisation and the Afghanistan government, the person nominated to command all United States troops in West Asia said on Tuesday. “We continue to see the Taliban being utilised as a hedge against India rather than as part of a stable, reconciled Afghanistan,” said Marine Corps Lieutenant General Kenneth McKenzie Jr.

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RBI keeps repo rate constant at 6.5%, projects GDP growth rate for 2018-’19 at 7.4%

The Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday kept the repo rate, or the interest rate at which it lends to commercial banks, constant at 6.5%. The decision was taken at the central bank’s monetary policy meeting after three days of talks. The reverse repo rate and the bank rate were also not changed.

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‘Please take it’: Vijay Mallya offers to repay banks all the money he owes

Businessman Vijay Mallya criticised the Indian media on Wednesday for calling him a defaulter and “humbly requested” various banks to take back all the money he had borrowed to keep his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines in business.

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Ram temple ordinance is not possible according to Constitution, says BJP ally Ram Vilas Paswan

It is not possible to bring in an ordinance to build a Ram temple in Ayodhya as the Constitution of India does not permit it, Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan told The Hindu in an interview published on Wednesday.

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Sabarimala row: Prohibitory orders at temple and base camps extended till December 8

District authorities in Kerala’s Pathanamthitta on Tuesday night extended the prohibitory orders in Sabarimala, Nilakkal and Pamba areas for four more days, till December 8.

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Pakistan may use Kartarpur corridor to push militants into India, says Union minister

Union minister Vijay Sampla on Tuesday expressed doubts over Pakistan’s commitment towards building the Kartarpur corridor and said the country might use it to push militants into India. “We fear that militants will come from there [Pakistan]... it is well known that Pakistan supplies terrorism throughout the world,” Sampla told reporters in Chandigarh. “Therefore, we are concerned about our country.”

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Sensex and Nifty decline ahead of RBI policy meeting, rupee depreciates

The Indian benchmark indices declined after the markets opened on Wednesday following a selloff in global equities because of concerns about US-China trade negotiations and global economic growth.

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Bulandshahr: Adityanath seeks strict action against those guilty in alleged cow slaughter case

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath on Tuesday asked top administrative and law enforcement officials to conduct a thorough investigation into the alleged cow slaughter that had triggered violence in the state’s Bulandshahr district the day before. He sought strict action against those guilty in the alleged slaughter case.

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Tamil Nadu: Panel investigating Jayalalithaa’s death issues gag order on media

A commission conducting inquiries into the death of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa has ordered the media to not telecast or report any news related to her death.

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Christian Michel, alleged middleman in AgustaWestland deal, extradited to India

Christian Michel, the alleged middleman in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal, was extradited to India from the United Arab Emirates late on Tuesday. He will be produced before a local court on Wednesday morning.

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ISRO launches India’s heaviest satellite GSAT-11, will help to enhance broadband services

The Indian Space Research Organisation on Wednesday successfully launched the country’s heaviest satellite GSAT-11 aboard an Arianespace rocket from the French Guiana. Weighing about 5,845 kg, the satellite will aim to enhance broadband services in the country.

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Mid-day meal scheme: Supreme Court fines five states and Delhi for lapses in implementation

The Supreme Court on Tuesday imposed a fine on five states and Delhi, saying that they had not taken the implementation of the mid-day meal scheme in schools seriously. The court fined Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Jammu and Kashmir Rs 1 lakh each.

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‘Ensure Women’s Reservation Bill is passed in Parliament’: Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik writes to Modi

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure that the Women’s Reservation Bill – seeking 33% reservation for women in state Legislative Assemblies and Parliament – is passed in Parliament.

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