The big news: Opposition raises VVPAT verification demand at EC meeting, and nine other top stories
Other headlines: Anil Ambani’s company said it would withdraw defamation suits against Congress leaders, and an MLA was shot dead in Arunachal Pradesh.
A look at the headlines right now:
- Opposition parties urge EC to verify all VVPAT slips in case of errors: Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court dismissed a plea that sought 100% VVPAT verification during counting of votes and called it ‘nonsense’.
- Anil Ambani’s Reliance Group to withdraw defamation suits against Congress leaders, says report: The defamation suits were filed for statements and an article on alleged corruption in the Rafale fighter jet deal.
- Arunachal Pradesh MLA Tirong Aboh, six others shot dead in Tirap: Some reports said 11 people were killed in the attack.
- Dissenting views in poll code violation cases won’t be made public, says Election Commission: Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa had recused himself from the poll panel’s meetings on the ground that his minority decisions were not recorded. He had defended his right to dissent earlier in the day and said minority view must be part of the final order.
- Actor Vivek Oberoi deletes meme on Aishwarya Rai, tweets apology: The National Commission for Women had issued a notice to the actor on Monday for his remarks.
- EVMs are ‘absolutely safe’ in strongrooms, says Election Commission: The poll panel called the Opposition’s claims of EVM movement and problems at strong rooms ‘baseless’. Pranab Mukherjee expressed concerns over the alleged tampering and said the prime responsibility of the ECI should be to put all speculation around EVMs to an end, while Upendra Kushwaha exhorted people to pick up weapons if attempts are made to manipulate results. In Arunachal Pradesh, meanwhile, around 500 masked men allegedly attacked a polling team to steal EVMs.
- Civilian traffic ban on Jammu and Kashmir national highway to be completely lifted from May 27: The movement of civilians on the highway was curtailed on Sundays and Wednesdays to enable the increased movement of security forces ahead of Lok Sabha polls.
- Three-time Formula One champion Niki Lauda dies aged 70: Lauda won the Formula One drivers’ world championship three times in 1975, 1977 and 1984.
- Nepalese mountaineer Kami Rita scales Mount Everest for 24th time, beats his own record in a week: He has been a sherpa for more than two decades and first summited the mountain in 1994.
- Instagram influencers’ data leaked online, traced to Mumbai-based marketing firm: The photo-sharing app said it was looking into the breach of a database containing more than 49 million records.