Arun Goel, a 1985 batch Indian Administrative Service officer of the Punjab cadre who took voluntary retirement from Friday, has been appointed as an Election Commissioner.

He was to retire on December 31, 2022 after completing 60 years of age.

Once he joins his new responsibility, Goel would be in line to be the next chief election commissioner after incumbent Rajiv Kumar demits office in February 2025.

He will join CEC Kumar and Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey on the poll panel.

There was a vacancy in the EC following the retirement of Sushil Chandra as CEC in May this year.

Goel was, till recently, the heavy industries secretary and his voluntary retirement came into effect on November 18.

He has also served in the Union Culture ministry.

According to the law dealing with appointment, service conditions and retirement of election commissioners, a person can hold the office of an EC or CEC for six years or till attaining the age of 65, whichever is earlier.

Goel will be in office till December 2027.

'The President is pleased to appoint Shri Arun Goel, IAS (Retd.) (PB: 1985) as the Election Commissioner in the Election Commission with effect from the date he assumes the office,' the law ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

His appointment comes days before Gujarat goes to two-phase polls on December one and five.

The poll panel will have its full strength when it decides the election schedule for Nagaland, Meghalaya, Tripura and Karnataka in the coming months.  -- PTI

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi will campaign for the party in the Gujarat assembly elections on November 21 when he is scheduled to address a rally each in Rajkot and Surat, the party said on Saturday.      

Gandhi, who is leading the party's Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, has so far not campaigned in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.

Himachal Pradesh has already voted in the first phase (November 12), while Gujarat is scheduled to vote on December 1 and 5 in two phases.  

"Rahul Gandhi will address two poll rallies in Surat and Rajkot on November 21, when the Bharat Jodo Yatra will have a rest day," All India Congress Committee general secretary K C Venugopal told PTI.

The Yatra is currently in Maharashtra and is set to enter Madhya Pradesh in the next few days.

Sources said the Yatra will have rest days on November 21 and 22, and Gandhi will take out time to campaign in Gujarat on November 21.

The Congress is seeking to oust the Bharatiya Janata Party from power in Gujarat, where it has been in rule for the last 27 years in a row.

The Congress had given a good challenge to the BJP in the last assembly elections in Gujarat in 2017, when the Congress won 77 seats and the BJP 99.

The Congress had secured 41.44 percent votes while the BJP bagged 49.05 percent in the 2017 polls.

The entry of the Aam Aadmi Party in the poll this time is likely to change the equations from the straight contest between the BJP and the Congress. -- PTI

Indian Space Research Organisation's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre has conducted the Integrated Main Parachute Airdrop Test (IMAT) of its crew module deceleration system for the much-awaited maiden Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme at the Babina Field Fire Range (BFFR) in Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh.

The IMAT conducted on Friday marks a significant milestone toward realising the nation's ambitious Gaganyaan project, the ISRO said in a statement.

The Gaganyaan deceleration system consists of three main parachutes, besides the smaller ACS, pilot, and drogue parachutes, to reduce the speed of the crew module to safe levels during its landing, the space agency said.

Two of the three main chutes are sufficient to land the astronauts on earth, and the third is redundant, ISRO said adding that the IMAT test simulated the case when one main chute failed to open.

The IMAT test is the first in a series of integrated parachute airdrop tests planned to simulate different failure conditions of the parachute system before it is deemed qualified to be used in the first human spaceflight mission.

In this test, a five-tonne dummy mass, equivalent to the crew module mass, was taken to an altitude of 2.5 kilometres and dropped using the Indian Air Force's IL-76 aircraft.

Two small pyro-based mortar-deployed pilot parachutes then pulled the main parachutes.

The main parachute sizes were initially restricted to a smaller area to reduce the opening shock. After seven seconds, the pyro-based reefing line cutters cut the area restricting line, allowing the parachutes to inflate fully.

'The fully inflated main parachutes reduced the payload speed to a safe landing speed. The entire sequence lasted about 2-3 minutes as the scientists watched the different phases of the deployment sequence unfold with bated breath. There was loud cheer and applause as the payload mass landed softly on the ground and the gigantic parachutes collapsed,' the statement read.

