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Thu, 26 July 2018
Suspected terrorists decamp with 4 rifles

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23:30   Suspected terrorists decamp with 4 rifles
Suspected terrorists barged into a police post guarding a politician's residence in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district and decamped with four service rifles tonight.

The terrorists barged into the police picket guarding house of Mohammad Shafi Banday at Bona Bazar and took away four rifles from there, a police official said.

A police spokesperson said initial probe suggests complicity of banned Hizbul Mujahideen outfit.

A search operation was underway in the nearby areas, the spokesperson said, adding that the circumstances leading to the incident were being ascertained.  --  PTI

Image only for representation.
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23:01   Gauri Lankesh murder case: One more arrested
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the murder of journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh has arrested one more person, suspected to have provided shelter to the man who shot her dead.

H L Suresh, 36, was arrested in Tumakuru yesterday and produced before the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate court, which remanded him in judicial custody, a SIT release said in Bengaluru today.

Sources in the SIT claimed that Suresh had provided shelter to Parashuram Waghmare, who allegedly pulled the trigger, killing Lankesh outside her house in Bengaluru.

With this, a total of 11 suspects have been arrested so far in connection with the case.

Lankesh, known for her vociferous anti-Hindutva stand,was shot dead on September 5 last year.     Her killing drew widespread condemnation from various quarters.  -- PTI
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22:16   Pak police replaces private security at Imran Khan's house: Reports
Pakistani police personnel have replaced private security guards at Imran Khan's residence in Islamabad, as the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf's   prime ministerial candidate was leading his party to a victory in the elections.

The 65-year-old former cricketer was yesterday provided with the VIP security and police had decided to install barriers on road leading to his house.

Today, police officers replaced Khan's private security guards outside his residence in Bani Gala, Dawn reported.

Khan has not officially been declared prime minister yet.

Even before the announcement of the official results, congratulations poured in for Khan for leading his party to victory.  -- PTI
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22:04   Rs 282 cr spent on Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao in last 3 fiscals: Centre
Over Rs 250 crore was spent on the 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' scheme in the last three fiscals, the Rajya Sabha was informed today.

The sex ratio at birth has also shown improvement in 104 of the 161 districts studied, Minister of State for Women and Child Development (WCD) Virendra Kumar said.

In 2015-16, Rs 59.37 crore was spent, and in 2016-17 and 2017-18, Rs 28.65 crore and about Rs 169.10 crore were spent respectively.

So far, in 2018-19, Rs 25.40 crore has been spent, the Rajya Sabha was informed.

The scheme was launched as a comprehensive programme to address the declining child sex ratio (CSR) and issues related to empowerment of women over a life-cycle continuum.

Of the 161 selected districts, the top five districts that showed improvement in sex ratio at birth (SRB) in 2016- 2017 as compared to the previous year were Dibang Valley (761 to 1,176); Lakshwadeep (832 to 955); Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh (849 to 943); Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh, (500-594) and Pulwama, Jammu and Kashmir, (949-1,018).

The five districts that have shown the sharpest decline during the same period are Saiha, Mizoram (1,022-898); Nicobar (948-839); Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh (977-908); and Shopian, (1,062-959) and Bandipore (964-885) in Jammu and Kashmir.

SRB is the number of girls born every 1,000 boys and is recorded at birth. This data is collected annually.

CSR is recorded for a population in the age group of zero to 6 years and is collected once in 10 years. It is primarily influenced by SRB and mortality in early childhood.

Haryana, which has the worst child sex ratio according to the 2011 census (834 girls for every 1,000 boys against the national average of 918), has shown improvement in sex ratio at birth in 18 of the total 20 districts selected in the state for the programme.  -- PTI
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21:46   Our wives may divorce us if we hug Rahul: BJP MP
Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Jharkhand, Nishikant Dubey, has said his party members fear that hugging Congress president Rahul Gandhi might lead to divorce.

"Yes, we do fear hugging Rahul Gandhi. Our wives might divorce us after that. Also, Section 377 has not been scrapped as yet. If he gets married, we will hug him," Dubey said.

The comment came in the backdrop of Gandhi's recent comment where he said that BJP MPs take two steps back whenever he meets them fearing that he would hug them.

Last week, Gandhi garnered huge attention after he walked up to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and hugged him, following his speech in the Lok Sabha over the No-Confidence Motion.  -- ANI
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20:26   BBC apologises for confusing Imran Khan with Wasim Akram
The BBC has issued an apology for confusing Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan with his former teammate Wasim Akram in its election-related coverage.

During its flagship night-time news show, 'Newsnight', BBC2 showed footage of former left-arm pacer Akram instead of right-handed all-rounder Khan as he emerged as the frontrunner in the Pakistani general elections.

At the end of the programme, presenter Evan Davis said: "We made a mistake in our opening tonight. The footage we showed was of the cricketer Wasim Akram not Imran Khan."

"Don't know how that happened, sincere apologies for that."

Both Akram and Khan are well-known faces of Pakistan cricket.

Khan, who retired from the sport in 1992, had led the country to victory at the 1992 Cricket World Cup, Pakistan's first and only victory in the competition.

He has since moved on to lead the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, which emerged as the single-largest party in the elections held yesterday.

Akram, meanwhile, has remained linked to cricket since his retirement and spends much of his time commentating on the game.

"We'd like to reiterate the sincere apology we made on air last night for an error that occurred during the programme," a BBC spokesperson said.

"We are looking into how this mistake happened and will be tightening our processes on Newsnight to prevent an incident like this happening again," the spokesperson added.

Viewers were quick to pick up on the error on social media, with one saying on Twitter: 'Let me guess -- your researcher just googled 'Pakistani cricketer' -- assuming they all look alike eh?'

Back in April, the BBC was similarly caught out for mistakenly referring to Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a live news broadcast of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in London.

The Sri Lankan President was seen disembarking from his car at the entrance of Buckingham Palace to join the other heads of government for the CHOGM launch hosted by Queen Elizabeth II when the BBC host said: Modi, 'the Prime Minister of India since May 2014 arriving at Buckingham Palace'.  -- PTI
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19:46   'PMs museum' to be set up in Teen Murti Bhavan
A museum for all former prime ministers of the country will be built in the Teen Murti Bhavan complex housing the Jawaharlal Nehru memorial, Nehru Memorial Museum and Library director Shakti Sinha said today.

The decision was taken at the 43rd annual general meeting of the NMML chaired by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi today.

"We will build a museum for all prime ministers in the 25 acre estate (Teen Murti Bhavan). This will be separate from the existing structure of the Nehru Memorial," Sinha told reporters after a two hour-long meeting.

