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Fri, 25 June 2021
50L could be infected in 3rd wave: Maha minister
Timeline Refresh
23:31 50 lakh could be infected in 3rd wave: Maha minister
As many as 50 lakh people including five lakh children could be infected in Maharashtra in a possible third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, state Food and Drug Administration Minister Rajendra Shingne said on Friday.
Talking to reporters at Buldhana, the minister said a third wave could have eight lakh active cases at its peak.
"About five lakh children may be infected, of which 2.5 lakh may need admission in government hospitals. All these possibilities were discussed during this week's cabinet meeting chaired by chief minister Uddhav Thackeray," he said.
The Maharashtra government was taking steps to face a possible third wave by ramping up health infrastructure, ensuring adequate stock of medicines and keeping ready healthcare staff including pediatriacians for deployment, Shingne added. -- PTI
22:56 Fake vaccine camp comes to light in Thane
A case was registered in Naupada in Thane district in connection with the organisation of a bogus COVID-19 vaccination camp, police said on Friday.
The accused held a camp for 116 employees of an insurance firm, charging each Rs 1,000 for vaccine doses, Senior Inspector Anil Mangle of Naupada police station said.
"Some of the people named in the Naupada case are accused of organising such camps in Mumbai as well. Of the 116 employees who got jabs in the camp here, only four got certificates. They found something suspicious and filed a case," Mangle said.
He said no arrest has been made, adding that the complaint names as accused Mahendra Singh, Shrikant Mane, Sanjay Gupta, Seema Ahuja and Karim. -- PTI
22:15 1st Delta-plus variant case found in Rajasthan
The first case of the Delta-plus variant of coronavirus in Rajasthan has been found in Bikaner.
The sample of a woman who was tested positive for coronavirus was sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune on May 30 for genome sequencing and her test report came on Friday.
The Delta-plus variant was found in the woman's sample.
She has already recovered from the Covid infection, Bikaner's Chief Medical and Health Officer, Dr O P Chahar, said.
He said it was the first confirmed case of the Delta-plus variant in the state.
She was asymptomatic and has recovered completely.
She had already received both doses of Covaxin, Dr Chahar said.
The CMHO said the sampling will be conducted on Saturday in the Bangla Nagar area where the woman lives.
The Medical and Health Department's joint director, Dr Devendra Chaudhary, said the woman is aged 65 years.
The COVID-19 tally in Rajasthan, meanwhile, rose to 9,51,826 on Friday with 131 fresh cases, officials said.
The death toll stood at 8,905 as no new fatality was reported in the state due to coronavirus.
Of the 131 cases, 17 were reported from Jodhpur, among others.
A total of 9,41,048 patients have recovered from the disease so far and there are 1,873 active cases in the state. -- PTI
21:36 Pragya Thakur targets martyred cop Karkare again
Bharatiya Janata Party MP Pragya Singh Thakur on Friday alleged that Hemant Karkare, the former Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad chief who investigated the 2008 Malegaon blast case in which she is an accused, had tortured her former teacher during questioning.
Speaking at a function in Sehore, the Bhopal MP said Emergency-like situation prevailed when she was arrested in a 'false case' in 2008, and alleged that Karkare, during his probe, 'broke the fingers of my teacher who had taught me in Class eight asking what I used to do (as a student)'.
It was done to 'cook up a false case and gather false evidence', said Thakur, adding that true patriots do not call Karkare, a Maharashtra IPS officer who died in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack, a patriot.
In 2019, Thakur had said that Karkare died as she had 'cursed' him for ill-treating her in custody.
She later apologised when the remark caused outrage. -- PTI
21:21 Chardham yatra to open partially from July 1
Uttarakhand Cabinet on Friday decided to partially open the Chardham yatra for locals in limited numbers from July 1.
Briefing reporters about the cabinet's decision, state government's spokesman Subodh Uniyal said Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri will be opened for residents of Chamoli, Rudraprayag and Uttarkashi districts respectively from July 1 with a cap on the number of pilgrims to visit the temples daily.
Bringing a negative RT-PCR/Rapid Antigen test report will be mandatory for every pilgrim and the SOPs to be followed by them while visiting the temples will be issued separately, Uniyal said.
A senior official will be appointed for each of the four Himalayan temples who will coordinate with the district administration concerned about the arrangement for pilgrims, he added.
Asked whether the Chardham yatra will open for pilgrims from across the state from July 11 as planned earlier, the spokesman said it will depend on the overall Covid situation.
"There are predictions about the third wave and the Delta mutant of the pandemic. That will have to be taken into account before we go ahead with the decision to open the yatra for the whole of the state. The Cabinet will sit again to take a call on that," Uniyal said.
Uttarakhand high court had recently reprimanded the state government for the 'haste' being shown in opening the Chardham yatra and asked it to either suspend or defer it. -- PTI
21:07 Maha govt to 'vaccinate everybody' in 3 months
With Maharashtra becoming the first state in the country on Friday to administer three crore coronavirus vaccine jabs, the state government said it can cover the entire eligible population within the next three months if the supply by the Centre kept up.
Availability of vaccine doses was no longer an issue, state Health Minister Rajesh Tope said at 'Digital Dialogue', an event organised by his party, the Nationalist Congress Party.
Vaccine availability is not an issue now. We have administered over three crore doses so far, and with increased pace, Maharashtra can vaccinate its entire eligible population in the next three months, he said.
Maharashtra has the capacity to administer 10 lakh doses per day. If the Union government increases its supply to match the state's capacity, we can vaccinate the entire population in three months, he said.
As of Friday afternoon, Maharashtra had administered 3,00,27,217 vaccine doses.
Tope also said he has requested Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar to increase the budgetary allocation for the health department.
The NITI Aayog has recommended an expenditure of five per cent of the GDP for the health sector. In reality, it is only 0.9 to 1 per cent. I have asked the government to increase the allocation so that more infrastructure can be developed, he said.
There is scope to increase the number of primary healthcare centres, rural hospitals and sub-centres, the minister said, adding that the state health department was going to fill all 17,000 sanctioned posts soon. -- PTI
20:20 India, China to maintain dialogue over Ladakh
India and China on Friday agreed to maintain dialogue and communication to reach a mutually acceptable solution for complete disengagement in all friction points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh to enable progress in the overall bilateral ties.