The design and development of the parachute-based deceleration system is a joint venture of ISRO and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

'The overall system design, analytical simulations of parachute deployment and crew module descent under various conditions, the design and development of ordnance devices for parachute extraction and ejection, assembly, mechanical and electrical integration of deceleration system, it's instrumentation and avionics for conducting this drop tests are done at ISRO's leading Research and Development centre, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram,' the space agency explained.       

Senior ISRO and DRDO scientists and airforce officers were present when the crucial test was done.

'Besides proving the calibre of the scientists of ISRO and DRDO, the test also demonstrated the active coordination between the country's premier agencies, namely ISRO, DRDO, the Indian Air Force, and the Indian Army,' the ISRO said quoting a senior official.   -- PTI

Assam Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Himanta Biswa Sarma has said the horrific murder of Shraddha Walkar allegedly by her live-in partner Aaftab Poonawala is a case of 'love jihad'.

He also said someone like Aaftab will be born in every city if the country does not get a powerful leader and a government that respects India like one's mother.

The murder, which has hit national headlines and caused huge outrage, was raked up for the first time in the campaign for the assembly polls in Gujarat, scheduled for December 1 and 5.

"Recently, one Aaftab brought Shraddha from Mumbai and cut her into 35 pieces in the name of love jihad. And after that, where did he put her body? In the fridge. When the body was in the fridge, he brought another girl and started dating her," Sarma claimed while addressing a rally in Gujarat's Kutch district on Friday.

"If the country does not get a powerful leader and a government that respects the country as a mother, such Aaftab will be born in every city, and we would not be able to protect our society. That is why the country should elect Modi ji (prime minister Narendra Modi) for the third time in 2024 and he will be able to solve such issues," Sarma further said.

Sarma was among three chief ministers, Union ministers, and other Bharatiya Janata Party leaders who participated in the party's 'carpet bombing campaign' on Friday.

He addressed rallies at Anjar and Gandhidham in Kutch district and Kamrej in Surat in the poll-bound state.

'Love jihad' is a term often used by right-wing activists to allege Muslim men were converting Hindu women after fraudulently luring them into matrimony.   -- PTI

Veteran actor Tabassum, known for her work as a child artiste and also as host of popular Doordarshan talk show Phool Khile Hain Gulshan Gulshan, has died after suffering a cardiac arrest, her son Hoshang Govil said on Saturday. She was in her 70s.

"A few days ago, she was admitted to a hospital. She had gastro problem and we went there for check-up. She suffered two cardiac attacks at 8.40 pm and 8.42 pm. She passed away peacefully on Friday night," Hoshang told PTI.

As a child artist, Tabassum was known as Baby Tabassum and starred in movies such as Nargis, Mera Suhaag, Manjhdhar and Bari Behen in the late 1940s.

She hosted the celebrity talk show Phool Khile Hain Gulshan Gulshan from 1972 to 1993 on Doordarshan.   -- PTI

Nizamabad Bharatiya Janata Party MP Dharmapuri Arvind on Saturday threatened to beat Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao with a 'chappal' amid his ongoing war of words with his MLC daughter K Kavitha.

Reacting to Kavitha's alleged threats, the BJP MP said that he would beat her father and Telangana CM KCR with a 'chappal' (footwear).

The BJP MP said in Hyderabad he would file a complaint with Telangana police against alleged threats issued by the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) MLC and CM's daughter K Kavitha.

The war of words between them started after the BJP leader on Thursday claimed that Kavitha had called up Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and expressed her wish to join the Congress party.

Reacting to MLC Kavitha's alleged statement of beating him with chappals, MP Arvind said on Saturday, "I don't have trust on Telangana Police but trusting my advocate Karuna Sagar (BJP Legal Cell advocate), I am giving a complaint. I spoke with CV Anand (Hyderabad Commissioner) he was talking like a TRS Karyakarta in next 10 months our government (BJP) is coming."

"Whatever Kavitha spoke that is there in this complaint, she said she will kill me, our Mahila Morcha will break your (MLC Kavitha) teeth. I will beat your father with Chappals," he added.

"I will beat your father (CM KCR) with a chappal and I could not say that to you because you are a woman but our Mahila Morcha (BJP) will break your (MLC Kavitha) teeth. Beating with chappal, defeating me in polls, keep this aside. Very soon we will send you to jail and we will also send you and your father to jail for the corruption you did," he added.

