Some parties have been trying to gain political advantage from the Ayodhya issue ahead of the general election, Communist Party of India leader D Raja said Thursday, urging people not to fall "in to the trap".

The Central Information Commission has directed the Cabinet Secretariat and National Security Council Secretariat to furnish reply to an RTI applicant seeking to know qualifications of National Security Advisors appointed since 1998.   

The finance ministry Thursday said the fifth tranche of electoral bonds sale will take place from October 1-10.   

The model code of conduct will come into force immediately in states where legislative assemblies have been dissolved prematurely and the caretaker government will be barred from announcing new schemes, the Election Commission (said Thursday.


In a communique to the cabinet secretariat, the EC said the model code will apply to the caretaker state government as well as the central government in matters relating to that particular state.


The decision assumes importance as the Telangana assembly was dissolved recently before its term came to an end. Its term was to end in June, 2019.


The model code usually comes into force the day EC announces polls and remains enforced till the electoral process is completed.


"Consequently, neither the caretaker state government nor the central government shall announce any new schemes, projects, etc., in relation to that state or undertake any of the activities prohibited under the Model Code of Conduct," the EC said.


The commission made it clear that all other prohibitions, such as use of official resources for any non-official purposes, combining of official visit with electioneering, will be applicable on all ministers and other authorities of the caretaker state government, central government as well as governments of other states.


The EC said its directions are in line with a 1994 Supreme Court verdict which said a caretaker government should merely carry on with the day-to-day governance and desist from taking any major policy decision. -- PTI


Image: Telangana chief minister and TRS President K Chandrashekhar Rao addresses party workers before submitting his government's recommendation for dissolving the assembly to the governor, in Hyderabad. The Telangana assembly was dissolved this month.

Rahul Gandhi will end up being "Ra-fail" in his endeavour to "mislead" people on the Rafale deal, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said today as he took a swipe at the Congress president amid the raging political storm over the purchase of the fighter jets.


He also asked Congress leaders to advise Gandhi against using "derogatory" language to target the prime minister, an apparent reference to the main opposition party chief's "chor" (thief) jibe at Narendra Modi.


"It is not Rafale...It is Ra-fail (Rahul-fail)...He will be a failure. Rahul Gandhi knows the truth about the Rafale deal but is trying to mislead the people on the issue," Singh told a meeting of the Kerala state council of the BJP.


The meeting was called to ratify the appointment of P S Sreedharan Pillai as the party's new state chief. In an apparent reference to Pakistani leaders targeting Modi over the Rafale issue, Singh said, "You know the truth but knowingly or unknowingly you are talking in support of Pakistan."


After New Delhi cancelled the meeting between the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly over the killing of policemen in Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan's Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Hussain had said it was done to divert the attention from the Rafale "scandal".


Pakistan's former interior minister Rehman Malik had also said Rahul Gandhi will be next Prime Minister of India if he followed "Jetgate" (Rafale deal) properly. "If you repeat a lie many times, people are bound to start believing it. That is what the opposition leaders are doing on the Rafale issue," Singh said.


Without referring directly to Gandhi's "chor" barb, Singh said,"The Congress president is using deregatory remarks against the prime minister. Congress should advise its chief not to lower the dignity of his own postition with such remarks against the prime minister." -- PTI

The cash-strapped government of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan Thursday garnered Rs 23 lakh when it auctioned eight buffaloes kept by his predecessor Nawaz Sharif at the PM House for his "gastronomic requirements".


Facing huge debts and liabilities, Prime Minister Khan has launched a massive austerity drive. Under the plan, the government auctioned 61 luxury cars last week, raising some Rs 200 million.


The plan is to auction 102 surplus cars, including bullet proof vehicles, and four helicopters used by the Cabinet Division. The sale of three buffaloes and five calves belonging to the PM house fetched a total of Rs 2,302,000 in an auction held in Islamabad, Dawn newspaper said, adding that most of them were purchased by supporters of the three-time prime minister.