The two countries agreed to this as they held another round of diplomatic talks to resolve the prolonged border standoff in eastern Ladakh that erupted in early May last year.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the two sides agreed to hold the 12th round of military talks at an early date to achieve the objective of complete disengagement from all the friction points along the LAC in the western sector in accordance with the existing bilateral pacts and protocols.
The diplomatic talks took place under the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC).
The MEA said the two sides had a frank exchange of views on the situation along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.
'Both sides agreed on the need to find an early resolution to the remaining issues along the LAC in eastern Ladakh keeping in view of the agreement reached between the two Foreign Ministers in September 2020,' it said.
'In this regard, the two sides agreed to maintain dialogue and communication through the diplomatic and military mechanisms to reach a mutually acceptable solution for complete disengagement from all friction points so as to ensure full restoration of peace and tranquillity to enable progress in the bilateral relations,' the MEA said in a statement.
The MEA said it was also agreed that in the interim, the two sides will continue to ensure stability on the ground and prevent any untoward incident.
'The two sides agreed to hold the next round of the Senior Commanders meeting at an early date to achieve the objective of complete disengagement from all the friction points along the LAC in the Western Sector in accordance with the existing bilateral agreements and protocols,' the ministry added. -- PTI
19:56 18-year-old accused in Mumbai new year eve death gets bail
A sessions court in Mumbai on Friday granted bail to an 18-year-old girl who is an accused in the Jhanvi Kukreja murder case, while the rejecting the bail of another.
Kukreja (19) was found dead with severe injuries on the staircase of a residential building in Khar, in the western suburbs of the metropolis, in the early hours of January 1 post a new year's eve party, which she had attended with the two accused, Diya Padalkar and Shree Jogdhankar.
Judge MM Umar on Friday granted bail to Padalkar and rejected the plea of Jogdhankar.
The reasoned copy of the order has not been made available as yet.
Padalkar's lawyer, Ashok Mishra, told court his client was not involved in the matter, nor were there witnesses who had seen her harming Kukreja in any manner.
Moreover, nothing incriminating was found in the seizure made at the building where the victim was found, Mishra said.
Special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat opposed the bail pleas of both accused, saying the two had equal roles to play in the murder.
This was Padalkar and Jogdhankar's second bail application.
Reacting to the court's order, Jogdhankar's lawyer, Mahesh Vaswani, said his client was innocent and that they would move the Bombay high court soon.
Vaswani also accused the police of suppressing video footage of the place where the incident occurred.
19:22 Govt extends various I-T compliance deadlines
The government on Friday extended deadlines for various income tax compliances and said the amount paid by an employer to employees for COVID-19 treatment would be tax exempt.
Also, ex gratia payment received from employer by family members in case of death of an employee due to COVID-19 would be exempt from income tax.
The income tax department, in a statement, said the payment deadline for Vivad Se Vishwas direct tax dispute resolution scheme has been extended by two months till August 31.
Taxpayers can make payments till October 31 with additional amount of interest.
The last date for PAN-Aadhaar linking too has been extended by three months to September 30, 2021.
The deadline for employers to furnish Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) certificate in Form 16 to employees too has been extended till July 31, from July 15, 2021. -- PTI
19:12 Pakistan continues to be in FATF 'Grey List'
Pakistan continues to remain in the 'Grey List' of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) as the global body against money laundering and terror financing on Friday said that Islamabad has failed to take action against United Nations-designated terrorists like India's most wanted Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar.
The FATF also said that Pakistan should continue to work to address its strategically-important deficiencies.
FATF president Marcus Pleyer said the decision has been taken at the conclusion of the virtual plenary of the Paris-based organisation.
Pakistan continues to remain on 'increased monitoring list', Pleyer said at a virtual press conference.
'Increased monitoring list' is the another name for the 'Grey List'.
Pleyer said Pakistan has now completed 26 of the 27 action items given to it 2018.
The FATF has asked Pakistan to take action against UN designated terrorists, he said.
The UN designated terrorists based in Pakistan include Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Azhar, Lashker-e-Tayiba (LeT) founder Saeed and its 'operational commander' Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi.
Azhar, Saeed and Lakhvi are most wanted terrorists in India for their involvement in numerous terrorist acts, including 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks and bombing of a Central Reserve Police Force bus at Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.
Pleyer said the Pakistan government has failed to check risk of money laundering, leading to corruption and terror financing,
'The FATF encourages Pakistan to continue to make progress to address as soon as possible the one remaining Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT)-related item by demonstrating that Terror Financing (TF) investigations and prosecutions target senior leaders and commanders of UN designated terrorist groups,' an FATF statement said. -- PTI
The FATF also said that Pakistan should continue to work to address its strategically-important deficiencies.
FATF president Marcus Pleyer said the decision has been taken at the conclusion of the virtual plenary of the Paris-based organisation.
Pakistan continues to remain on 'increased monitoring list', Pleyer said at a virtual press conference.
'Increased monitoring list' is the another name for the 'Grey List'.
Pleyer said Pakistan has now completed 26 of the 27 action items given to it 2018.
The FATF has asked Pakistan to take action against UN designated terrorists, he said.
The UN designated terrorists based in Pakistan include Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Azhar, Lashker-e-Tayiba (LeT) founder Saeed and its 'operational commander' Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi.
Azhar, Saeed and Lakhvi are most wanted terrorists in India for their involvement in numerous terrorist acts, including 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks and bombing of a Central Reserve Police Force bus at Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.
Pleyer said the Pakistan government has failed to check risk of money laundering, leading to corruption and terror financing,
'The FATF encourages Pakistan to continue to make progress to address as soon as possible the one remaining Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT)-related item by demonstrating that Terror Financing (TF) investigations and prosecutions target senior leaders and commanders of UN designated terrorist groups,' an FATF statement said. -- PTI
19:09 Delhi's 'Baba ka Dhaba' owner discharged from hospital
South Delhi eatery 'Baba ka Dhaba' owner Kanta Prasad has returned home after being discharged from the Safdarjung hospital, police said on Friday.
Prasad, 81, attempted suicide on June 17, police had earlier said. He had consumed alcohol and sleeping pills following which he was admitted to the hospital, police officials had said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (south) Atul Kumar Thakur said Prasad returned home after being discharged from the hospital on Thursday and is currently taking rest at his home.