The war of words between BJP MP and TRC MLC began two days ago after the BJP MP on Thursday said that TRS MLC and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao's daughter K Kavitha called up All India Congress Committee president Mallikarjun Kharge and expressed her wish to join the Congress.

Subsequently on Friday, the family members of Arvind Dharmapuri were attacked and his house was vandalized allegedly by TRS workers.

Arvind Dharmapuri wrote on Twitter, 'TRS goons attacked my house in Hyderabad on the orders of KCR, KTR, K Kavita. They were breaking things in the house, creating chaos and threatening my mother! TRS goons attacked my residence and vandalised the house. They terrorised my mother & created ruckus.'

Kavitha dismissed the claims of her joining Congress on Friday itself.

She said one can call up Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge and ask if she ever rang up him, asking to join the party.   -- ANI

Delhi Police officials probing the gruesome Shraddha Walkar murder case have taken possession of all the clothes from accused Aaftab Amin Poonawala's house in South Delhi and they will be sent for forensic examination, sources said on Saturday.

They said the investigators have not recovered the clothes the two were wearing on May 18, the day the crime was executed.

Poonawala allegedly strangled his live-in partner Walkar, 27, and sawed her body into 35 pieces which he kept in a 300-litre fridge for almost three weeks at his house in Mehrauli before dumping them across the city over several days past midnight.

"Delhi Police has taken possession of all the clothes present in Poonawala's house. These include Walkar's clothes too. They will be sent for forensic examination," a source in the police department said.

The police have so far recovered 13 body parts, which are mostly skeletal remains.

Poonawala is being taken to different locations in south Delhi to locate more body parts, the source said.

According to sources, the police on Friday recovered some body parts from Gurugram, which will also be sent for forensic examination.

Walkar's head is still missing.

They also said the police have recovered a sharp object from Poonawala's house and it will examined whether it was used to chop Walkar's body.

The Delhi Police had on Friday sent teams to Maharashtra, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh to hunt for evidence in the case, with sleuths recovering some body parts in Gurugram.

A court in New Delhi has already ordered that narco test be conducted on the accused within five days.

According to officials, after leaving Mumbai, Walkar and Poonawala had travelled to several locations, including Himachal Pradesh, and police are visiting these places to ascertain whether any development during those trips triggered Poonawala to kill his partner.   -- PTI

The coronavirus situation in China has become grim again with the number of COVID-19 cases rising to over 25,000, including more than 500 in Beijing, prompting the city officials to advise millions of residents to stay home this weekend and undergo daily testing.

Beijing wore an eerie look on Saturday with most of its residents staying home after several districts in the city on Friday issued advisories to people, calling for less cross-district personnel flow and avoid unnecessary trips during the weekend.

An official from Chaoyang district, the worst-hit area and also the most populous district in the city, told residents to stay indoors during the weekend.

The sprawling district houses all top government offices, commercial hubs and thousands of residential communities.

The district government of Chaoyang also advised residents not to leave the area unless necessary, and if they do, they must provide negative nucleic acid test results taken within 48 hours, official media here reported on Saturday.

After Chaoyang, other districts of Dongcheng, Xicheng, Tongzhou, Yanqing, Changping, Shunyi and Haidian uploaded letters on their official media accounts, urging people to reduce cross-district personnel flow and avoid unnecessary trips.

Some major shopping malls across the city have also suspended dining-in services following the current epidemic prevention and control measures.

Beijing on Friday reported 515 COVID-19 cases while the Chinese mainland recorded 25,000 cases, a very high by Chinese standards, according to official data.

The periodic spikes in coronavirus cases in almost all the cities in China for the past two years which led to lockdowns and disrupted people's lives, supply chains and the economy, is wearing down people.

There are reports of sporadic public protests in the industrial city of Guangzhou.

Early this month, China modified its zero-COVID policy by doing away with its much-criticised 'circuit breaker' policy of suspending international flights if any positive COVID-19 cases were detected on arrival and cut the quarantine time for international travelers from 10 to eight days.

With continued spikes in the virus, observers doubt whether China will further modify its COVID-19 policy to gradually open up to the world to revive its economy.   -- PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated the Kashi Tamil Sangamam, a month-long programme to celebrate, reaffirm and rediscover the age-old links between Tamil Nadu and Varanasi.