The NMML at the Teen Murti Bhavan was set up in the memory of the country's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru as an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Culture.  -- PTI
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19:42   Pawar meets Mayawati to 'break ice'
A meeting between Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar and Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati New Delhi meant to 'break ice' has triggered speculation of a possible alliance between the two parties.

Yesterday, Pawar had met Mayawati and her close aide Satish Chandra Misra in New Delhi.

'Had a good meeting with Kumari Mayawati & Satish Chandra Mishra, MP Rajya Sabha,' Pawar tweeted.

Though the BSP preferred to maintain silence, a senior leader said the aim of the nearly hour-long meet was to 'break ice'.

On an earlier occasion, Mayawati had turned down NCP's proposal to have a tie up in Maharashtra.

This time things were different and the meeting was positive as both the parties are gearing up for 2019 polls to take on the BJP, sources said.

The Ramdas Athawale led-Republican Party of India (RPI), which for long had allied with the Congress-NCP and has good presence among the Dalit community in Maharashtra, is now with the BJP.

The BSP has pockets of influence in Maharashtra, especially in the Vidarbha region while the NCP has MLAs in more than two states, besides Maharashtra -- its core state -- and six Lok Sabha MPs (four from Maharashtra and one from the Lakshdweep Islands and Bihar each).

An alliance with the BSP will help bolster its prospects, sources said.

The Mayawati-led party is also looking for regional alliances in other states in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

It already has an alliance with the Janata Dal (Secular) in Karnataka and with Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) in Haryana.  -- PTI
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19:00   Income Tax filing deadline extended till Aug 31
The government today extended the last date for filing income tax returns for assessment year 2018-19 by a month to August 31.

The new income tax return forms were notified early in April and taxpayers (whose accounts are not liable for audit) were allowed to e-file their ITRs till July 31.

"Upon consideration of the matter, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) extends the 'due date' for filing of Income Tax Returns from July 31, 2018 to August 31, 2018 in respect of the said categories of taxpayers,' a finance ministry statement said.  -- PTI
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18:58  
No. of terrorists killed in Jammu and Kashmir in recent years.
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18:26   Sunanda death: Tharoor exempted from personal appearance today
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor was granted exemption from personal appearance for today by a court in New Delhi in a case relating to his wife Sunanda Pushkar's death almost four years ago in a luxury hotel.

The court granted the relief to Tharoor, who was granted bail earlier this month after he had appeared before it as an accused, on an application moved by his advocate.

In his application, Tharoor said that he was unable to come to court since Parliament was in session.

The court accepted the application, moved by senior advocate Vikash Pahwa on behalf of the politician, for the day and posted the matter for further hearing on August 23.

Pushkar was found dead in a suite of a luxury hotel in the city on the night of January 17, 2014.

The couple was staying in the hotel, as the official bungalow of Tharoor was being renovated at that time.

The court also directed Delhi Police to hand over various documents filed along with the charge sheet, including statements of witnesses, to Tharoor on a plea moved by him.

The Thiruvananthapuram MP was granted regular bail by court on July 7 after he appeared before court in pursuance to the summons issued against him.

The court had on June 5 summoned Tharoor, observing there was sufficient ground to proceed against him.

Tharoor has been charged under sections 498A (husband or his relative subjecting a woman to cruelty) and 306 (abetment of suicide) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), but has not been arrested in the case.  -- PTI
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18:19   Due date for filing returns extended by a month for some taxpayers
Just In: Government extends due date for filing income tax returns for certain taxpayers by one month, till August 31, 2018.
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18:10   If India takes 1 step, we'll take 2 steps towards peace process: Imran
As his party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf emerged as the single largest party in the National Assembly today, Imran Khan addressed the nation and made these points:

"I thank god, after 22 years of struggle, my prayers have been answered. I have got the chance to fulfil my dream and serve the nation.

"We are witnessing the strengthening of democracy in Pakistan. The election process was completed successfully despite many terror attacks. I thank our security forces.

"We have to fight poverty, it's a big challenge. China is the biggest example in front of us, it lifted 70 crore people out of poverty in the last 30 years, it was unprecedented.

"If there's one country that needs stability today it's Pakistan. We have to bring more investment from China and strengthen our foreign policy to bring peace to Pakistan.

"We will try our best to bring peace and stability in Pakistan. Afghanistan is in an even greater need for peace and stability. We hope we will able to develop such good relations with Afghanistan that we can have open borders.

"We will also try to establish a balanced relationship with the United States.

"For the past few days, I was portrayed as a villain of a Bollywood film by Indian media.

"I want good relations with India. If we want to remove poverty from our countries, it is important that we increase trade with India.

"However, the biggest issue between our two countries is Kashmir. The people of Kashmir have suffered a lot for the past 30 years.

"We should discuss the Kashmir issue with India. If they're ready, we are also ready to solve all the issues through dialogue.

"All the time India blames us for problems in Kashmir, we blame them for unrest in Blochistan. It is better that we resolve our issues on table.

"If India takes one step, we will take two steps towards peace process."

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17:49   Idea shares gain over 4% on reports of final govt nod to merger with Vodafone
Shares of Idea Cellular rose by over 4 per cent today amid reports that the government gave final approval to the mega merger of Vodafone and the company.

The stock moved up by 3.64 per cent to settle at Rs 56.95 on BSE.

During the day, it soared 4.64 per cent to Rs 57.50.

On NSE, shares of the company jumped 4.18 per cent to close at Rs 57.20.

The company's market valuation rose by Rs 872.68 crore to Rs 24,829.68 crore.

In terms of equity volume, 17.77 lakh shares of the company were traded on BSE and over 2 crore shares changed hands on NSE during the day.

A senior DoT official today said that the final approval of the mega Idea-Vodafone has been accorded today and the entities will now approach Registrar of Companies (RoC) for stipulated filings for approval, completing the last leg of formalities.

The move comes just days after Idea Cellular and Vodafone India made a joint payment of Rs 7,268.78 crore 'under protest' to the Department of Telecom (DoT) for merging their mobile businesses.

The merger will create the country's largest mobile operator with 35 per cent market share and around 430 million subscribers.  -- PTI
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17:23   CBI to probe Cambridge Analytica data breach case
Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad says in Rajya Sabha that Cambridge Analytica data breach case will be investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

Cambridge Analytica, a data mining firm, was accused of harvesting personal information from Facebook illegally to influence polls in several countries.

The Bharatiya Janata Party had questioned links between the Congress and Cambridge Analytica, alleging that the opposition party was a client of the firm.