Prasad told the police that he was getting calls from various people asking him to apologise to YouTuber Gaurav Wasan, said a senior officer.
Prasad felt depressed and took the extreme step, the senior police officer said, adding that no case has been registered in this matter so far.
"I was discharged on Thursday. I just want Wasan to stay happy and leave us on our own," Prasad said after coming back home.
However, Wasan told PTI that he has no idea who all were calling Prasad.
"How would I know who was calling him and asking him to apologise to me? When I saw him on the media apologising (to me), I went to meet him. He was saying sorry to me. I felt bad and asked him not to say so as he is elder than me.
"I never blamed him and said anything against him. I have also uploaded a video on my social media handle when I met him last time at his dhaba," Wasan said.
On June 17, the police received information from the Safdarjung Hospital that Prasad had been admitted there.
The police reached the hospital and collected the MLC (medico-legal case) which mentions intake of alcohol and sleeping pills as the cause of unconsciousness.
The statement of Prasad's son Karan was recorded.
He said said in the statement that his father consumed alcohol along with sleeping pills.
Prasad shot into the limelight last year when a video of him tearfully talking about the lack of customers at his eatery and his financial woes went viral, triggering an outpouring of support in cash and kind from all over the country.
The video was shot and uploaded by Wasan.
Later, the octogenarian filed a complaint against Wasan for alleged misappropriation of funds raised through donations.
Prasad went on to open a restaurant.
However, he faced losses and had to shut it down.
Recently, Prasad returned to his 'dhaba' and apologised to Wasan.
The YouTuber visited Prasad and accepted his apology. -- PTI
Some of the accused in the case
18:22 Mumbai vax camp fraud: 'Vaccines' had saline
The Mumbai police has formed a special investigation team to probe a fake COVID-19 vaccination camp racket that took place in several places in the metropolis, leading to the arrest of 10 persons, a senior official said on Friday.
The police investigation has also found that the so-called COVID-19 vaccine doses administered to the victims contained saline water, he added. A total of Rs 12.40 lakh, which was taken as vaccine cost and camp fees by the organisers, has been recovered along with a car, the official added.
"Prima facie, the probe has found the accused gave doses containing saline water. Some of the victims had complained about vaccine vials used in the camps having broken seals. Considering the danger in which the accused put people at these camps, we have slapped section 308, which is for attempt to culpable homicide not amounting to murder, apart from other IPC provisions," said Vishwas Nangre Patil, Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order).
The Joint CP, addressing a press conference, said at least nine such camps were held in Mumbai between May 25 and June 6, and seven cases have been registered at various police stations here so far.
He said the police had received information about a camp that was held for over 500 people on April 24, adding that all such inoculation events where the beneficiaries did not receive certificates will be checked starting from April 24.
"So far, the police has recorded the statement of at least 200 people, and have recovered 114 duplicate certificates which were uploaded on CoWin app. The accounts of main accused Mahendra Pratap Singh, who owns an event management firm, and Manish Tripathi, who has a nursing institute, have been frozen.
Singh's firm was actively involved in organizing such camps and it was manned by students from Tripathi's institute," the Joint CP informed. He said the vaccine vials were provided by Shivam Hospital in Charkop in Kandivali, and Dr Shivraj Pataria and Neeta Pataria have been arrested in this connection.
18:06 Actor Payal Rohatgi arrested for `threatening' residents of housing society
Bollywood actor Payal Rohatgi was arrested by the Ahmedabad city police on Friday for allegedly threatening the residents of her housing society, an official said.
An FIR was registered against her on Thursday based on a complaint lodged by society chairman Dr Parag Shah, inspector A S Roy of Satellite police station said. The 36-year-old actor, who has been living with her parents in a posh society in Satellite area for the last over one year, was booked for uttering obscene words (IPC section 294-b), intentional insult (504) and criminal intimidation (506), said Roy, quoting the FIR.
In his complaint, Shah claimed that Rohatgi has been harassing society members including children for some time, and she once even threatened children that she would "break their legs" if they played in the common area of the society.
Although she does not own a house in the society herself, she attended its annual general meeting with her parents on June 20 and refused to leave despite being pointed out that she was not a member, Shah alleged.
Rohatgi abused society members during the meeting and posted an abusive message on the society's WhatsApp group, the FIR alleged.
Representational image
18:03 Lankan Navy "opens fire," nine TN fishermen escape unhurt
Nine fishermen escaped unhurt when Sri Lankan naval personnel allegedly opened fire on their boats while they were returning from the Palk Straits after fishing.
At least four boats in which they were on were riddled by bullets fired by the Lankan Navy and one bullet each was recovered from two boats, Arokiyam, fishermen's representative and also a fisherman, told reporters.
"Luckily, nine of us escaped unhurt," he said.
A fisheries department official said he has received a complaint from fishermen, seeking action to protect them. They had to face the "Lankan bullets" on their return early on Friday and the island Navy also fired in the air, the representative alleged, adding they had set out for fishing on Thursday in more than 200 boats with 1,500 fishermen.
This is the third instance of "Lankan Navy opening fire" on fishermen in recent times and they were fishing on the Indian side of Palk Straits, he said. The two bullets that were found in boats were handed over to fisheries authorities, he added. Video clips of boats riddled by bullets surfaced in the social media as well. -- PTI
17:53 Yogi's exam with Modi tomorrow
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to present the future vision of Ayodhya's development including modernisation, roads, infrastructure, railway station, airport, pending projects to PM Modi in a virtual meet tomorrow.
Yogi Adityanath had called on the Prime Minister in New Delhi on June 12.
The chief minister was on a two-day visit to the national capital to meet the BJP top brass.
His visit came close on the heels of the party holding a series of review meetings in Lucknow, which had fuelled speculation of a ministerial reshuffle in the state.
17:37 Parl panel to probe Prasad's Twitter block
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who is Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology, on IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad being locked out of his Twitter account. "I can state that we'll be seeking an explanation from Twitter India for locking of RS Prasad's and my accounts and rules and procedures they follow while operating in India."
Twitter on Friday temporarily blocked IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad's account for alleged violation of the US Copyright Act, a move that the minister slammed as being arbitrary and gross violation of IT rules.