More than 2,500 delegates from Tamil Nadu are visiting Varanasi and will participate in seminars and visit to interact with local people of similar trade, profession and interest.

It aims to provide an opportunity for people from all walks of life, including scholars, traders and artisans, from the two ancient seats of learning to share their knowledge, culture and best practices, and learn from each others' experience.

A month-long exhibition of handlooms, handicrafts, books, documentaries, cuisine, art forms, history and tourist places of the two regions will also be put up in Varanasi.

The endeavour is in sync with National Education Policy's emphasis on integrating the wealth of Indian knowledge systems with modern systems of knowledge.

IIT Madras and the Banaras Hindu University are the two implementing agencies for the programme.  -- PTI

Gautam Navlakha, an accused in Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, is likely to walk out of the Taloja prison in Navi Mumbai on Saturday, as a special court in Mumbai issued a release memo to facilitate his month-long house arrest.

The special court hearing cases related to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) issued the release memo around 2.15 pm on Saturday.

On Friday afternoon, the Supreme Court had rejected the NIA's application and ordered that Navlakha be placed under house arrest 'without fail' within 24 hours.

The investigating agency on Saturday submitted to the special court in Mumbai the compliance report about completing the release formalities of the activist, after which the court issued the release memo, which will then be mailed to the jail authorities and the Navi Mumbai police commissioner.

After his release from the jail, Navlakha will be taken to premises selected for his house arrest in Navi Mumbai.

The 70-year-old activist who claims to be suffering from multiple ailments, has been in jail since April 2020 in the 2017-18 case.

On November 10, the Supreme Court had allowed Navlakha to be put under house arrest for a month with certain conditions and said its order should be implemented within 48 hours.

However, the NIA had moved the apex court earlier this week seeking vacation of its order for house arrest, saying Navlakha, being a charge-sheeted accused in a case involving threat to national security and integrity, does not deserve any extra leeway.

On Friday, the SC, however, went ahead with its November 10 order of placing the activist under house arrest.

The case against Navlakha relates to alleged inflammatory speeches made at the 'Elgar Parishad' conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon Bhima war memorial on the outskirts of the western Maharashtra city.

According to the Pune police, people linked to banned Naxalite groups had organized the programme.

The case, in which over a dozen activists and academicians have been named as accused, was later handed over to the NIA.   -- PTI

One person has been arrested for lifting and flinging to the ground a minor girl on the road in Kerala's Kasargod district, police said.

The arrest was made on Friday.

The arrested, identified as local resident Aboobecker Siddique who is a drug addict, police said.

The incident took place a few days ago when the minor girl was waiting for her uncle to pick her up from the Madrassa in Manjeeswaram, Mangalpady.

Footage of the incident that was captured on CCTV shows the man walking up to the hijab-wearing girl and hitting her hard.

He then proceeds to lift her up and throw her down on the ground. After that, the man is seen casually walking away from the spot.

As per the police, the girl was left in a state of shock and was not able to narrate what had happened.

Later, she described to her uncle that she had been hit by a stranger.

Although she didn't suffer any external injuries, she was taken to the hospital for a detailed check-up.

Post the incident, there was an uproar after CCTV visuals were shared widely on social media.

A case was registered under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) 307 (attempt to murder) and sections of The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the arrest was recorded.   -- ANI

A day after an anonymous letter threatened bomb blasts in Indore during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Saturday said it was the state government's responsibility to provide security to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, who is leading this foot-march.

The anonymous letter threatened that bomb blasts would be carried out in that city if the Bharat Jodo Yatra made a scheduled night halt at Khalsa Stadium in Bhopal on November 28.

The letter, which referred to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, also threatened assassinations of Rahul Gandhi and Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Kamal Nath.

"The government is responsible for the foolproof security of Rahul Gandhi during the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Madhya Pradesh. I want to assure them that it is our commitment as far as providing security is concerned," Mishra told reporters in response to a query about the threat letter.

The minister, however, accused Kamal Nath of rubbing salt to the wounds of victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots by going to the Khalsa Stadium for a function earlier this month.

"Perhaps Nath does not want Rahul Gandhi's yatra to come to the state," Mishra said.

The Indore police had said on Friday that the anonymous threat letter was received at a sweets-snacks shop in Juni area of the city on Thursday evening.