However, the Congress had vehemently denied the allegations. -- with ANI inputs
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17:12   Can become CM anytime, but not interested: Hema
Bharatiya Janata Party MP Hema Malini has said she can become the chief minister anytime but would rather be free to pursue other interests.

"I am not too keen," the BJP MP from Mathura in Uttar Pradesh told reporters in Rajasthan's Banswara city.

"If I want to I can become that in a minute, but I don't like to be tied up. My freedom of movement will end," she said when asked if she would become the CM if she got the chance.

The apparent reference was to the post in Uttar Pradesh, now held by her party's Yogi Adityanath.

She said she got to become an MP because of her film career.

"I am known mainly because of my name in Bollywood, call it 'dream girl' or Hema Malini," she said.

She said she had done a lot of work for the Bharatiya Janata Party even before entering Parliament.

She has done much work in her constituency as an MP during the last four years, Hema Malini added, referring in particular to the state of the roads.

Calling her Mathura constituency as the 'nagri' of Krishna, she said she loved working for the 'Brijwasi' people.

She called the water crisis a global issue which should be the concern of every stakeholder. The MP praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he has worked for farmers, women and the poor, and the country had progressed under his leadership.

"It is difficult to find a prime minister like him. Leaders of other parties may say anything but we need to see who has done more work for the country," she said.

Hema Malini, who is a Padma Shri winner and Bharatanatyam dancer, was in Banswara to perform at a religious function.        --  PTI
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17:08   Iran extends shipping, insurance cover to keep oil flowing to India
Iran has begun providing shipping insurance cover as well as its own vessels to continue exporting crude oil to India, its second biggest buyer of oil after China, people with direct knowledge of the development said.

With the United States reimposing economic sanctions against Iran driving away western re-insurers, Tehran has started to ship crude oil to India in its own ships and is also providing insurance cover for the transportation, they said.  -- PTI
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17:00   21 incidents of aircraft engine damage in 2017: Centre
There were 21 incidents of damage to aircraft engines during flights in 2017 and the figure is also the highest in the last four years, according to official data.

A total of 59 such incidents were reported in the last four years starting from 2014, according to the data provided by the Civil Aviation Ministry to the Lok Sabha.

The number of incidents of damage to aircraft engines was 14 in 2014 and 12 each in 2015 and 2016. Last year, the count rose to 21.

"During these incidents there was no consequential damage to aircraft structure," Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said in a written reply.

He was responding to a query about the total number of passenger jets to have suffered mid-flight engine damage or technical difficulties while flying during the last four years.

"The occurrences of engine damage during flight are investigated by the DGCA. Based on the findings of the investigation, corrective actions are taken to avoid the recurrences," the minister said.

He also noted that engines are maintained by aircraft operators as per the maintenance programme prescribed by the aircraft/ engine manufacturer.

To another question on whether the government proposes to formulate a regulatory authority for controlling and monitoring airfares, Sinha replied in the negative.

"Airfares are not regulated by the government," he added.

Further, the minister said that under provisions of the Aircraft Rules 1937, airlines are free to fix reasonable tariff having regard to all relevant factors, including the cost of operation, characteristics of service, reasonable profit and the generally prevailing tariff.

Ticket prices are displayed by airlines on their websites.

Airlines remain compliant with the regulatory provisions as long as the fare charged by them does not exceed the fare established and displayed on their websites, Sinha said.  -- PTI
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16:49   Women in Pakistan's conservative parts cast votes for the first time
For the first time in Pakistan's electoral history, women in some conservative parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces cast their votes in the general elections as candidates sought to fulfil the legal requirement of minimum 10 per cent women's turnout to validate their result.

In the restive Balochistan, too, women came out in large numbers to vote yesterday despite terror attacks and repeated threats, the Dawn reported.

Women in tribal areas and other conservative areas had been barred from voting in the past general elections, as the practice of keeping women away from voting was a norm under verbal and written agreements between candidates and family elders in such areas.

However, for the first time, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) annulled the result of Dir Lower bypolls in 2015 after finding that none of the registered women voters had cast votes.

The Elections Act requires the ECP to declare an election null and void if women's turnout in a constituency is less than 10 per cent of its total polled votes.

Yesterday, candidates and local administration on ECP directives ensured at least 10 per cent turnout of women voters in the districts notorious for barring women from voting.

The measures encouraged women voters not only in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Dir Lower but also in a village of Punjab's Sahiwal district to visit their respective polling stations and cast their vote.

In North Waziristan, Bajaur and other far-flung parts of Mohmand tribal agency also saw a rise in female voters' turnout despite lack of facilities and slow polling process.

Considering past voting trends in the conservative parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the ECP had issued directives to district returning officers and deputy commissioners to ensure women's voting in six districts namely Swat, Dir Lower, Dir Upper, Shangla, Swabi and Batagram.  -- PTI

IMAGE: Women clad in burqas stand in line to cast their ballot at a polling station during general election in Peshawar. Photograph: Fayaz Aziz/Reuters
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16:14   Our system has failed: AAP accepts blame for Delhi starvation deaths
Manish Sisodia, Deputy CM, Delhi, accepts responsibility for the death of three children allegedly due to starvation. Speaking to ANI, Sisodia said, "Our system has failed. I have sought a report from ICDS (Integrated Child Development Services) asking if these people were on our records. If yes, then why were these girls not helped?

"We gave an immediate financial aid of Rs 25,000 and their mother will be admitted to hospital and will make sure that she gets the best treatment. Once their father returns we'll provide more financial help."


The sub-divisional magistrate of Delhi's Preet Vihar area said two separate inquiries have been initiated to probe the death of three sisters in East Delhi.


"We are doing a separate enquiry on the incident apart from the police. Reports of the second post-mortem are yet to come. Last rites have been performed," Preet Vihar SDM Arun Gupta told ANI.


The initial post-mortem examination report indicated that the girls, aged two, four and eight, died of starvation.


Police were reportedly treating it as a case of natural deaths initially, but the recovery of pills and medicine bottles prompted them to look into the poisoning angle.


The girls, who were brought to the hospital by a member of the family, were declared dead on arrival. 