Only adults are being vaccinated against Covid in India
17:16 India won't be vaccinating children against Covid for now
GoI on vaccinating children: "Whether very small children will ever need vaccine, is still a question. Till such time, we've more data on vaccination of children, we won't be in a position to vaccinate children at large. However, we have started a small study on children between the age of 2-18 years and we shall have results of that by September or so. However, international jury is still not out and they're still debating whether children need to be vaccinated. We've seen some complications in the US."
17:06 Court remands Iqbal Kaskar in seven-day NCB custody in drugs case
A court at Bhiwandi in Thane district of Maharashtra on Friday remanded Iqbal Kaskar, underworld don Dawood Ibrahim's brother, in the custody of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) for seven days to facilitate his questioning in a drugs case.
Iqbal Kaskar was arrested by the NCB on Wednesday after his alleged involvement in the case surfaced following the recent seizure of 27 kg of hashish.
In 2017, Kaskar was arrested by police in neighbouring Thane in an extortion case.
He is currently lodged in a Thane jail for the offence commited under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). On Friday, he was produced before the magistrate, who sent him to the NCB custody for interrogation in the case pertaining to the seizure of hashish.
"On perusal of the remand report and case diary, it appears that the case is of serious nature triable by special court. Hence, sufficient opportunity of investigation is required," the magistrate said, while handing over his custody to the anti-drugs agency.
The NCB had recently arrested seven persons in two cases in which 27 kg of hashish was recovered. During investigation, it came to light that the narcotics drug was sourced from Jammu and Kashmir. Besides, the alleged role of Kaskar surfaced in the case, officials had said. PTI
17:04 Covishield, Covaxin work against all 4 Covid-19 variants: Govt
Balram Bhargava, Director General, ICMR on the Delta Plus variant: "Covidshield and Covaxin work against the variants of SARS CoV 2 -- alpha, beta, gama as well as delta. Delta Plus is present in 12 countries; 48 cases have been identified in India but more importantly, they have been very localised. This virus has also been isolated and cultured now.
"We are doing the same test that we have done for alpha, beta, gamma and delta. We are looking at the laboratory test to check the vaccine effect and we should have the results in about 7 to 10 days time."
16:55 90% of Covid cases from Delta variant: Govt
At least 90% of COVID-19 cases in India being driven by B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant, says the government. "As of today, there are 48 cases of Delta Plus across the country," Dr SK Singh, National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Director, says. "8 states are important where we have found more than 50% of the variant of concern (Delta variant). These are Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, Telangana & West Bengal."
16:21 776 doctors died in Covid 2nd wave, most in Bihar: IMA
The Indian Medical Association says 776 doctors have died during second wave of -pandemic; maximum 115 doctors lost their lives in Bihar, followed by Delhi (109).
16:17 Covid messiah Sonu Sood launches rural vax initiative
There's no stopping actor Sonu Sood! On Friday, he came up with one more initiative to extend his support to people amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
He has now launched COVREG, which aims to create a volunteer programme for COVID-19 vaccination registration in rural India. The particular initiative is powered by rural fintech leader Spice Money, which will provide the technological expertise for building the application, and will onboard volunteers through the website www.covreg.in.
Opening up about the initiative, Sonu said, "Vaccination is the need of the hour in India to win the battle against COVID-19. Rural India continues to struggle in coping with the pandemic and is now also struggling with vaccine registrations. So, COVREG is created based on a detailed understanding of rural India and its needs observed through months of on-ground work."
"COVREG addresses rural-specific issues of vaccine registration and provides much-needed assistance to hesitant rural citizens. The trust that a neighborhood volunteer warrants will be an additional push towards registration," he added.
Also, COVREG has been authorised by the Ministry of Health, Government of India as an Application Service Provider (ASP), with protected CoWIN APIs.
16:15 Twitter locks RS Prasad out of his account
IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad says he was denied access to his Twitter account for almost an hour "on the alleged ground that there was a violation of Digital Millennium Copyright Act of the USA "
Prasad said subsequently he was allowed access to his account.
He says Twitter's actions were in gross violation of Rule 4 (8) of Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, where they failed to provide him any prior notice before denying access to his account.
Twitter and the government have been at loggerheads over multiple instances in the past months, including during the farmers' protest and later when the microblogging platform tagged political posts of several leaders of the ruling party BJP as "manipulated media", triggering a sharp rebuke from the Centre.
Earlier this month, the Centre had issued a notice to Twitter giving it one last chance to "immediately" comply with the new IT rules and warned that failure to adhere to the norms will lead to the platform losing exemption from liability under the IT Act.
16:15 Sensex surges 226 points to end at record high; Nifty tops 15,850
Equity benchmark Sensex jumped 226 points to end at a fresh lifetime high on Friday, boosted by ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and Infosys amid positive cues from global markets. The 30-share BSE index closed 226.04 points or 0.43 per cent higher at record 52,925.04.
Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty advanced 69.90 points or 0.44 per cent to 15,860.35. Tata Steel was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising over 4 per cent, followed by Axis Bank, SBI, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finserv, L&T and Maruti.
On the other hand, Reliance Industries, NTPC, HUL, Titan and Asian Paints were among the laggards. "Domestic equities rose mirroring an upbeat mood in the global markets after US President Joe Biden embraced Senate infrastructure deal to help stimulate the economy.
16:12 Indian woman admits stabbing minor daughter to death at home in UK
A 36-year-old Indian woman in the UK has pleaded guilty to manslaughter by diminished responsibility after she admitted killing her five-year-old daughter at their home because she was terrified of dying from COVID-19 and thought the little girl could not live without her, according to a media report.
Sutha Sivanantham stabbed her daughter Sayagi in the bedroom of their south London flat 15 times before severely injuring herself on June 30 last year, the Metro.co.uk reported.
Her husband said she had been 'petrified' about catching the virus and the lockdown restrictions may have 'pushed her over the edge,' the report added.
Appearing at the Old Bailey on Thursday, Sivanantham denied murder but admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility and will be kept in hospital indefinitely. Sivanantham, who had been living in the UK since 2006 after an arranged marriage, complained of mystery ailments for almost a year before the tragedy.
She developed a 'morbid concern' she was seriously ill and had become convinced she was going to die, prosecutors said.