A first information report (FIR) was registered on Friday under section 507 (criminal intimidation by unknown person) of the Indian Penal Code.       

Khalsa Stadium in Indore was in news earlier this month after there was a controversy over Nath being felicitated at a function held there on the occasion of Guru Nanak Jayanti on November 8.

Kirtan singer Manpreet Singh Kanpuri had referred to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, regarding which Nath had faced allegations in the past, and blasted the organisers for felicitating Nath.

The BJP has already announced that if Nath enters the stadium during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, it will be shown black flags.  -- PTI

A Pakistani intruder was killed on Saturday as the Army foiled an infiltration attempt by suspected terrorists along the Line of Control in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, an official said.

The infiltration bid was scuttled in Kalal area of Nowshera sector, he said.

The official added that the area has been cordoned off.

Further details are awaited.   -- PTI

Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole on Saturday said those criticising party leader Rahul Gandhi for his remarks on V D Savarkar, should first explain why the Hindutva ideologue was getting Rs 60 pension from the British.

Gandhi has kicked up a row with his remarks on Savarkar made earlier this week during the Maharashtra leg of his Bharat Jodo Yatra.

He has claimed that Savarkar had helped the British and wrote a mercy petition to him out of fear.

"Those who criticised Rahul Gandhi for his comments on Savarkar should first reply why the latter was getting a pension of Rs 60 from the British,'' Patole said in response to a query about criticism of Gandhi for his remarks against Savarkar and Shiv Sena's stand that such comments will hamper MVA alliance.

He said the Bharat Jodo Yatra received an overwhelming response in Maharashtra and the Congress was united and energised.

Patole said his party wants an ideological debate and it wants to unite people.

The Congress believed in non-violence, he said. Congress general secretary in-charge of the party's communication and publicity wing, Jairam Ramesh, said the the grand old party was celebrating November 19 as 'Kisan Vijay Diwas' as it was on this day last year that the three farm laws were withdrawn by Prime Minister Narendra Modi after protests.

''November 19 is a historic day and we are celebrating it as Kisan Vijay diwas. The only long-term solution for welfare of farmers is upgrading irrigation facilities in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, where farmers are committing suicide,'' he said.

Women elected representatives and members of self-help groups (SHGs) joined the yatra with Rahul Gandhi to mark the birth anniversary of late prime minister Indira Gandhi, he added.   -- PTI

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Saturday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of leaking Aam Aadmi Party minister Satyendar Jain's videos from the Tihar jail in New Delhi and claimed that he was undergoing physiotherapy for a spine injury.

Accusing the saffron party of resorting to cheap theatrics, he said Jain, who is in judicial custody in a money laundering case, had fallen down in jail.

"He (Jain) had sustained an injury to his spine and even underwent two surgeries. The doctor had advised physiotherapy upon discharge and those videos show him getting physiotherapy," he said.

Sisodia also said that his colleague has been lodged in a false case and that the BJP was poking fun at Jain's illness.

"They (BJP) are losing the MCD and Gujarat polls and that is why they are resorting to such cheap theatrics. They should fight the MCD elections in Delhi on issues," he said.   --  PTI

Suspended Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Raja Singh has written a letter to the Intelligence Wing of the Telangana police seeking to replace his bullet-proof vehicle that was provided to him, as it was in 'bad condition' and was giving trouble which he claimed may also put his life in 'danger'.

According to the letter, the vehicle allotted to him was a 13-year old one.

He said some of the Telangana Legislators were given new bullet resistant vehicles due to threat perception and sought to know what the conspiracy was in not allotting one to him despite him having security threats.

'Because of the negligence of the police department, you are giving chance to terrorist organisations and anti-social elements to attack me and you are throwing my life in danger,' he said in his letter written on November 17.

'Hence it is requested to the benevolent authority to kindly take immediate action and change the vehicle immediately,' the legislator said.

Singh said based on his request, the authorities had changed his vehicle earlier.

However, the recent one also started giving trouble while he was going on emergency works.

The Telangana high court recently set aside the Preventive Detention Act filed against Raja Singh and ordered his release from prison.

The police on August 25 arrested the Goshamahal Legislator under a preventive detention provision, days after he got bail in a case relating to remarks against Prophet Muhammad and Islam.