Of the eight buffaloes sold, one was purchased by a Sharif supporter, Qalb Ali, who spent Rs 385,000 for the bovine. Though the animal's actual valuation was a mere Rs 120,000, Ali, a resident of Jhangi Sayedan, an area close to Islamabad, said he paid triple the amount on account of its sentimental value.


"I purchased this buffalo owing to my affection for Nawaz Sharif," he said. "I will keep it as a symbol of Nawaz Sharif and our sister, Maryam Nawaz (Sharif's daughter)."


Two of the four calves were purchased by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) worker Fakhar Warraich for Rs 215,000 and Rs 270,000. Another man purchased the third calf for Rs 182,000, Geo News reported.


Sharif, 68, was sentenced to 10-years in jail in a corruption case in July. He was released on bail this month after a top court suspended the sentence.  -- PTI

Stocks spiraled lower for the second straight session Thursday after the US Fed hiked interest rates and struck a hawkish stance amid rising crude oil prices.


The BSE Sensex tumbled 218.10 points to 36,324.17, while the NSE Nifty dropped 76.25 points to finish below the 11,000-mark.


Moreover, September futures and options (F&O) expiry added to market volatility as investors offloaded their long bets instead of carrying them forward to the next series for October, brokers said.


Participants remained cautious after the government increased import duties on select goods to stem the rupee's fall and the RBI announced measures to ease liquidity concerns.


Global markets reeled after the US Fed raised interest rates for the third time this year Wednesday and said it foresees another rate hike in December, three more next year, and one in 2020. The BSE benchmark Sensex, after opening positive, advanced to a high of 36,711.62 on covering-up of short positions in select stocks. -- PTI

Kerala cabinet to give Rs 50 lakh as compensation to former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan. He was earlier granted compensation by the Supreme Court for being arrested in alleged spying case.


Twenty-four years after he was wrongfully arrested in the Indian Space Research Organisation espionage case, space scientist Nambi Narayanan was on Friday awarded Rs 50 lakh as compensation by the Supreme Court for suffering 'immense humiliation' at the hands of the Kerala police whose action was dubbed by the court as 'psycho-pathological treatment'.

The apex court while directing the Kerala government to pay the compensation amount within eight weeks also ordered a high-level probe into the role of the erring cops in arresting and causing 'tremendous harassment' and 'immeasurable anguish' to the 76-year old former scientist of the ISRO.

Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani met Wednesday Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat to discuss investment possibilities in the state in different sectors, including agriculture, communication, tourism and energy.


Appreciating the interest shown by the Adani Group in investing in Uttarakhand, Rawat said the state government's impetus to investments was being appreciated by entrepreneurs across the country who had a big role to play in the economic development of the state and employment generation.  


Adani, who called on the chief minister at his residence here on Wednesday evening, was assured of an investment-friendly environment, an official release here said.  Rawat expected support from Adani group in aromatic plants and horticulture sectors. 


Adani showed interest in the construction of the ropeway in Dehradun, Mussoorie, Nainital, Hemkund Sahib, Yamunotri and Kedarnath. -- PTI

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said changes will be made to the Goods and Services Tax to reduce rates on items, if his party comes to power.


On a visit to various places in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, he also continued his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Rafale fighter deal, alleging that "the watchman has indulged in theft."


Gandhi, who began his two-day tour of Madhya Pradesh, was addressing a gathering after visiting the famous Kamta Nath temple in this religious town associated with Lord Rama. He said the Modi government has "destroyed" small businesses and employment through demonetisation and 'Gabbar Singh Tax', a reference to GST.

The Reserve Bank of India has cancelled the Friday's meeting with the shareholders of debt-laden Infrastructure Leasing and Finance Services (IL&FS), according to banking sources. The apex bank had earlier called a meeting with key shareholders of IL&FS, including LIC and State Bank of India, after the company and its subsidiaries defaulted on repayments of various debt instruments. -- PTI

The Supreme Court said, while giving its verdict on whether a Constitutional bench should hear whether a mosque is an integral part of Islam, that the civil suit on the Ayodhya land dispute will be heard on October 29.


