A look at the headlines right now:

  1. On Delhi pollution, Lok Sabha MPs say farmers should not be vilified for burning stubble: Congress leader Manish Tewari said a committee, similar to the panel on public undertakings and estimates, should be set up to look into pollution.
  2. Rajinikanth endorses Kamal Haasan’s statement, says they may join hands in politics if required: ‘If the situation demands and there is a need for us to proceed together in politics in the interest of the people, we will forge ahead,’ Rajinikanth said.
  3. Reliance Jio set to increase mobile and data charges in next few weeks following Airtel and Vodafone: Telecom companies have posted huge quarterly losses following an adverse Supreme Court judgement that upheld the Centre’s broader definition of revenue.  
  4. SC tells Centre to decide on permanent commission to women in Army retrospectively: Eight women officers had approached the top court in 2010, against an earlier law that allowed them to serve in the Army for just 14 years.
  5. Did Centre use spyware to tap WhatsApp calls? Minister avoids direct answer, cites law allowing it: The Centre said it has the power to intercept, monitor and decrypt any information in the interest of the country based on certain conditions.  
  6. Sweden drops Julian Assange rape investigation after almost 10 years: The prosecutor said the evidence against the WikiLeaks founder was not strong enough to file an indictment.
  7. JNU files contempt plea against agitating students and police in Delhi High Court: The students have been accused of violating the court’s August 2017 order banning protests within 100 metres of the institution’s administrative block.
  8. Twelve-year-old girl not allowed to accompany family to Sabarimala temple: The Kerala Police have stopped at least 12 women from entering the temple since Saturday, when it opened for devotees.  
  9. ‘Tell us how BJP won 18 seats in Bengal’, says Owaisi on Mamata Banerjee’s ‘extremist’ remark for AIMIM: In a veiled reference to AIMIM, Mamata Banerjee had said that she was ‘watching some extremists among minorities’ who were based in Hyderabad.
  10. Conduct social audit of 2019 Lok Sabha elections, group of ex-bureaucrats urges Election Commission:They wrote a letter to the polling body, pointing out that the doubts about voting machines used in the elections were ‘yet to be resolved satisfactorily’.