BJP members attacked the Aam Aadmi Party government in the Lok Sabha over the issue today. Raising the matter, Ramesh Bidhuri, Parvesh Verma, and Mahesh Girri claimed there was a "ration scam" in Delhi, resulting in subsidised grains not reaching the poor. The area where the tragedy occurred falls in the constituency of Delhi's deputy chief minister, Bidhuri said attacking the AAP government.
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15:54   Two Indians among 2018 Magsaysay Award winners
Two Indians Bharat Vatwani and Sonam Wangchuk are among the winners of this year's Ramon Magsaysay Award, regarded as the Asian version of the Nobel Prize. The two are among six individuals declared winners today. Vatwani is being recognised for "his tremendous courage and healing compassion in embracing India's mentally-afflicted destitute, and his steadfast and magnanimous dedication to the work of restoring and affirming the human dignity of even the most ostracized," the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation said in its citation for the winner.


Wangchuk, 51, is being recognised for "his uniquely systematic, collaborative and community-driven reform of learning systems in remote northern India, thus improving the life opportunities of Ladakhi youth, and his constructive engagement of all sectors in local society to harness science and culture creatively for economic progress, thus setting an example for minority peoples in the world," it said.


Youk Chhang from Cambodia, Maria de Lourdes Martins Cruz from East Timor, Howard Dee from the Philippines and Vo Thi Hoang Yen rom Vietnam are other winners of the award. The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation President Carmencita Abella said the winners "are clearly Asia's heroes of hope, moving their societies forward through their unequivocal pursuit of the larger good. -- PTI


Do read our piece on Sonam Wangchuk -- Why India must LISTEN to this man -- right here.
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15:24   Donald Trump's Hollywood Walk Of Fame star destroyed by vandal
US President Donald Trump's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame has been destroyed. According to Los Angeles Times, the police arrested Austin Clay, 24, in connection with the apparent act of vandalism. The police said that Clay strode up to Trump's star off Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue and proceeded to destroy the majority of the star with a pick axe which he was carrying in a guitar case. Soon afterward, he surrendered to Los Angeles police and is being held on USD 20,000 bail.  -- PTI
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15:12  
Better relations with India? Don't bet on it. Here's why Imran Khan can't fix Pakistan's foreign policy. Read
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15:02   Encounter underway between terrorists, security forces in J-K
An encounter broke out today between terrorists and security forces in Handwara area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, police said. Security forces launched a search operation in Check Sodul village in Handwara area following information about the presence of terrorists in the area, a police official said. He said the search operation turned into a gun battle when the hiding militants opened fire on the security forces. No casualties had been reported in the exchange of fire between the two sides so far, the official added. PTI
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14:56   Pak polls: Imran Khan calls for a meeting
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan has called for a consultative meeting with his party leaders at his Bani Gala residence in Islamabad on Thursday, according to sources.


The meeting comes after his party has gained inroads in the National Assembly tally, according to unofficial results.The meeting, which is scheduled to be held at 12 pm (local time), will take a call on a future action plan of government formation, Geo News quoted sources as saying.


The party leaders will also contact the winning independent candidates from across the Punjab province.Sources further said that the meeting will also decide a future course of action against the reaction of the opposition parties in connection to the general election results.


The PTI is set to emerge as the single largest party with Imran Khan likely to be the new prime minister of Pakistan.


PTI is leading at 119 seats, while PML-N and PPP are closing in at the second and third positions respectively. Other parties are leading in 20 constituencies so far, while independent candidates are also leading in 20 seats.


Various political parties and journalists have alleged the elections to be rigged in favour of Imran Khan.Pakistan went to polls on Wednesday and the counting of votes began soon thereafter in the evening.
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14:43   Lawyer on Sabrimala entry: SC should not interfere in religious practices
The Pandalam Royal family on Thursday has challenged the petition seeking entry of women to the Sabarimala Temple, terming it to be `mischievous' as seem to be targeting the practices of the Hindu faith.


Advocate Radhakrishnan, arguing for the Pandalam Royal family, told the Supreme Court that it should not interfere with the religious practices that have been in place for generations.


"The petition, seeking entry of women in the age group of 10-50 to the Sabarimala temple, is mischievous since they seem to be targeting only the practices of the Hindu faith. The Apex Court should not interfere with religious practices which have been practised for generations together," Radhakrishnan said during the argument.


While opposing the petition filed by the Indian Young Lawyers' Association, Radhakrishnan argued that the "Will of God requires tapasya", that is 41 days of penance in case of the Sabarimala temple."
-- ANI
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14:36   India should be ready to break Pak into four: Swamy
With army-backed Imran Khan tipped to be the next Prime Minister of Pakistan, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy, on Thursday, expressed apprehension that Pakistan may now carry out a war against India.


Speaking to ANI, Swamy said, "Let us (India) prepare for the possibility that Pakistan may carry out war by miscalculation. We should be ready to finish Pakistan and break it into four and look for that opportunity."


Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party of cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan is surging firmly ahead after Wednesday's elections, but the results are being disputed by candidates and politcal observers as rigged in favour of Khan.


Swamy said, "It's good because he (Imran Khan) is a puppet. It's better to be known as a puppet than pretend not to be a puppet like Nawaz Sharif. They are all puppets. All civilian politicians in Pakistan are puppets of the ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence), military and the Taliban."


This is the second time in Pakistan's 70-year history that the power is transferring from one civilian government to another. Yet, the whole election process remained impaired. -- ANI
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14:24   Are we supposed to correct draft? SC slams UP govt on Taj
The Supreme Court on Thursday pulled up the Uttar Pradesh government for its failure in preserving the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Taj Mahal.


The apex court asked the Uttar Pradesh government, "Who is exactly the in-charge of the Taj Mahal?" In its observation, the court further said, "the left-hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing. It is surprising. Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ) authority has done nothing since it was set up in 1996."


The top court also came down heavily on the state government for filing a draft of the vision document with respect to the Taj Mahal trapezium. The court asked, "Why have you filed a draft? Are we supposed to correct it?"


The court division bench headed by Justice Madan Bhimrao asked the government about the in-charge of the environment protection and redevelopment of the area.


Justice Bhimrao said, "First environment ministry files affidavit, then ASI, then the Uttar Pradesh government. What is happening?"While observing that nobody wants to take responsibility for the world heritage site, Justice Lokur said, "Someone has to take responsibility. There has to be one authority which takes charge. It seems that authorities have washed their hands off the Taj."