On the day of the attack, she begged her husband not to go to work and called friends to tell them she was unwell. At around 4 pm neighbours went to the flat in Monarch Parade, Mitcham, and found Sivanantham with stab wounds to her abdomen. Sayagi, who was lying on the bed, had been stabbed several times in the neck, chest and abdomen.
Sutha was also found to have suffered self-inflicted stab injuries and was taken to hospital, where she remained for more than two months receiving treatment before being discharged into police custody.
Sainsbury's worker Suganthan Sivanantham was called at the supermarket to be told that his wife had killed their daughter at their home, the report said.
He sobbed loudly in the dock as his impact statement was read to the court. It said: I get very emotional having to relive what has happened to my daughter and my wife.' He said before the killing the family had lived a happy fulfilling and blissful life.' Since then he has had to give up work and each day is a struggle.' Sivanantham said he has not spoken to his wife but accepts she was not responsible for her actions. -- PTI
15:47 How the international Press stood by Indian democracy during Emergency
It is clear that the saga of struggle against Emergency would never be complete without recognising the role of foreign press during that era. The country will remain indebted to them for their contribution towards saving Indian democracy. Read the column here.
15:41 SII begins production of gamechanger Covavax
Pune-based Serum Institute India, the world's largest manufacturer of vaccines, announced that a new milestone has been reached. "This week we began our first batch of Covovax (a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Novavax) at our facility," SII sources said.
However, SII can't scale up production until the US provides raw materials.
The SII has also initiated the phase II and phase III bridging trials for the vaccine.
In January, the SII announced plans to conduct clinical trials of the Covid-19 vaccine in the country with hopes to launch it in June, but will now likely be available in September.
15:25 Maha 1st state to vaccinate 3-cr people: Govt
Maharashtra becomes first state in the country to administer 3 crore covid vaccine doses. Maharashtra crossed this milestone at 2 pm today. So far, 3,00,27,217 vaccine doses have been administered in the state: Dr Pradip Vyas, Health Secretary said.
However, the state has 21 Delta Plus Covid variant patients of which, one 80-year-old with co-morbidities has died.
A single-day rise of 51,667 COVID-19 infections took India's case tally to 3,01,34,445 while the weekly positivity rate declined to 3 per cent, according to Union Health Ministry data on Friday.
14:58 Maharashtra reports 1st death from Delta Plus variant in Ratnagiri
Maharashtra reports its first death from Delta Plus Variant, an 80-year-old Ratnagiri local has passed away.
Delta has become a dominant variant in India due to its improved ability to jump to new hosts and by wiping out the large parts of population immunity in people, a new study has suggested.
Kerala Women's Commission Chairperson MC Josephine
14:33 Women's panel chief quits over 'you suffer' remark
Kerala Women's Commission Chairperson MC Josephine tenders her resignation after her 'then you suffer' remark to a domestic violence victim.
"I didn't say this. There are women who aren't willing to listen to us. We suggest to the women to file a complaint making the case stronger as we can't reach everywhere," MC Josephine, said.
"A woman on call said she was being tortured by her husband and mother-in-law. I got to know that she didn't file complaint. Later, I realised that I shouldn't have reacted in such manner. I'd like to express regret if my words have hurt her."
Josephine lost her cool during a live television show when a woman who called into the TV show to speak about her husband and mother-in-law beating her, said she hadnt complained to the police or told a soul about the thrashings she got at home.
Then you suffer, OK, Josephine shot back and disconnected the line. The states woman panel chief was on the show, a special programme put together by a Malayalam channel, to focus attention on women harassed and assaulted at home.
Sushil Kumar (in red)
14:27 Sushil Kumar sent to Tihar Jail
Wrestler Sushil Kumar was shifted from Mandoli jail to Tihar jail, today. The Delhi Police Special Cell arrested Sushil Kumar on May 23, in connection with the murder of wrestler Sagar Rana at Chhatrasal Stadium.
14:25 CBI, ED should probe Ram temple purchase: Raut
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Friday said the alleged financial irregularities in the purchase of land by the Ram temple trust in Ayodhya was a fit case for probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation as well as the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
He said the BJP's national executive should pass a resolution to demand investigation by these agencies in the land case. Raut was responding to reporters' query on the ED's searches at former state home minister Anil Deshmukh's premises in Nagpur and Mumbai on Friday as part of a money-laundering probe against him.
Hitting out at the Maharashtra unit of the BJP for passing a resolution in its executive demanding CBI and ED probe against Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and Shiv Sena minister Anil Parab, Raut said, "Are the CBI and the ED your party workers or members of the IT cell?"
The Rajya Sabha member accused the BJP of lowering the importance of the central investigating agencies - CBI and ED - by using them for targeting political rivals. "It is not right to misuse the central investigating agencies. This should stop. It is understandable if the agencies probe cases of national security, loss to national treasury, money laundering. But why are you maligning the image of these agencies?" Raut asked.
14:21 Wife castrates imam, kills him for planning 2nd marriage
An Imam in a village here was castrated and beaten to death by his first wife for planning another marriage, police said on Friday. The incident took place in Shikarpur village in Muzaffarnagar on Thursday evening when Hazra injured Maulvi Vakil Ahmad, Imam at a mosque in Bhora Khurd Village.
She told police that her husband was planning another marriage and an argument over the issue turned violent, leading to his death. A case was registered against her at Bhorakla police station, Station House Officer (SHO) Nitendra Singh said, adding the victim's body was sent for postmortem. PTI
14:06 Rebuilding, says SRK on 29 years in cinema
Proclaimed as 'King of romance', superstar Shah Rukh Khan clocked 29 years in the Hindi Film Industry on Friday. The actor whose debut film 'Deewana' was released in 1992, thanked his fans for all the love they have been showering on him for almost three decades.
Taking to his Twitter handle, SRK wrote, "Been working. Just saw the 'overwhelmed ness' of the lov of nearly 30 yrs u r showering on me here. Realised it's more than half my life in the service of hoping to entertain u all. Will take out time tomorrow & share some love back personally. Thx needed to feel loved...."
"Its the best 30 years of my life and still counting," the actor added and said he was "Rebuilding."
To commemorate his impeccable journey in the Bollywood industry, several fans have taken to social media to celebrate the day with a trending hashtag, #29GoldenYearsOfSRK.