The case will be heard by a newly constituted three-judge bench as Justice Dipak Misra will retire on October 2 as the CJI.


The issue whether mosque is integral to Islam had cropped up when the three-judge bench headed by CJI Misra was hearing the batch of appeals filed against the Allahabad High Court's 2010 verdict by which the disputed land on the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid area was divided in three parts.


A three-judge bench of the high court, in a 2:1 majority ruling, had ordered that the 2.77 acres of land be partitioned equally among three parties -- the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla.

In conclusion: The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to refer to a five-judge Constitution bench the issue of reconsideration of the observations in its 1994 judgement that a mosque was not integral to Islam which had arisen during the hearing of Ayodhya land dispute.


In a majority verdict of 2:1, the apex court bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra said the civil suit has to be decided on the basis of evidence and the previous verdict has no relevance on it. Justice Ashok Bhushan, who read out the judgement for himself and the CJI, said it has to find out the context in which the five-judge had delivered the 1994 judgement.


Justice S Abdul Nazeer disagreed with the two judges and said whether mosque is integral to Islam has to be decided considering belief of religion and it requires detailed consideration. He referred to the recent Supreme Court order on female genital mutilation and said the present matter be heard by larger bench.  --  PTI

Pronouncement concludes. The three-judge bench of the Supreme Court will decide the title dispute. No reference to larger Bench, the Supreme Court says in a 2:1 majority. Justice Nazeer's was the only dissenting voice. Justice Ashok Bhushan on behalf of CJI Dipak Misra said that all places of worship equal and are libale to be acquired. There can be no exception to the 1994 judgment. The 1994 Ismail Faruqui judgment was only in relation to land acquisition and is not applicable to the Ayodhya case.

Justice SA Nazeer disagrees with CJI and Justice Bhushan.

This is his judgment:

-- Whether mosque is integral to Islam to be decided considering belief of religion, requires detailed consideration. Questionable observation of 1994 verdict has permeated into Allahabad High Court's decision in land dispute case.

-- Justice Nazeer refers to observations of HC judge S A Khan to highlight that mosque is not integral to Islam.


-- Justice Nazeer also refers to recent SC decision on female genital mutilation and says present matter be heard by larger bench.

Supreme Court to begin hearing on the Ayodhya matter from October 29, 2018 and to decide the suit on merit. This is the title case. 

To summarise: The Supreme Court Thursday declined to refer to a five-judge Constitution bench the issue of reconsideration of the observations in its 1994 judgement that a mosque was not integral to Islam that arose during the hearing of Ayodhya land dispute.


The issue had cropped up when a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra was hearing the batch of appeals filed against the Allahabad High Court's 2010 verdict by which the disputed land on the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid area was divided in three parts.


A three-judge bench of the high court, in a 2:1 majority ruling, had ordered that the 2.77 acres of land be partitioned equally among three parties -- the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla. -- PTI

Just in: Justice Bhushan says the Ayodhya land dispute case will not be referred to a larger bench. He is delivering the verdict on behalf of the CJI Dipak Misra as well.

The Constitution bench judgement was confined to acquisition of land. All religions have to be respected equally by the State.

Justice Ashok Bhushan has begun reading out the judgement on whether a mosque is integral to Islam. Justice Bhushan will be reading the verdict on behalf of the CJI Dipak Misra. The other judge in the three-judge bench Justice S Abdul Nazeer will be pronouncing his judgment separately. This is not to say that it is a dissenting judgment.


Justice Bhushan reading out the observations in the 1994 Ismail Faruqui case on mosques says it is not essential to religion is in the context of acqusition of mosque and made with respect to the facts of that case. The observation in para 52 of Ismail Faruqui has to be understood in the context of immunity from acquisition.

Ashok Bhushan says, "We have to find the context in which 5 judges delivered the 1994 verdict in the Ismail Farooqi case that mosque is not integral to Islam. Earlier finding that mosque is integral to Islam was made in context of land acquisition of immunity from acquistion."