"We are now in a situation where a vision document is prepared without the involvement of the ASI," he added. -- ANI
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14:02   Heavy rains lash Delhi, waterlogging, traffic snarls in places
Traffic was severely affected due to heavy rains in the national capital today with waterlogging contributing to chaos at various intersections. According to traffic police officials, vehicular movement was affected at the Vivek Vihar underpass, the Seema Puri underpass and under the Ghazipur flyover. "Traffic is also affected from Narayana T Point to Loha Mandi due to water logging on the Girdhari Lal Goswami Marg in west Delhi. Commuters should avoid the stretch," an official said. Traffic was reported to be affected from Apsara border to Shahdara, Seema Puri to Apsara border and Khaira Mor to Bahardurgarh bus stand in Najafgarh. There was obstruction in traffic from Lal Kuan in south Delhi to Badarpur due to water logging. The traffic police also issued advisories with alternate routes on its Twitter handle for motorists. Heavy rains lashed the city overnight and continued till the morning. The weatherman has predicted more rainfall during the day. --PTI
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13:52   Remembering the martyrs
Internationally acclaimed sand artist Sudarshan Patnaik's homage to Kargil martyrs on Kargil Vijay Diwas.
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13:35   Children are 'prasad', every Hindu should have at least five: BJP MLA
A child is a gift from god and every Hindu should have at least five, two for the man, two for the woman and one surplus, BJP's controversial Uttar Pradesh MLA Surendra Singh has said. Hindus will become a minority if there is "no balance" in population control, the legislator from Bairia, who earlier this month said rape cannot be curbed even if Lord Ram descends on earth, told reporters last night.


"Hindus should have at least five children. Two for the man, two for the woman and one surplus. Giving birth to a child is 'prasad' (gift) from God. India can become strong, when Hindus are strong. When Hindu is weak, India is weak...," Singh said.


According to him, the Hindu community should be concerned that they will become a minority if there is "no balance in population control" and have more children. "Hindus will be a minority, not due to terrorists but due to themselves," he said. Singh's statements have often put the state's ruling BJP in an embarrassing spot.


After the Kairana Lok Sabha and Noorpur assembly bypolls earlier this year, he blamed ministers in the Yogi Adityanath government for the party's humiliating defeat in both places. He had also endorsed the view of senior JD(U) leader K C Tyagi that the rising prices of petrol and diesel were responsible for the BJP's defeat in the by-elections. Before that, Singh had said the 2019 Lok Sabha elections would be an "Islam vs Bhagwan" battle. -- PTI

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13:19   West Bengal will now be called Bangla in all 3 languages
West Bengal Assembly has passed a bill to change the state's name from West Bengal to 'Bangla' in English, Hindi and Bengali. In 2016, the Assembly had passed a resolution changing the name of West Bengal to Bengal in English, Bangla in Bengali and Bangal in Hindi.

The Centre had rejected the earlier proposal of having three names in three different languages.

Minister for parliamentary affairs Partha Chatterjee had said last year that the state cabinet had decided that the state will be renamed Bangla, and will be called so in all languages. The state wants to change its name because West Bengal is always last in a list of states in alphabetical order. The state will again seek the centres approval to change its name, Chatterjee added.

The bill to change the name to Bangla was passed today.


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13:08   Alwar victim's family gets Rs 8 lakh compensation
Haryana: Independent MLA from Haryana's Punahana Rahish Khan gives a cheque of Rs 3 lakh and Haryana government gives a cheque of Rs 5 lakh to the family of Rakbar Khan, victim in #AlwarLynching case
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12:50   2.46 lakh pilgrims pay obeisance at Amarnath, 667 pilgrims leave from Jammu
As many as 2.46 lakh pilgrims have paid obeisance at cave shrine of Amarnath in South Kashmir himalayas till date, as a smaller batch of 667 pilgrims left today Jammu for the yatra, an officials said.


"On the 28th day of the ongoing Amarnath Yatra, 4,502 Yatris paid obeisance at the holy cave. Till date 2,46,667 Yatris had the darshan of the Shivling at the cave shrine last night," an official spokesman said.


Amid tight security, a smaller batch of 667 yatris left Bhagwati Nagar yatri niwas base camp in an escorted convoy of 19 vehicles, they said. The 60-day yatra commenced from the twin routes of Pahalgam in Anantnag district and Baltal in Ganderbal district on June 28. The yatra is scheduled to conclude on August 26 coinciding with 'Raksha Bandhan' festival.
-- PTI
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12:50   2.46 lakh pilgrims pay obeisance at Amarnath, 667 pilgrims leave from Jammu
As many as 2.46 lakh pilgrims have paid obeisance at cave shrine of Amarnath in South Kashmir himalayas till date, as a smaller batch of 667 pilgrims left today Jammu for the yatra, an officials said.


"On the 28th day of the ongoing Amarnath Yatra, 4,502 Yatris paid obeisance at the holy cave. Till date 2,46,667 Yatris had the darshan of the Shivling at the cave shrine last night," an official spokesman said.


Amid tight security, a smaller batch of 667 yatris left Bhagwati Nagar yatri niwas base camp in an escorted convoy of 19 vehicles, they said. The 60-day yatra commenced from the twin routes of Pahalgam in Anantnag district and Baltal in Ganderbal district on June 28. The yatra is scheduled to conclude on August 26 coinciding with 'Raksha Bandhan' festival.
-- PTI
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12:44   My sons' father is Pakistan's next PM: Jemima on Imran Khan
Jemima Goldsmith, who was married to PTI chief Imran Khan, and has two sons with him, took to Twitter to congratulate him as he gets set to be Pakistan's next PM.

Jemima married Imran in 1995 and parted ways in 2004. After the divorce, Khan married twice.

Jemima writes, "I remember IK's (Imran Khan's) 1st election in 1997 - untested, idealistic & politically naive. I waited up for the call in LHR with 3 mo old Sulaiman, who I had lugged around the country. Eventually he called. "It's a clean sweep" & after my gasp, " the other way." He  roared with laughter.

"22 years later, after humiliations, hurdles and sacrifices, my sons' father is Pakistan's next PM. It's an incredible lesson in tenacity, belief  & refusal to accept defeat. The challenge now is to remember why he entered politics in the 1st place. Congratulations @ImranKhanPTI."


Just ahead of the Pak polls, Jemima also wished Pakistan good luck as it went to the polls.

"Happy Election Day Pakistan, you maddening, beautiful, crazy, beloved old friend. Here's hoping the people who count your votes, let your vote count. And you get the leader you believe in. Pakistan Zindabad!", tweeted Jemima.

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12:18   Met Dept. issues heavy rain warning for U'khand
India Meteorological Department on Thursday has issued a warning of heavy rainfall for the next 36 hours for the entire state, including Char Dham Yatra route.


Heavy rains have lashed various locations in the state. National Highway-9 closed down at Dhaun, Champawat due to incessant rains for the past nine hours.Ramnagar too experienced a flood-like situation and roads are being blocked.


