A look at the headlines right now:

  1. EC bans Maneka Gandhi from campaigning for 48 hours, Azam Khan for 72 hours for violating model code of conduct: The poll panel also banned Adityanath and Mayawati from campaigning for 72 and 48 hours for violating the code. Maneka Gandhi, meanwhile, said Pilibhit villages will be categorised ‘ABCD’ according to how they vote for BJP, and Akhilesh Yadav asked if EC will stop Narendra Modi from seeking votes in the name of the Army.
  2. Elections in Vellore Lok Sabha seat may be cancelled after cash seizures, say reports: The Election Commission has reportedly recommended to President Ram Nath Kovind that polls be countermanded.
  3. Rahul Gandhi ‘still open’ to tie-up with AAP in Delhi, Kejriwal says Congress doesn’t really want it: The Congress president offered the Aam Aadmi Party four seats in Delhi, and said time was ‘running out’.
  4. Jet Airways’ lenders fail to agree on funding; airline to ground international flights till April 18: The airline had earlier cancelled its foreign operations from April 12 to April 15.
  5. Parrikar’s son criticises Sharad Pawar for his remarks on Rafale deal, calls them ‘blatant falsehoods’: The Nationalist Congress Party chief had claimed that Manohar Parrikar had resigned as defence minister because of the India-France pact.
  6. Massive fire engulfs Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, officials say blaze brought under control: The fire brought down the cathedral’s spire and destroyed the roof of the church.
  7. Southwest monsoon to be near normal, says weather department:The IMD said it will issue a second phase forecast in the first week of June 2019.
  8. Muslim couple files plea in SC, asks court to declare bans on entry of women into mosques unconstitutional: The couple said the prohibitions violate several articles of the Constitution.
  9. ‘Set Julian Assange free’, say N Ram, Arundhati Roy, Romila Thapar and others: Lawyer Indira Jaising, former West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi and journalist P Sainath also signed a statement criticising Assange’s arrest.
  10. Wholesale inflation rises to 3.18% in March as vegetable prices soar: Wholesale prices of fuel and power rose by 5.41% in March compared to the corresponding month in 2018.