One fan wrote, "#shahrukhkhan Nothing to the world's biggest Superstar, a journey which inspire millions of middle class people that "kuch banne ke liye taqat ki nahi... niyaat ki zarurat hoti hai #29GoldenYearsOfSRK ."
"Dear @iamsrk, seeing you act even after 29 years, seeing the same level of passion in you, it's so inspiring. For me, u r not just an actor, but a superstar who is still ruling our hearts... Thank you for ur wisdom. Thank you for existing. #29GoldenYearsOfSRK," wrote another fan.
'Deewana', the romantic action drama directed by debutante Raj Kanwar with a screenplay written by Sagar Sarhadi and produced by Guddu Dhanoa and Lalit Kapoor, starred Divya Bharti, Rishi Kapoor and Khan in the leading roles.
After responding to his fans on Twitter, King Khan, bid adieu saying, "Now need to get back to the rains.love you all and thanks for all the wishes and #AskSrk . As always sorry for all not getting replies.but we have a long journey together so will be in touch soon."
13:49 'mRNA Vaccines Are Extraordinary, but Novavax Is Even Better'
At the end of January, reports that yet another COVID-19 vaccine had succeeded in its clinical trials -- this one offering about 70 percent protection -- were front-page news in the United States, and occasioned push alerts on millions of phones.
But when the Maryland-based biotech firm Novavax announced its latest stunning trial results last week, and an efficacy rate of more than 90 percent even against coronavirus variants, the response from the same media outlets was muted in comparison.
The difference, of course, was the timing: With three vaccines already authorized for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the nation is "awash in other shots' already, as the The New York Times put it. Read more
13:29 Keep O2 reserve of 3 weeks: Task Force to states
The Supreme Court-appointed National Task Force (NTF) of top medical experts, set up to formulate a methodology for allocation of oxygen to states and union territories, has recommended that the country should have strategic reserves of the gas for 2-3 weeks of consumption on the lines of the arrangements made for petroleum products.
The 12-member NTF also said that all hospitals should have a buffer capacity for emergencies and they should set-up oxygen monitoring committees of senior staff.
The top court had set up the NTF on May 6 to formulate a methodology for allocation of oxygen for saving lives of COVID-19 patients and to facilitate a public health response to the pandemic. "We should have strategic reserves of oxygen for the country to cover 2-3 weeks' consumption, similar to the arrangement made for petroleum products. Similarly, all hospitals should have a buffer capacity for Emergencies, the NTF said.
Dealing with augmenting the supplies of liquid medical oxygen or LMO, based on present and projected demands during the pandemic, the panel said that about 20 per cent buffer capacity of the states' requirement should be created for allocation over and above baseline demand for allocation to states with rising cases of COVID-19.
Efforts are to be made to further scale up LMO production in preparation of the next pandemic. There is an urgent need to increase production of LMO from about 5 per cent - 8 per cent of gaseous industrial oxygen. Government should support and subsidize concerned industries.
The panel suggested that in an emergency, the states may actively explore setting up some field/make-shift hospitals in proximity of industrial oxygen production units which can supply piped oxygen with necessary modifications and strict quality control and technology to be put in place to convert nitrogen plants to oxygen producing plants in case of an emergency situation.
13:20 President, First Lady take a train to their village
President Ram Nath Kovind along with his wife boards a special train from Safdarjung railway station for his hometown in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Railways Minister Piyush Goyal and Railway Board Chairman and CEO Suneet Sharma also present.
13:11 Narada scam: SC annuls HC order refusing to accept replies of Mamata, law minister
The Supreme Court Friday annulled the Calcutta High Court's June 9 order refusing to take reply-affidavits of West Bengal, its Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and state Law Minister Moloy Ghatak on the CBI's transfer plea related to the Narada scam case.
A vacation bench of Justices Vineet Saran and Dinesh Maheshwari urged the 5-judge bench of the High Court, headed by Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal, to decide afresh the pleas of Banerjee, Ghatak and the state government before deciding on the CBI petition seeking transfer of the scam case to the high court itself.
The top court was hearing three appeals including that of the state government challenging the high court's denial for filing of affidavits by Banerjee and Ghatak in their role on the day of arrest of four Trinamool Congress leaders on May 17 by CBI in the Narada scam case.
It has been alleged that the state ruling party leaders played a key role in stopping the CBI from performing its legal duty after the arrest of four leaders in the case.
Ministers Subrata Mukherjee and Firhad Hakim, Trinamool Congress MLA Madan Mitra and former mayor of Kolkata Sovan Chatterjee were arrested by the CBI which is investigating the Narada sting tape case on a 2017 order of the high court. -- PTI
India has to triple its vaccination numbers ASAP
12:56 Goa guards borders against Delta Plus variant
The Goa government on Friday said it will ensure stringent monitoring along the borders of the state so that it continues to remain free from the Delta Plus variant of coronavirus.
Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has directed the authorities to take the necessary measures. Delta plus has already been declared a variant of concern by the Centre.
On Monday, Rajesh Tope, who is the health minister of neighbouring Maharashtra, had said that 21 cases of the Delta Plus variant have been found in the state till then - nine in Ratnagiri, seven in Jalgaon, two in Mumbai, and one case each in Palghar, Thane and Sindhudurg districts. In a tweet, Rane said, "In view of the Delta Plus Variant cases found in the neighbouring states, we shall ensure that stringent monitoring is taking place at the borders. Hon'ble CM @DrPramodPSawant has already issued instructions on this matter. We need to ensure that our borders are secure to prevent the variant from entering the state of Goa. Till date, no cases of Delta Plus Variant has been found. Hon'ble CM and myself have been constantly monitoring the situation on ground to fight this pandemic unitedly," the Goa minister said in another tweet.
Goa has not reported even a single case of Delta Plus variant so far, while cases of Delta variant were detected in the state. PTI
These were regular scenes in Delhi in May
12:34 SC's O2 Audit report 'doesn't exist': Delhi Dy CM
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia says the Supreme Court panel report saying that Delhi "exaggerated" oxygen need by 4 times is fake.
"The truth is that the report was made up by the BJP. The BJP was responsible for the oxygen mismanagement across India," Sisodia said.
He added that the Supreme Court constituted Oxygen Audit Committee has not approved any report yet. "Then, which is this report that BJP leaders have been quoting? I challenge the BJP to bring this report signed by members of Oxygen Audit Committe.