The court will pronounce its decision on the limited aspect of whether the law laid down by the Supreme Court in its 1994 judgment in Ismail Faruqui v. Union of India should be revisited by a Constitution Bench.

The Indian Navy has planned a two-day event starting September 29 in Mumbai and Goa to commemorate the second anniversary of the surgical strike carried out by the defence forces in 2016 to smash terror camps, an official said Thursday.


The event, which will take place in the Ballard Pier Cruiser Wharf at Naval Dockyard here under Western Naval Command, will have exhibition stalls and video walls, the Navy official said.


The entry for the event will be from Tiger Gate, the official informed. "The events will showcase the gallant action of the Army in carrying out the surgical strike on September 29, 2016, and will also remember the sacrifice of Indian soldiers during the Uri incident," the official said. -- PTI

Salman Khan approaches the Supreme Court alleging threats received for the movie Loveratri. CJI Dipak Misra agrees to hear the matter today.


The Supreme Court has also stayed an FIR filed against the makers of LoveYatri after Salman Khan moved the apex court alleging threats from several Hindu right-wing groups. The court has also stated that any further complaints against the movie will not be entertained. The court's decision comes after Salman Khan, the producer of the film, approached the apex court on 27 September seeking protection from Hindu fringe groups and a go-ahead to release the film. 

The vice chief of Indian Air Force Air Marshal SB Deo, is understood to have accidentally shot himself in his thigh, sources said Wednesday. They said he was rushed to a military hospital in Delhi where he underwent a surgery. His condition is stable.


However, there was no official comment on the incident from the IAF. He had taken over as vice chief of the Air Staff in January, 2017. -- PTI

A man wanted in connection with 13 cases of rape and molestation of minor girls in Mumbai and neighbouring areas has been arrested, police said Thursday.


Rehan Qureshi, a salesman, was nabbed Wednesday by the Navi Mumbai Crime Branch from Mira Road area in the adjoining Thane district after he was identified through a CCTV footage following two incidents of crime, a police official said.


The man, in his 30s, was accused in 13 cases of rape and molestation of minor girls in the slum areas of Mumbai, the neighbouring Navi Mumbai town, and Thane and Palghar districts, he said.


While investigating these cases, the Navi Mumbai Crime Branch came identified him through the CCTV footage of cameras at the Mira Road railway station and also in Navi Mumbai, after he allegedly sexually abused two girls, aged 13 and 15, at Nallasopara in Palghar, he said.


he modus operandi of the accused was to approach a girl at her house by telling that her father had called her, he said. When the victim accompanied him believing his claims, the accused would take her to an isolated place and commit the offence, the official said. -- PTI

The National Commission of Women chief Rekha Sharma welcomed the judgement striking down the adultery law saying it should have been removed long time ago.


"This is a law from the British era, although British had done away with it long back, we were still stuck with it," she said. Her views were echoed by many lawyers and activists.


While adultery should not be a criminal offence, the bench held that adultery should continue to be treated as civil wrong, and can be grounds for dissolution of marriage or divorce. There can't be any social licence which destroys a home, Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra said.


Section 497 of the 158-year-old IPC says: "Whoever has sexual intercourse with a person who is and whom he knows or has reason to believe to be the wife of another man, without the consent or connivance of that man, such sexual intercourse not amounting to the offence of rape, is guilty of the offence of adultery."


Adultery was punishable by a maximum five years in jail or fine or both. The apex court pronounced four sets of concurring judgements to declare penal provision on Adultery and section 198 of CrPC dealing with prosecution of offences against marriage as unconstitutional.

The following is the chronology of events leading to the Supreme Court Thursday declaring as unconstitutional the penal provision on adultery, saying it was manifestly arbitrary and dents the individuality of women.