He was subsequently suspended from the BJP.   -- PTI

He will arrive in the state on Saturday and address a rally in Valsad district in the evening, party sources said. 

This rally will be held at Jujwa village in Valsad around 6.30 pm, they said. 

On Sunday, the prime minister will address four rallies in the districts of Bhavnagar, Amreli and Junagadh, the party sources said. 

This is Modi's second visit to his home state after the announcement of the Assembly poll schedule. 

During his last visit on November 6, he had addressed a rally at Kaprada in Valsad district and attended a mass marriage function in Bhavnagar. -- PTI

Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath temple committee president Ajendra Ajay told ANI that the portals of Badrinath Dham will be closed for winter at 3.35 pm on Saturday.   

On Sunday, Devdolis will leave for Pandukeshwar, he said.      

In late October, the portals of the Kedarnath Dham too were closed for the winter season.      

The doors of the eleventh Jyotirlinga Lord Kedarnath were shut for the winter as per rituals with chanting of Vedic hymns accompanied by music played by local musical instruments, the tunes of the army band, and cheers of scores of devotees.      

As per traditions, it is believed that after the portals are shut, Lord Kedarnath becomes austere for six months of winter in the Himalayas for the welfare of the people.      

Traditionally, the gates of the two shrines remain closed for six months during winter before it opens again.  -- ANI

The Donyi Polo airport located at Hollongi will boost connectivity, trade and tourism in the hilly northeastern state. Its foundation stone was laid by Modi on February 2019.

The mega block will start at 11 pm (on November 19) and end at 2 am on November 21, due to which the schedule of suburban and express trains will get affected during this period, a release by the CR said. 

The special block is likely to affect more than 37 lakh daily local train commuters as well as those traveling by outstation trains. 

More than 1,800 local train services operate on the Central Railway's Mumbai suburban network comprising 'Harbour' and 'Main' lines that originate from CSMT in south Mumbai. 

The bridge was built in 1866-67 and was declared unsafe by an expert team of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay in 2018, though the movement of heavy vehicles on it was stopped in 2014 itself, railway officials said. 

In the release, the CR said, "The block will be operated to dismantle Carnac bridge which was declared unsafe for road traffic in the month of September this year." 

The officials said that a major portion of the iron bridge has already been demolished. 

Hence, during the block only the iron structure of the railway over bridge will be cut and removed with the help of road cranes. 

CR general manager Anil Kumar Lahoti, divisional railway manager Rajnish Kumar Goyal and other senior officials inspected the demolition work on Friday and gave necessary instructions. 

"The heritage bridge has some six stones with inscriptions that mention the year of construction. These will be preserved suitably either at heritage gully or museum area," CR's chief public relations officer Shivaji Sutar said. -- PTI

Santosh has been summoned by the Telangana government-appointed special investigation team constituted to investigate alleged attempts by BJP to poach TRS legislators. 

The SIT led by the Hyderabad police commissioner CV Anand and supervised by a judge reports to the high court. 

The court also ordered that all information regarding the probe would only be submitted to the judge in a sealed envelope by November 29.    

The Cyberabad police had on October 26 arrested three persons- Ramachandra Bharati alias Satish Sharma, Nanda Kumar and Simhayaji Swamy at a farmhouse in Ranga Reddy on charges that they attempted to poach some TRS MLAs to the BJP.           

Earlier on November 6, Telangana BJP MLA Etela Rajender accused the KCR government of trying to "finish the Opposition" by "purchasing" their legislators. -- ANI

"Massive searches in connection with #investigation of case related to recent #threat to journalists started by Police at 10 locations in #Srinagar, #Anantnag and #Kulgam. Details shall be followed," tweeted Kashmir zone police.   

An intelligence report noted that LeT terrorist Mukthar Baba, who now operates from Turkey, is the mastermind behind putting out a hit list accusing scribes from the Union Territory of being informers for security forces.      

According to police, a first information report under the anti-terrorist law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act has been registered and investigations have been launched after the emergence of the "hit-list". -- ANI

The event will pave the way for rediscovering centuries-old bond of knowledge and ancient civilisational linkage between the North and the South.    