Only July 23, Meteorological Department issued a heavy rain alert for the state. The State Disaster Management has also asked the district magistrates to ensure a high level of precaution, safety and traffic are maintained.Along with Uttarakhand, Delhi too experienced heavy rainfall and severe water-logging on Thursday. -- ANI
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12:16   PM Modi to address BRICS Summit in Jo'burg today
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Thursday address the 10th BRICS Summit in South Africa's Johannesburg between 11 am to noon local time. The theme of this year's summit is, 'BRICS in Africa - collaboration for inclusive growth and shared prosperity in the 4th industrial revolution'.


According to sources, Triple "TTT" (Trade, Talks and Terrorism) is the key area which will be also raise by India side.Besides Prime Minister Modi, heads of the four other BRICS nations - Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa - will take part in the meeting.


All nations are expected to deliberate upon global issues, international peace and security, global governance and trade issues among others.The three-day summit began yesterday, with the BRICS Business Forum Meet.  -- ANI

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12:07   India pays tribute to Kargil martyrs
Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman and the three service chiefs laid wreaths and paid homage to the martyrs on Kargil Vijay Diwas at Amar Jawan Jyoti in New Delhi.
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11:50   Radio hosts face backlash for calling NJ's Sikh Attorney 'turban man'
Two radio hosts in the US are facing severe backlash for referring to New Jersey's Sikh-American Attorney General Gurbir Grewal as the "turban man' after some people expressed outrage over the "xenophobic and racist' comments.


Dennis Malloy and Judi Franco, who host the "Dennis and Judi Show" on the radio show NJ 101.5FM, were talking about Grewal's decision to suspend marjiuana prosecutions when they began calling him "turban man."


"You know the attorney general guy? I'm never going to know his name, I'm just gonna say the guy with the turban," Malloy said. "Turban man!" Franco repeated in a sing-song tone. "If it offends you, then don't wear the turban, man, and I'll remember your name," Malloy, said as both the hosts laughed. "But Turban Man -- is that highly offensive?" "To me? No. To people who wear turbans, could be," said Franco. "Could be. But if you called me Baseball Hat Man and I was in a culture where no one wears baseball hats, should I be offended?" Malloy said. "Uh, no. I would say no," Franco replied. "So, anyway. The attorney general -- Turban Man -- says he's not going to prosecute pot things until September," Malloy said, laughing during the conversation.


New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, who had appointed Grewal, strongly condemned the language of the radio hosts, demanding action by the station. "Outraged by the abhorrent and xenophobic comments mocking @NewJerseyOAG on The @DennisandJudi Show on @nj1015. Hate speech has no place in NJ, and does not belong on our airwaves. Station management must hold the hosts accountable for these intolerant and racist comments,' Murphy tweeted.


The radio station later tweeted that it is aware of the "offensive comments" made by Malloy and Franco during the broadcast. "We have taken immediate action and have taken them off the air until further notice. We are investigating the matter and will have further comment shortly," it said in the tweet.


Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla, also a Sikh-American who wears the turban, tweeted, "Hey "Racist Man" @DennisandJudi : I'm a Jersey guy, born & raised, and so is NewJerseyOAG Grewal - this type of racist garbage has no place in Jersey. Get with the program! #RacistManDennis #jerseypride #educateyourself." Bhalla also thanked Murphy for "standing up and speaking out' in support of Grewal. -- PTI
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11:24   Pak poll results perfect for Pak army: Tharoor
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on the possibility of Imran Khan as next Pakistan PM: I think it was completely predictable. For the last year also we have been hearing that the military wants a change, they want to get rid of Nawaz Sharif and his party and that they see Imran Khan as the most pliable potential.

"Imran's is largest single party but without majority by himself. He'll depend on independents and small parties' support, almost certainly MMA, which will follow military instructions which means if he does things military considers out of line, support can be pulled.  In those circumstances, they will get an acceptable face as PM even an inspiring one while making sure that he doesn't get out of hands, doesn't get too independent. So this is a perfect result for the Pakistani military."
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11:16   Imran Khan's PTI still short of simple majority
Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf today inched closer to becoming the single largest party in the country's general elections by leading on 122 seats in an early count of votes, amid charges of rigging by rival political parties. In the eastern city of Lahore, capital of Punjab province and the country's political heartland, PTI supporters rejoiced by waving flags and raising party slogans as results trickled in after the voting yesterday.


The 65-year-old former cricketer's PTI was ahead in 122 of 272 contested National Assembly constituencies, while its main rival Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) was way behind with 65 seats.


The Pakistan People's Party was leading on 44 seats while others were ahead in 17 seats. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) officially announced the first result at 4.00am.

A party can only form the government if it manages to clinch 172 seats in total. A single party will need at least 137 of the directly elected seats to be able to form the government on its own. The PML-N and the PPP, both raised questions on the transparency of the vote counting process, alleging their polling agents were not allowed to verify vote counts as is mandated by law. -- PTI
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11:03   Kargil martyr's father battles on
On the occasion of Vijay Diwas which celebrates India's victory in the 1999 Kargil War, the father of Captain Saurabh Kalia who died when he was tortured in captivity in Pakistan has been demanding justice for his son. He says the PM, Defence Minister & External Affairs Minister had promised that the issue of Capt Kalia's death would be taken up with Pakistan and at the international level but till now no concrete action has been taken.

Said NK Kalia, "We had to move Supreme Court, We understand this is an issue between two nations, I am optimistic in nature and will continue the fight. This issue about the dignity & honour of our armed forces."


Read our 2013 interview with NK Kalia to understand what the issue is about: A father's fight for his martyred soldier son
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10:28   Sensex hits 37,000 mark; Nifty tops 11,100
The BSE Sensex hit the 37,000 level for the first time today on widespread buying in capital goods, FMCG, realty and banking stocks amid heavy buying by domestic institutional investors and positive global cues. NSE Nifty too touched a new peak of 11,172.20.


The 30-share index crossed the 37,000-mark by jumping 156.42 points, or 0.42 per cent, to 37,014.65 in early trade today, breaching its previous intra-day record of 36,947.18 hit yesterday.


Strong gains in capital goods, FMCG, realty, banking, PSU, auto, healthcare, infrastructure, consumer durables and oil and gas stocks helped the index top the new milestone.


