Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray meets PM Narendra Modi in Delhi

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, in his first visit to New Delhi after taking oath, PTI reported. Thackeray was accompanied by his son and Maharashtra minister Aaditya Thackeray.

J&K: Police arrest two youths for allegedly spreading rumours on social media

The Jammu and Kashmir Police arrested two youths on Thursday and Friday from Srinagar and Handwara for alleged rumour-mongering on social media. The Kupwara Police arrested Imtiyaz Ahmad Kawa, a resident of Saida Kadal in Srinagar city on Thursday from his home for posting allegedly fake photographs on Facebook accusing security forces of vandalism in North Kashmir last year, the Hindustan Times reported.

Surat: Women trainee clerks at civic body made to stand naked for physical test, inquiry ordered

Ten women trainee clerks employed by the Surat Municipal Corporation were allegedly made to stand naked in a state-run hospital on Thursday while women doctors subjected them to a finger test and asked personal questions to check for pregnancy, The Times of India reported on Friday. This incident came to light days after 68 undergraduate students at a college in Bhuj town were forced to remove their undergarments to prove they were not menstruating.

Mangaluru police firing: Commissioner among 176 personnel summoned by inquiry panel

Mangaluru Police Commissioner PS Harsha, and 175 policemen have been listed as witnesses by a panel conducting a magisterial inquiry into the violence that erupted in the coastal city during anti-Citizenship Act protests on December 19, PTI reported on Friday. Two persons were shot dead by the police, and a third suffered bullet injuries during the demonstrations, which forced the authorities to impose a curfew in several areas of Dakshina Kannada district and suspend mobile internet for 48 hours.

Bhim Army gets court permission for gathering near RSS headquarters in Nagpur

The Bombay High Court on Friday allowed the Bhim Army to hold a meeting of its workers at a venue close to the headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in Nagpur, PTI reported. The police had earlier denied permission for the gathering, citing law and order risks as the two organisations have opposing ideologies.

Restraining order against man of Indian origin for allegedly stalking Apple CEO Tim Cook

United States multinational technology company Apple has filed a suit and obtained a restraining order against a man of Indian origin who made threatening phone calls to the firm last year, and claimed that Apple mocked and tried to kill him when he was in the hospital, News18 reported on Friday. Rakesh “Rocky” Sharma also trespassed on Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook’s residence twice.

Bengaluru: Now, woman detained for holding ‘Kashmir liberation’ sign

A woman in Bengaluru, Karnataka, was on Friday detained for holding a “free Kashmir” placard at a demonstration in the city to protest against Amulya Leona, who was charged with sedition, for shouting pro-Pakistan slogans a day earlier.

During Trump’s visit, Taj Mahal to be shut on Monday after 12 pm

The Taj Mahal in Agra will be shut for visitors from noon on February 24 during United States President Donald Trump’s first two-day trip to India, ANI reported on Friday. Vasant Kumar Swarnkar, Superintendent of the Agra Division of Archaeological Survey of India, said the iconic monument will be closed due to security reasons. Security checks and other measures have been being taken to ensure that there is no security lapse.

India hitting US hard with tariffs, will talk business with Modi, says Donald Trump on trade deal

United States President Donald Trump on Thursday said the proposed new Indian tariffs have complicated negotiations, but he will “talk business” with Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he visits Ahmedabad and New Delhi on February 24 and 25, PTI reported.

‘I am a proud Hindu’: BJP spokesperson defends comment likening woman to dogs

Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson Gopal Krishna Agarwal on Thursday defended his comments comparing an Indian author to dogs.

Lucknow: Student stabbed to death outside Gomti Nagar apartment, one accused booked for murder

A student was stabbed to death on Thursday near the gate of an apartment in Lucknow’s Gomti Nagar Extension area, The Indian Express reported. The student, identified as 25-year-old Prashant Singh, had reportedly gone to meet an acquaintance in an apartment complex when a group of six to seven men attacked him with knives.

Bengaluru: Student who shouted pro-Pakistan slogan sent to 14-day judicial custody

College student Amulya Leona, who was charged with sedition for shouting pro-Pakistan slogans, was on Friday denied bail and sent to judicial custody for 14 days, ANI reported. She has been charged with sedition, provoking enmity between groups, and intentional insult to provoke breach of peace, said Deputy Commissioner of Police B Ramesh said.

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said the woman should not be given bail after shouting such slogans. “Her father has also said he won’t protect her,” he added. “Its proved now that she had contacts with Naxals. Proper punishment should be given.”

Shaheen Bagh: UP Police briefly reopen key road blocked due to protests

The Uttar Pradesh Police on Friday briefly reopened a road connecting Noida and Faridabad in an effort to ease heavy traffic congestion between Delhi and Noida due to ongoing anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests in the national Capital’s Shaheen Bagh locality, NDTV reported. The protests had started on December 15 after police violence at Jamia Millia Islamia University.

The road connecting Noida and Faridabad through Delhi’s Kalindi Kunj neighbourhood was reopened for about 40 minutes, and avoids Shaheen Bagh.