"BJP leaders have been talking about a so-called report which states that there was no oxygen shortage in Delhi during the COVID peak and Delhi exaggerated its oxygen requirement by 4 times. Let me tell you that the report BJP has been quoting doesn't even exist."
The BJP, of course, latched on to the SC indictment, with spokesperson Sambit Patra slamming Arvind Kejriwal and the Delhi government. He said they politicised oxygen supply when COVID was at its peak. "This is such petty politics. The data presented by Oxygen Audit Committee in the report is shocking."
Representational image
12:18 Lioness Sheena tests positive for Covid
A lioness at a zoo in Sri Lanka has been tested positive for the coronavirus, days after a lion at the same facility contracted the virus, according to a media report on Friday.
The Lioness named Sheena' was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19, raising the number of COVID-19 infected animals in the zoo to two, the Dehiwala Zoological Gardens Department said on Wednesday PCR tests were carried out on the 12-year old Lioness after an 11-year-old male lion named Thor' tested positive for COVID-19 last week. Both of them are now under medical care, Daily News reported.
The virus-infected Lioness was isolated immediately along with few other animals, considering the safety of other animals.
SP Singh Oberoi on his dream flight
12:16 Bizman is ONLY passenger on AI flight to Dubai
No bawling babies, no barfing boys, no smelly passengers...
UAE-based Indian businessman S P Singh Oberoi travelled like a pasha on an Air India flight -- all alone.
Oberoi was pleasantly surprised to have the whole plane to himself when he boarded Air India's flight from Amritsar to Dubai with an economy-class ticket in hand.
Oberoi, who holds a golden visa that allows 10-year long residency in the UAE, was the sole passenger on the national carrier's Dubai-bound three-hour flight that departed from Amritsar around 3.45 am on Wednesday, an official said.
During the flight, he snapped pictures with the crew members and paced up and down the aircraft multiple times without any hindrance. Air India did not respond to PTI's request for a statement on this matter.
This was the third time in the last five weeks when a flight to Dubai had just one passenger. On May 19, a 40-year-old man named Bhavesh Javeri was the lone passenger on Emirates' Mumbai-Dubai flight. Three days later, another man named Oswald Rodrigues was the lone passenger on Air India's Mumbai-Dubai flight.
Flights on India-Dubai routes were one of the most lucrative ones for carriers in the pre-pandemic times due to high demand. However, since the onset of the pandemic, traffic on India-Dubai routes have taken a major hit. India and its aviation sector had been especially reeling during April and May this year due to the pandemic's second wave, which is receding currently.
12:02 Indira Gandhi and Narendra Modi's Emergencies
"The Emergency certainly taught Indira Gandhi that she had completely misread the democratic commitment of the people of the country. The centralization of power today has woken citizens to the fact that they cannot take for granted a cylinder of oxygen, let alone a dignified place at the crematorium. Here's the governance paradox. On the one hand, there is little evidence that institutions of governance have the ability to act unless directed by the prime minister, Narendra Modi, or the home minister, Amit Shah. At the same time, the Central government's administrative machinery reminds us of its ominous presence continuously. It has simply turned its attention from caring for people to punishing protesters."
Paranjoy Guha Thakurta and Pradip Kumar Datta on India's two Emergencies. Do read.
11:38 Kerala HC grants anticipatory bail to Aisha Sultana
The Kerala high court has on Friday granted Anticipatory Bail to Aisha Sultana in the sedition case.
Justice Ashok Menon passed the order on bail application filed by the Lakshadweep filmmaker Aisha Sultana seeking anticipatory bail after an FIR was rregistered against her under Section 124A and 153B of IPC.
The filmmaker was booked for her remarks on a media channel that the Centre had deployed Covid 19 as a 'bio weapon' against the people of Lakshadweep.
Accordingly, she was asked to appear before the Kavaratti Police Station on June 20 2021, which prompted the bail application.
11:24 Centre provides 30.54 cr vaccine doses to states
Over 30.54 crore vaccine doses have been provided by the Centre to states/Union Territories so far, informed the ministry of health on Friday.
A total of 1,50,28,186 balance and unutilised COVID-19 vaccine doses are still available with the states and union territories to be administered, it added. According to the ministry, 30,54,32,450 vaccine doses have been provided by Centre to States/UTs so far, through the Government of India (free of cost channel) and through direct state procurement category.
As part of the nationwide vaccination drive, the Centre has been supporting the States and UTs by providing them COVID Vaccines free of cost.
"Of this, the total consumption, including wastages is 29,04,04,264 doses (as per data available at 8 am today).
Furthermore, more than 47,00,000 vaccine doses are in the pipeline and will be received by the States/UTs within the next three days.
In the new phase of the universalisation of the COVID19 vaccination drive, the Union government will procure and supply (free of cost) 75 per cent of the vaccines being produced by the vaccine manufacturers in the country to states and UTs.
-- ANI
10:55 Why no large-scale testing to prevent spread of Delta plus variant: Rahul Gandhi
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday asked the government why "large-scale testing is not being done" to check and prevent the spread of the Delta plus variant of coronavirus and how effective are the vaccines against it.
Many experts feel that the Delta plus variant, which has been declared as a 'variant of concern' by the Union health ministry, may trigger a third wave of COVID-19 infections in the country.
"Questions to the Modi government on Delta plus variant: Why is testing not being done on a large scale to check and prevent it? How effective are the vaccines against it and when will complete information be available? What is the plan to control it in the third wave of the virus," he posed in a tweet in Hindi.
India was hit severely by a brutal second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in April and May, claiming a massive number of lives daily, with a shortage in oxygen supply at various hospitals adding to the woes.
However, the number of cases have shown a downward trend and the positivity rate too has been shrinking in the last several days. From a daily case count of over 4 lakh, the number of new COVID-19 cases has been hovering around 50,000 in the last couple of days.
-- PTI
10:29 Delhi exaggerated oxygen requirement: SC panel
The Delhi government exaggerated the city's oxygen requirement by four times at the peak of the Covid crisis, a Supreme Court panel has said in its interim report.
"The Delhi government's claim of 1,140 metric tonnes was four times the calculated consumption as per bed formula, which was 289 MT only," the report says.