The NSE Nifty spurted 40.20 points, or 0.36 per cent, to hit a new peak of 11,172.20, surpassing its previous (intra-day) record of 11,171.55 hit on January 29. Analysts said strong liquidity in the market following unabated buying by domestic institutional investors (DIIs) and encouraging Q1 earnings by some companies lifted the mood. On a net basis, DIIs bought shares worth Rs 97.64 crore while foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 1,195.75 crore yesterday, provisional data showed. Top gainers that helped Sensex scale its new peak were SBI, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors, ITC, Coal India, L&T, ONGC, HDFC Bank, RIL, Maruti, M&M, Bajaj Auto, IndusInd Bank, Kotak Bank and HDFC, rising up to 1.79 per cent. -- PTI
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10:15   History will be kind to me, for I intend to write it: Imran's PTI tweets
Imran Khan's first tweet as the leads in Pakistan polls suggest he will be the country's next PM. "History will be kind to me, for I intend to write it", Imran's party, the @PTIofficial tweeted last night.

The PTI is leading with 122 seats, but still short of majority in the 272 seat assembly.


Sensing victory, hundreds of PTI supporters came out on streets in jubilation. They parked their vehicles in the middle of roads, played loud music and danced through the streets in several cities, including the capital Islamabad.


"We have got our Naya Pakistan," Shahid Ali, one of the supporters, said as he danced euphorically near the busy Faizabad interchange, which links Islamabad with the garrison city of Rawalpindi. The wild celebrations led to traffic jams at many places.
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10:00   Maratha bandh fallout: Internet suspended in Navi Mumbai
Internet services in the neighbouring Navi Mumbai township of Mumbai have been suspended since early today, a police official said. The decision was taken in the wake of the situation in areas like Kopar Khairne, which witnessed violence during the Maratha quota agitation yesterday, he said. The situation in Kopar Khairne was still tense, the official said.


Last evening, the police had lobbed teargas shells and used baton-charge in Kopar Khairane area after a group of protesters stoned vehicles, clashed with local people and indulged in arson. Miscreants had also set fire to a police outpost.


The incidents took place after the Maratha organisations, seeking reservations in government jobs and education, had called off the bandh. A group of protesters who were returning home last night had hurled stones at vehicles of local people in Kopar Khairane, a police official earlier said.


Later, some members of local communities had gathered at the spot and clashed with protesters, he said. The mob then hurled stones in which some offices and shops were damaged. They also set fire to a police chowky (outpost) near D-Mart supermarket in sector 6.


Five to six cars and over a dozen two-wheelers parked in front of the chowky were also vandalised and torched. A restaurant was set on fire in sector 3, the official said. -- PTI


Image: Last night, a mob hurled stones at some offices and shops were damaged. They also set fire to a police chowky near D-Mart supermarket and several vehicles parked there. Pic: ANI
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09:50   Savarkar replaces Nehru in Std X textbook in Goa
The National Student's Union of India (NSUI) has claimed that a photograph of former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru has been replaced by that of pro-Hindutva activist and freedom fighter, Vinayak Savarkar, in Class 10 social science textbooks in Goa.


The Chief of NSUI, the student wing of the Congress Party, claimed that ever since the Bharatiya Janata Party has come to power in Goa, it has tried to impose a right-wing ideology in the minds of people.


"The BJP has been trying to put Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ideology in our minds, ever since they've come to power in Goa," NSUI chief Ahraz Mulla told ANI.


The Congress' student wing chief further said the student body will meet Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar to address their concern.


"Tomorrow, they'll (BJP) remove the photo of Mahatma Gandhi and question us what the Congress has done in 60 years. We'll meet Goa CM (Parrikar), but if he also follows RSS ideology and doesn't put Jawaharlal Nehru's photograph back, we will take to the streets and protest," he said.


The Class 10 textbook titled "India and the Contemporary World II - Democratic Politics" contained a photograph of Nehru, which has been replaced with a coloured photo of Savarkar. -- ANI
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09:33   CNN reporter barred from White House event
The White House has barred a CNN reporter from attending a presidential event, arguing that it expects "everyone to be respectful of the presidency," in a controversial move that invited strong protests from journalists.
The White House Correspondents Association condemned the "misguided and inappropriate decision" to bar Kaitlan Collins from attending a Rose Garden event, which was open to the press, after she shouted a question at US President Donald Trump during an Oval Office media availability.
Collins had asked the question as a pool reporter during Trump's Oval Office photo-op with visiting European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.
Defending its decision, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders asserted that the Trump administration is supportive of a free press but wants "everyone to be respective of the presidency".
"At the conclusion of a press event in the Oval Office a reporter shouted questions and refused to leave despite repeatedly being asked to do so. Subsequently, our staff informed her she was not welcome to participate in the next event, but made clear that any other journalist from her network could attend," Sanders said after outrage from reporters.
"She said it didn't matter to her because she hadn't planned to be there anyway," Sanders said.
CNN's Jim Acosta in a tweet described it as "a new low for the White House" and said his colleague Collins deserves better.
The White House Correspondents Association has lodged its protest. While the Trump administration has experienced continuous friction between reporters and the White House, this is possibly for the first time that a reporter has been barred from attending a White House event.
"We strongly condemn the White House's misguided and inappropriate decision today to bar one of our members from an open press event after she asked questions they did not like.  This type of retaliation is wholly inappropriate, wrong-headed, and weak," WHCA president Olivier Knox said.
"It cannot stand. Reporters asking questions of powerful government officials, up to and including the president, helps hold those people accountable. In our republic, the WHCA supports the prerogative of all reporters to do their jobs without fear of reprisal from the government," Knox said.
CNN's rival network Fox News expressed its solidarity with the reporter and opposed the White House decision in this regard. "We stand in strong solidarity with CNN for the right to full access for our journalists as part of a free and unfettered press," Fox News president Jay Wallace said. -- PTI
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09:27   Doubts raised in US over fairness of Pakistan elections
Pakistan watchers in the United States today doubted the fairness of the general election for which Imran Khan's party received the army's backing while the PML-N and the Pakistan People's Partyran their campaigns "under constraints".
The Trump administration said it was closely monitoring the situation in Pakistan but refused to declare the polls "free and fair". 