Convince at least one man for sterilisation or lose job, Madhya Pradesh tells male health workers

The Madhya Pradesh government has cautioned male multi-purpose health workers that they could lose their jobs or their salaries could be withheld if they failed to convince at least one man for sterilisation.

Unknown group hosting Trump event in Ahmedabad; ‘diplomacy is serious business,’ Congress reminds PM

A group set up by unidentified people is organising the “Namaste Trump [Hello, Trump]” event on February 24 at the Motera cricket stadium in the city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar told the media on Thursday that the Donald Trump Nagarik Abhivadan Samiti, or the Citizen Felicitation Committee for Donald Trump, was the event’s organiser, but did not provide more details.

Ramachandra Guha denies receiving apology from Karnataka minister for police manhandling at protest

Historian Ramachandra Guha on Thursday refuted Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai’s claim that the latter had apologised to him for police manhandling during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the proposed nationwide National Register of Citizens in Bengaluru in December. The historian said he had received neither a call nor an apology from the home minister.

MEA says British lawmaker Debbie Abrahams sent back ‘with due respect’, calls her views ‘anti-India’

India on Thursday said that British MP Debbie Abrahams, who was recently denied entry into India as she did not “hold a valid visa”, was respectfully sent back to the United Kingdom. The British politician alleged that immigration officials at the Delhi airport on Monday did not give her any reason for denying her entry into India and cancelling her visa, which she said was valid till October 2020.

Donald Trump’s India visit: US president says he may seal a ‘tremendous deal’ during trip

United States President Donald Trump on Thursday said that his country “may make a tremendous deal” with India. The president is expected to travel to at least two Indian cities – Ahmedabad and New Delhi – between February 24 and February 25.

“But we’re going to India, and we may make a tremendous deal there, or maybe we’ll slow it down,” Trump said during the commencement address at an event. “We’ll do it after the [US presidential] election. I think that could happen too. So we’ll see what happens. But we’re only making deals if they’re good deals, because we’re putting America first. Whether people like it or not, we’re putting America first.”

AMU castigates Adityanath for claiming students set out to ‘burn Aligarh city’ on December 15

Teachers and students of Aligarh Muslim University on Thursday castigated Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath for claiming that the varsity’s students had hit the roads in large numbers to “burn” Aligarh city on December 15, PTI reported.

The chief minister made the remarks in the state Assembly on Wednesday. “I had alerted the Aligarh administration after the violence at Jamia Millia Islamia university,” he added. “There were 15,000 students of AMU who took to the streets and wanted to burn Aligarh city but their game plan was averted by an alert police.”

Jamia violence: New videos appear to show protestors hurling stones at police from inside campus

A fresh set of videos on the violence in Delhi’s Jamia Millia Islamia University during anti-Citizenhsip Act protests in December emerged on Thursday, The Hindu reported. The videos purportedly show protestors hurling stones from inside the campus.

“The videos suggest that the police exercised restraint even as protestors were throwing stones at them,” a member of the Special Investigation Team, looking into the Jamia violence, told The Hindu. On Thursday, five Jamia students recorded their statements in the investigation. Police said notices were sent to 10 students on Wednesday and six more on Thursday.

2012 Delhi gangrape convict now moves Election Commission to challenge rejection of his mercy plea

One of the death-row convicts in the 2012 Delhi gangrape case approached the Election Commission on Thursday to challenge the rejection of his mercy plea, and contended that the Model Code of Conduct was in place in the national Capital at that time. This came hours after Vinay Sharma moved a court in Delhi seeking medical treatment for “grievous head injury, fracture in his right arm, mental illness, and schizophrenia”.

Coronavirus: India’s first patient discharged from Thrissur hospital

The first person to test positive for the novel coronavirus in India has been discharged from a government hospital in Thrissur, Kerala on Thursday. The medical student is the last of the three patients, who had contracted COVID-19 in Kerala, to be discharged.

Bengaluru: Sedition case filed against woman for saying ‘Pakistan zindabad’ at anti-CAA event

A woman was charged with sedition by the Bengaluru Police on Thursday for saying “Pakistan zindabad” at an event held to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens. The woman shouted the slogan in the presence of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi. The Hyderabad MP, however, denounced her action and asserted “we are for India”.

German firm temporarily closes India offices after two employees test positive for swine flu

German software company SAP on Thursday said that it has temporarily closed all offices in India for sanitisation after two of its employees in Bengaluru tested positive for the H1N1 virus, or swine flu.

‘Shaheen Bagh can set an example for protests’: SC mediators continue talks on second day

Supreme Court-appointed interlocutors Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran continued their dialogue with protestors in Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh locality for the second straight day on Thursday.

Telecom sector faces ‘unprecedented crisis’ because of payment dues, says Bharti Airtel chief

Bharti Airtel chairperson Sunil Mittal on Thursday said the payment dues related to adjusted gross revenues were an “unprecedented crisis” for the telecom industry. He made the remark after meeting Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and sought cuts in taxes and levies for the sector.