The average consumption of oxygen in Delhi was between 284 to 372 MT. "The excess supply of oxygen affected other states in need of oxygen," the panel says.
Four Delhi hospitals have been called out for claiming high consumption of oxygen with fewer beds. The Singhal Hospital, Aruna Asif Ali Hospital, ESIC Model Hospital and Liferay Hospital had few beds and their data was wrong; this led to exaggerated claims of oxygen needs in Delhi, the report says.
10:14 PM tweets on 46th anniversary of Emergency, says 'dark days' can't be forgotten
On the occasion of the 46th anniversary of the Emergency, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that the dark days marked by the period "can never be forgotten".
Looking back at the chequered legacy of the Emergency phase in India's history, Prime Minister Modi pledged to strengthen India's democratic spirit and live up to the values enshrined in the Constitution.
"The #DarkDaysOfEmergency can never be forgotten. The period from 1975 to 1977 witnessed systematic destruction of institutions. Let us pledge to do everything possible to strengthen Indias democratic spirit, and live up to the values enshrined in our Constitution, posted Prime Minister Narendra Modi from his official handle on Twitter.
09:36 India's daily Covid-19 cases falls to 51,667
India reported 51,667 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours on Friday. 64,527 patients recovered during last 24 hours, taking the total recoveries across the country to 2,91,28,267.
With 64,527 new recovered patients in the last 24 hours, India's daily recoveries continue to outnumber the daily new Covid-19 cases. The daily positivity rate is at 2.98 per cent, less than 5 per cent for 18 consecutive days.
09:16 Emergency a dark chapter in India's history: Amit Shah
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday remembered June 25 of 1975 and said that the Emergency was imposed in the nation to quell the voices against one family and termed it as a dark chapter in the history of independent India.
Taking to Twitter, Shah said: "Emergency imposed to quell the voices against one family is a dark chapter in the history of independent India. Salute to the sacrifice of all the countrymen who fought relentlessly for the protection of the Constitution and democracy of the country while suffering the brutal tortures of the ruthless rule for 21 months."
Shah further said that on this day in 1975, in the selfishness and arrogance of power Congress killed the world's largest democracy by imposing an Emergency on the country.
"On this day in 1975, Congress killed the world's largest democracy by imposing emergency on the country in the selfishness and arrogance of power. Innumerable Satyagrahis were imprisoned overnight and the press was locked. Taking away the fundamental rights of the citizens, made the Parliament and the court a mute spectator," he added.
Emergency was declared for a 21-month period from 1975 to 1977 by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
-- ANI
09:01 7 cases of Delta-Plus Covid in MP, 2 patients died
At least seven cases of the new Delta Plus variant of Coronavirus have been confirmed in Madhya Pradesh, two of the patients have died. Doctors said they had not received any vaccination.
Three patients, who received single or double doses of vaccine earlier, are cured or are under home isolation without any complication.
Two others who did not receive any vaccination have also managed to defeat the infection, doctors said. One of them is a 22-year-old woman and the other a toddler aged two years.
Three of the patients are from state capital Bhopal, two from Ujjain and one each from Raisen and Ashok Nagar districts.
All seven patients were tested Covid-positive last month. But genome sequencing of their samples at the NCDC established the Delta Plus variant in June.
Madhya Pradesh is one of the three states where the AY.1 or Delhi Plus strain -- a mutation of the Delta strain which drove the second wave of the virus in the country - have been found. The other two states are Kerala and Maharashtra. One case of Delta-Plus virus has also been detected in Jammu and Kashmir.
08:31 Rahul Gandhi to meet party MLAs from Punjab today in Delhi
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will meet party MLAs from Punjab at his residence in Delhi on Friday.
Earlier this week, on Wednesday, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president Sunil Jakhar and Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal met Rahul Gandhi in Delhi.
Amid a series of meetings to end the factionalism in Punjab Congress, state party president Sunil Jakhar on Wednesday said that the current situation shall be resolved soon. Days after the Congress-led government in Punjab gave government jobs to the sons of two sitting legislators, Jakhar said some wrong people are advising the Chief Minister which led to this decision.
"I hope the current situation will be solved soon. Some wrong people are advising Chief Minister over this decision (on giving jobs to sons of two Congress MLAs)," Jakhar had told reporters after meeting Rahul Gandhi.
Responding to a question on the ongoing dispute between Congress MLA Navjot Singh Sidhu and Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, Jakhar had said, "It's part of the consultation now."
-- ANI
07:56 26/11 plotter Tahawwur Rana to remain in US custody
A former Chicago businessman will remain in the United States as a federal judge in Los Angeles weighs whether he will be extradited to India for his alleged role in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack that killed more than 160 people.
Tahawwur Rana, a Pakistani-born Canadian, is wanted by Indian authorities for his alleged involvement in the deadly attacks that are sometimes referred to as India's 9/11. An Indian warrant for his arrest was issued in August 2018.
Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Chooljian on Thursday ordered the defense attorneys and prosecutors to file additional documents by July 15. Rana will remain in federal custody.
Indian authorities allege that Rana conspired with his childhood friend David Coleman Headley to assist the Pakistani terror group Lashkar-e-Tayiba in the orchestration of the 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai that killed 166 people, injured more than 200 and caused $1.5 billion in damage.
Headley and Rana attended military high school in Pakistan together. Rana's immigration law center in Chicago, as well as a satellite office in Mumbai, was allegedly used as a front for their terrorism activities between 2006 and 2008, prosecutors say.
00:29 Post-poll violence: NHRC officials reach Bengal
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) officials arrived in West Bengal on Thursday to probe complaints of post-poll violence, and visited some areas, police said.
However, the seven-member committee of the NHRC, constituted in accordance with the Calcutta high court's orders, is yet to arrive.
The panel is headed by NHRC member Rajeev Jain.
Two NHRC teams, comprising DIG-level officers and junior officials, arrived in Kolkata and Siliguri.
These officials will be assisting the NHRC panel, a senior police officer said.
"The committee members are yet to arrive. DIG-level officers and some junior officials have reached. But as far as we know, the visit to affected areas will begin only after the committee members arrive," he said.
A team headed by a DIG-level officer visited Haroa police station and Sandeshkhali area in North 24 Parganas district, sources said.
The NHRC, however, remained tight-lipped about the visit. -- PTI
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