*Oct 10, 2017: Plea filed in SC challenging the constitutional validity of Section 497 of IPC, by an NRI from Kerala, Joseph Shine, who in his petition said Section 497 was "prima facie unconstitutional on the ground that it discriminates against men and violates Article 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution".


*Dec 8: SC agrees to examine the constitutional validity of penal provision on adultery.


*Jan 5, 2018: SC refers to a five-judge Constitution bench the plea challenging the validity of the penal law on adultery.


*Jul 11: Centre tells SC that striking down Section 497 will destroy the institution of marriage.


*Aug 1: Constitution bench commences hearing.


*Aug 2: SC says matrimonial sanctity is an issue but the penal provision on adultery is apparently violative of the right to equality under the Constitution.


*Aug 8: Centre favours the retention of penal law on adultery, says it is a public wrong which causes mental and physical injury to the spouse, children and the family.


*Aug 8: SC reserves verdict on pleas challenging the constitutional validity of the penal law on adultery in the hearing that went on for six days.


*Sep 27: SC holds Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code as unconstitutional and strikes down the penal provision. -- PTI

India has raised objections over Pakistan raising the Kashmir issue at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation meeting, saying it is completely "unwarranted" for the grouping as well as its member countries to discuss matters related to India's internal affairs in any multi-organisation set up.


Pakistan raked up the Kashmir issue at the OIC Contact Group meeting held Wednesday on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly.


"We always note with regret that the matter which is very internal to Indian affairs was again discussed at the OIC," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar told reporters when asked about Pakistan raising the issue at the OIC meeting.  -- PTI

Suicide is the top cause of death among young Indians, yet we lack a national awareness programme that relates it to individual and social health.
Read more

A summarisation of the landmark verdict by the five-judge bench of the Supreme Court today decriminalising and striking down Section 497 of the IPC which deals with adultery.


The Supreme Court Thursday declared as unconstitutional the penal provision on adultery, saying it was manifestly arbitrary and dents the individuality of women.


A five-judge Constitution bench was unanimous in holding Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code, dealing with the offence of adultery, as unconstitutional and struck down the penal provision.


Section 497 of the 158-year-old IPC says: "Whoever has sexual intercourse with a person who is and whom he knows or has reason to believe to be the wife of another man, without the consent or connivance of that man, such sexual intercourse not amounting to the offence of rape, is guilty of the offence of adultery." The offence of adultery entailed a maximum punishment of five years, or with fine, or both.


The bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices RF Nariman, AM Khanwilkar, DY Chandrachud and Indu Malhotra held that Section 497 is unconstitutional.


The CJI and Justice Khanwilkar said: "We declare Section 497 IPC and Section 198 of CrPC dealing with prosecution of offences against marriage as unconstitutional".


Justice Nariman termed Section 497 as archaic law and concurred with the CJI and Justice Khanwilkar, saying that the penal provision is violative of the rights to equality and equal opportunity to women.


Justice Chandrachud said Section 497 destroys and deprives women of dignity.


Justice Indu Malhotra, the lone woman judge on the bench, said that Section 497 is clear violation of fundamental rights granted in the Constitution and there is no justification for continuation of the provision.


The CJI, who wrote the judgement for himself and Justice Khanwilkar, said adultery dents the individuality of women and it is not a crime in countries like China, Japan and Australia. Adultery might not be cause of unhappy marriage, it could be result of an unhappy marriage, the CJI said.


The CJI said unequal treatment of women invites the wrath of the Constitution.


The apex court's five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra said the beauty of the Constitution is that it includes "the I, me and you". Reading out the judgement, the CJI said that equality is the governing parameter of the Constitution. The court said any provision treating women with inequality is not constitutional and it's time to say that husband is not the master of woman.


The CJI said section 497 of the IPC is manifestly arbitrary the way it deals with women. The bench held that adultery can be treated as civil wrong for dissolution of marriage. There can't be any social licence which destroys a home, the CJI said, but added that adultery should not be a criminal offence. The court said adultery can be a ground for civil wrong, a ground for divorce but not a criminal offence.


