A look at the headlines right now:

  1. Saudi Arabia to release 850 Indian prisoners after crown prince meets Narendra Modi: PM Modi and the Saudi crown prince met on Wednesday and agreed that pressure must be increased on countries that aid terror, and that the “comprehensive sanctioning of terrorists and their organisations” by the UN is important.
  2. J&K government withdraws security of 18 separatists, including Geelani, Yasin Malik: Security of 155 other persons, including former IAS officer Shah Faesal, was also removed.
  3. Congress and DMK announce alliance for Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu: The Congress will contest from nine seats in TN, and the lone Puducherry seat.
  4. At least 69 killed in massive building fire in Dhaka: A fire service official said the toll may increase.
  5. Supreme Court’s five-judge Constitution Bench to hear the Ayodhya case on February 26: The matter, which was earlier scheduled to be heard on January 29, was adjourned as Justice SA Bobde of the five-member bench was not available.
  6. Kulbhushan Jadhav is a pawn in Pakistan’s tool to divert global scrutiny from itself, India says: India began its final arguments on the third day of the hearing at the ICJ.
  7. NIA takes over investigation of Pulwama attack from Jammu and Kashmir police: The agency re-registered the case in the terror attack a day after the Ministry of Home Affairs transferred the case to the agency.
  8. SC orders eviction of more than 10 lakh Adivasis, forest-dwellers:The court asked the state governments to explain why eviction was not made despite rejection of claims over traditional forestlands under the new law.
  9. No harassment of Kashmiri students, we’re in touch with colleges, says Union minister Prakash Javadekar: Omar Abdullah questioned Narendra Modi’s silence on the alleged attacks against Kashmiri students.
  10. UIDAI records indicate Aadhaar details of enrolment operator stolen and misused, says report: In November 2018, the UIDAI had barred Vikram Sheokhand after his credentials were used in multiple cities in a single day.