The State Department too refused to confirm that. Its mission in Pakistan did not deploy election observers primarily because of security concerns.
"We continue to monitor developments and have consistently emphasised our support for free, fair, transparent and accountable elections in Pakistan, as we do around the world," a State Department spokesperson told the Press Trust of India.
Husain Haqqani, a former Pakistan ambassador to the US,  said that the result of the election was "foretold".
"PML-N and PPP were running under constraints and PTI was operating with complete freedom and establishment backing."
Haqqani, who is with the Hudson Institute think-tank,  said the result was unlikely to change anything in Pakistan, unless the military-led establishment decides to shutdown its "jihad business" and recognises it as the source of the country's isolation and economic difficulties.
"It is unlikely that a prime minister Imran Khan will act decisively against jihadis, given his sympathy for their cause but miracles can happen," Haqqani said.
The comments came as political parties in Pakistan, including the incumbent Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, too raised allegations that the election was manipulated and rigged in PTI chief Khan's favour.
At a midnight press conference when the vote count was underway, PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif said the election was a "blatant violation" of the mandate of the people. Pakistan Peoples Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari too raised doubts over the slow pace of vote count and other procedural irregularities.
"There are serious allegations of tampering and interference for virtually all parties except the PTI. So the Election Commission of Pakistan will have to respond -- but it is unclear how," former state department official Alyssa Ayres, who is now with the Council on Foreign Relations, said.
In an early-morning press conference, the Election Commission rejected the charges, saying it did "our job right." -- PTI
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08:33   Pak polls: EC rejects rigging allegations; PML-N warns of protests
The Election Commission of Pakistan has rejected the "blatant" rigging allegations levelled by the incumbent Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz after trends showed Imran Khan's party was inching towards majority, saying it did "our job right."
In an unusual press conference at 4am local time, Chief Election Commissioner Muhammad Raza Khan congratulated the people of Pakistan for participating in the election process.

He, however, acknowledged that the delay in announcement of election results has "caused some annoyance".
The short pace of counting has given currency to the allegations of manipulation of the election process. The results were expected by this morning, but the CEC only announced what he called was the "first non-official, preliminary result".
The CEC stressed the delay was on account of a new system -- Results Transmission System -- introduced by it.
"We were implementing it for the first time. Therefore, there was some delay," Dawn online quoted him as saying.
Asked about the doubts and the allegations, he said: "We will prove ourselves that we did our job right."
The early-morning press conference came hours after Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz president Shehbaz Sharif in Lahore outrightly rejected the results, alleging "blatant" rigging of the election, even though the vote count was under way.
Sharif warned his party would launch protests against the alleged rigging. He did not say who he believes could have rigged the polls, but allegations of manipulating the elections have been made against the country's powerful military.
"Some five other parties including PPP have raised the rigging issue in polls. After consulting them, I will announce the future course of action. Pakistan has suffered today," he told journalists at the press conference in Lahore. -- PTI
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01:41   Trump 'erupted with rage' when Melania's TV was on CNN, says leaked email
On the US First Couples recent trip overseas, Melania Trumps television aboard Air Force One was tuned to CNN. US President Donald Trump was not pleased.

He raged at his staff for violating a rule that the White House entourage should begin each trip tuned to Fox -- his preferred network over what he considers the fake news CNN -- and caused a bit of a stir aboard Air Force One, according to an email obtained by The New York Times.

The email, an internal exchange between officials in the White House Military Office and the White House Communications Agency last Thursday, also called for the ordering of two additional televisions to support Beam, a TiVo-like streaming device, to make sure the president and first lady could both watch TV in their separate hotel rooms when they travel.

At the end of the email chain, officials confirmed that tuning the TVs to Fox would be standard operating procedure going forward.
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01:17   Bilawal says delay in vote count 'inexcusable and outrageous'
PPP Chairman took to Twitter to hit out against delays in the vote count process as well as alleged blocking of PPP polling agents from polling stations.

On Twitter, Bilawal Bhutto wrote, "Its now past midnight & I havent received official results from any constituency I am contesting my myself. My candidates complaining polling agents have been thrown out of polling stations across the country. Inexcusable & outrageous."

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00:44   Shahbaz Sharif holds presser mid-vote count: 'We reject this result'
PML-N frontrunner Shahbaz Sharif is raising questions about the vote counting process at a press conference in Lahore.

"Until a little while ago, no official results of Lahore constituency were in," said Shahbaz. "From Rahim Yar Khan to the rest of Pakistan, we are getting complaints that we [PMLN polling agents] are not getting form 45 and that our people are being removed from polling stations."

"We reject this result," he said about the preliminary vote count.

According to unofficial, preliminary results received so far from 20 per cent polling stations, PTI is ahead on 105 National Assembly seats.

PML-N has the second highest number of seats at 71 while the PPP is so far ahead on 39 seats.
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00:39   No new Trump-Putin talks until next year: White House
US President Donald Trump has decided to push back his next talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin until next year, after the US probe into Moscow's election interference concludes, his national security advisor said today.
  
Trump's summit with Putin in Helsinki on July 16 drew fierce criticism at home, but the White House had said plans were underway for a follow-up meeting in the fall in Washington.

White House National Security Advisor John Bolton, however, said that those talks will now not take place before 2019.

"The president believes that the next bilateral meeting with President Putin should take place after the Russia witch hunt is over, so we've agreed that it will be after the first of the year," Bolton said.
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00:27   BJP MLA demands release of cow vigilantes arrested in Alwar lynching case
BJP MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja today demanded the release of three persons arrested for allegedly lynching 28-year old Rakbar Khan on suspicion of the victim's involvement in smuggling cows.
 
Ahuja made the demand after state Home Minister Gulabchand Kataria ordered a judicial inquiry considering Khan's demise a case of 'custodial death'. 

The home minister has acknowledged that Akbar alias Rakbar Khan, who was accused of cow smuggling, died in police custody. It was repeatedly said by the MLA that he was not killed by the people and he died in police custody. When the home minister has admitted the fact of the custodial death, why innocent cow vigilantes and villagers are being made accused? a statement issued by Ahuja's office said. 

They should be released with immediate effect. It is also demanded that the second accused of cow smuggling Aslam be arrested immediately, the statement said. 

-- PTI
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00:04   India now knows how to handle Doklams: BJP's Ram Madhav
BJP General Secretary Ram Madhav today said India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has become a confident and pro-active nation that knows how to handle Doklams, but has stopped dictating terms like a big brother to sovereign neighbours as was being done by the previous governments.

The cold war mentality if you are not with me, you are my enemy; and we are scared of you if you are talking to another country is no longer our approach, he said, while adding a caveat that India expects its neighbouring countries to recognize its strategic concerns.

Madhav also said that a conducive atmosphere was a necessary pre-requisite for a natural friendship, while referring to Pakistan.

He also said the Modi government has applied a policy of pro-active diplomacy together with strong ground posturing to deal with the border conflict with China.

Talking about todays elections in Pakistan, he said, Every elections we see with lot of hope. Our immediate western neighbour is going to polls today and in Pakistan we do hope that we will have a government that reciprocate to approach of our government.

The approach of sovereign equality, natural friendship not something based on conditions, he said.

However, he cleared that for natural friendship to happen a conducive atmosphere is a necessary pre-requisite.

-- PTI

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