Justice Chandrachud said autonomy is intrinsic in dignified human existence and Section 497 denudes women from making choices and held adultery as a relic of past. Legislature has imposed a condition on sexuality of women by making adultery as offence, he said, adding that section 497 is denial of substance of equality. He said Section 497 is held to be unconstitutional as adultery is manifestly arbitrary. -- PTI


Representational image from the film, Murder 2

Justice Indu Malhotra says Section 497 is clear violation of fundamental rights granted in Constitution. Adultery could be a moral wrong towards spouse and family but question is whether it should be a criminal offence? The answer, is 'no' and she adds that there is no justification for continuation of Section 497 of the IPC.


A little more from Justice DY Chandrachud  (remember, he was the only dissenting voice in the verdict on the Constitutional validity of Aadhaar, yesterday). He says Section 497 perpetuates subordinate status of women, denies dignity, sexual autonomy, is based on gender stereotypes.

Justice Chandrachud says Section 497 is based on women as chattel and seeks to control the sexuality of woman, hits the autonomy and dignity of woman,. He says legislature has imposed a condition on sexuality of women by making adultery as offence. Section 497 is a denial of substance of equality. He holds adultery as a relic of past. Autonomy is intrinsic in dignified human existence and Section 497and denudes women from making choices, he says.


Another big takeaway from the judgment is that adultery can be ground for divorce and a person will have civil remedies for it, the court said.

Justice Indu Malhotra also concurs with the other four judges. So, that's an unanimous verdict.

This is Justice Rohinton Nariman's judgement:

--  Ancient notions of man being perpetrator and woman being victim no longer holds good.

-- Section 497 is an archaic law, manifestly arbitrary.

Justice Chandrachud's judgment: A woman loses her voice, autonomy after entering marriage and manifest arbitrariness is writ large in Section 497.

Section 497 offends sexual freedom of women. Law deprives married women the agency of consent. and destroys and deprives women of dignity.

CJI and Justice Khanwilkar: We declare Sect 497 IPC and Sec 198 CrPC dealing with prosecution as unconstitutional.

CJI Dipak Misra also said that mere adultery can't be a crime, unless it attracts the scope of Section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the IPC.

Justice Chandrachud also concurring with the other three judges.

To bring you up to speed, the five-judge bench wrote four separate judgments. CJI Misra wrote on behalf of himself and Justice Khanwilkar. Justices Nariman, Chandrachud and Malhotra wrote a judgment each.

Verdicts from Justices DY Chandrachud and Indu Malhotra still pending, but with the CJI, Justice Khanwilkar and Justice Nariman concurring that Section  497 (Adultery) of the IPC is unconstitutional, retrograde and arbitrary, the Supreme Court bench has stuck down the archaic 1860 colonial law.

Justice Chandrachud now reading out his verdict.

CJI Dipak Misra reading out the verdict on the petition challenging the validity of Section 497 (Adultery) of IPC

-- In case of adultery, criminal law expects people to be loyal which is a command which gets into the realm of privacy.

-- Adultery might not be the cause of an unhappy marriage, it could be the result of an unhappy marriage.

-- Equality is the governing principle of a system. Husband is not the master of the wife.

-- Parameters of fundamental rights should include rights of women. Individual dignity important in a sanctified society.

-- System can't treat women unequally. Women can't be asked to think what a society desires.


Justice Rohinton Nariman concurs with CJI Misra and Justice Khanvilkar's verdict striking down the constitutional validity of the adultery law.  It's a majority verdict.

Section 497 of the IPC, Drafted in 1860, criminalises adultery with up to five years imprisonment, while defining the perpetrator as whoever has sexual intercourse with a person who is and whom he knows or has reason to believe to be the wife of another man, without the consent or connivance of that man, such sexual intercourse not amounting to the offence of rape, is guilty of the offence of adultery


CJI Dipak Misra says the magnificent beauty of the democracy is I, you and we. Section 497 is manifestly arbitrary, offends dignity of women.

The CJI is reading out the verdict on behalf of himself and Justice AM Khanwilkar. He said, "Adultery can be ground for civil issues including dissolution of marriage but it cannot be a criminal offence."


The CJI states he has relied heavily on Triple Talaq judgment of Justice Rohinton Nariman.


The CJI says mere adultery cannot be a crime, unless something else is added. The Chief Justice says a law which affects equality of women is manifestly arbitrary.

A five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court is pronouncing its judgment on the validity of section 497 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which criminalises adultery.

The pronouncement of the judgment has commenced, with the Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra saying that a 'husband is not the master of a woman." 

United States President Donald Trump said he turned down a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, amid escalating trade tensions between the two countries.


Speaking to reporters in New York on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Trump said that he was unhappy with Canada's style of negotiations, as well as their representative.


"His (Trudeau's) tariffs are too high, and he doesn't seem to want to move, and I've told him 'forget about it,'. We're very unhappy with the negotiations and the negotiation style of Canada. We don't like their representative very much," The Hill quoted Trump, as saying.


However, Canadian officials, in response to the same, told The Hill that they had not put forth a request for a meeting with the US President.


The development comes less than a month after Trump threatened to exclude Ottawa from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between American and Canadian officials if a "fair deal" for Washington was not drafted. -- ANI


File pic: Ivanka Trump's tweeted this image in the Oval Office during Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's visit to the US in 2017.

A woman from Hyderabad who was stranded in Kuwait was rescued by Indian embassy officials after her mother wrote a letter to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj.


Speaking to ANI, the woman alleged that an agent lured her with the promise of a lucrative job in Kuwait as a beautician. However, she said that she was forced to work as a housemaid and was subject to regular torture by her employees.


"I was approached by an agent who promised a beautician job in Kuwait at a monthly salary of Rs 20,000 per month. Believing her, I left for Kuwait on April 9. But after landing there I realised that there was no beautician job but my employer made me work as a housemaid. My employer started harassing and torturing me daily, they also beat me up many times. I was fed up with the harassment and informed my mother," she said.


Subsequently, the victim's mother wrote to Swaraj for assistance, after which Indian Embassy officials brought the woman back to India from Kuwait.


"My mother wrote a letter to EAM Sushma Swaraj to rescue me. Later, Indian embassy officials rescued me from my employer's residence and sent me back to Hyderabad. I reached here on September 21. I would like to thank Swaraj for helping me," the victim said. -- ANI

Students of a government school from Champaran who were on an excursion as part of the Mukhyamantri Bihar Darshan Yojna were allegedly made to sleep on the streets outside Patna zoo on Tuesday night (September 25). 

Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty gave up most of their initial gains after investors turned cautious ahead of September futures and options (F&O) expiry Thursday amid weak Asian cues after the US Fed raised interest rates for the third time this year. Investor sentiment was briefly boosted after the government Wednesday raised import duties on 19 items, including jet fuel and air conditioners, as it looks to check the widening current account deficit resulting from high crude oil prices and the rupee dipping to a historic low.


However, the 30-share BSE index, after rising over 169 points at the outset on short-covering in view of ending September series expiry in the derivatives segment and strength in the rupee, turned choppy and was trading 56.18 points, or 0.15 per cent, higher at 36,598.45 at 0930 hrs.


The gauge had lost 109.79 points on Wednesday. The 50-share NSE Nifty also turned volatile and was up 18 points, or 0.16 per cent, at 11,071.80 after touching a high of 11,084.55. Top gainers include Asian Paints, Tata Motors, Infosys, Wipro, SBI, NTPC, Aani Ports, Bajaj Auto, TCS, Yes Bank, Hero MotoCorp and RIL, rising up to 1.91 per cent.


Major losers were HDFC, M&M, ICICI Bank, Vedanta, Bharti Airtel, HDFC Bank, Coal India and ITC, falling up to 0.61 per cent. The rupee strengthened by another 22 paise to quote at 72.38 against the dollar in early trade at the forex market. -- PTI