The Yogi Adityanath government in the state has swung into action to organise the 'Kashi-Tamil Samagam' in the holy city of Varanasi on a grand note and to give a glimpse of the Dravidian culture as well as the culture, cuisine and music of Tamil Nadu to the people of Uttar Pradesh.           

As Modi is all set to inaugurate the month-long Kashi Tamil Sangamam in Varanasi on Saturday, the preparations for the same are in full swing.           

The land of Raj Rajeshwar has been decorated to welcome the guests coming from the land of Rameshwar. 

Enthusiasm is also being seen in Kashi city regarding Tamil Sangamam. Final touches have been given to the decorations and preparations at the ghats of Varanasi including the Srikashi Vishwanath Temple. 

To eradicate the differences, people here are addressing the traditional greeting 'Har Har Mahadev' as well as 'Vanakkam' (salutations) in Tamil.           

Inaugurating the month-long Kasi Tamil Sangamam, the prime minister will release books on Tirukkural and Kasi-Tamil culture. 

The PM will pay respect to the Aadinams (Abbots) of Matha temples in Tamil Nadu and seek their blessings. PM is also likely to interact with more than 200 students from Tamil Nadu.           

A total of 75 stalls have been set up in Kashi Tamil Sangamam, which will run till December 16, will act as a bridge between South India and North India through agriculture, culture, literature, music, food, handloom and handicraft, folk art. 

These products also include GI and ODOP products from Tamil Nadu. 

Some artisans from Kashi will also display GI products. -- PTI

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said COP27 was supposed to wrap up on Friday but has been "extended by a day to attempt to take the ongoing negotiations to a logical end". 

Providing an update on the negotiations in a blog post, he said a lot of issues, including the mitigation work program, the global goal on adaptation, loss and damage, and climate finance are being negotiated as they remain contentious. 

"COP is a party-driven process and hence consensus on key issues is vital to the process. The extension is an attempt towards achieving just that," he said. 

In an effort to break the deadlock, the European Union's chief negotiator Frans Timmermans proposed a plan that tied loss and damage with emission cuts. 

The success of the talks hinges on a fund to address loss and damage, a term used for irreparable destruction caused by climate change-fuelled disasters. 

In exchange for the fund, the EU proposal asks countries to peak emissions before 2025 and phase down all fossil fuels and not just coal. 

Details of the fund will be worked out next year.  -- PTI

However, no casualty was reported in the incident, they said. 

The subsidence occurred during the day at Kapasara outsourcing project in Mugma colliery area of Eastern Coalfield Ltd, a senior official said. 

A team of Dhanbad district administration inspected the place. 

Earlier, local villagers had claimed that the incident took place due to illegal mining. 

Nirsa circle officer Amrita Kumari, on directive of Dhanbad deputy commissioner Sandip Singh, visited the subsidence area. 

There is no report of casualty as well as damage due to the incident, she said. 

The CO stated that the ECL management has been directed to take all measures so that such incidents do not take place in future. 

The coal company officials also reached the spot and got the subsidence area cordoned off by ribbon for safety of people. 

After the incident, the entire abandoned mine area was cordoned off and steps are being initiated to stop illegal mining, said Kapasara colliery manager Manoj Kumar said. -- PTI

She was found guilty in January of duping investors and lying about the technology after a three-month trial.    

The pregnant Holmes, wearing a black skirt and blouse, was given 135 months behind bars by US district judge Edward Davila in the same San Jose, Calif., courtroom where a jury convicted her in January, reported New York Post.           

Holmes was sentenced to 11.25 years in prison, plus three years of supervised release. 

At her trial, she was found guilty on four of 11 counts related to defrauding investors, but she was not found guilty of defrauding patients.           

Holmes was found guilty on four of the 11 charges, as jurors decided she had lied to investors in an effort to raise money on false pretenses. 

Holmes was found not guilty on four counts centered on defrauding patients and the jury could not reach a verdict on counts pertaining to the deception of investors, reported ABC News.           

At the courthouse in San Jose, both sides of United States vs. Elizabeth Holmes presented their cases regarding whether Judge Edward Davila can consider Holmes' "reckless disregard" of patients in sentencing. 

Davila rejected that proposal, since, at the original trial, Holmes was only found guilty of defrauding investors.           

The sentence falls short of the maximum possible punishment for Holmes, who faced as many as 20 years in prison.           

Holmes was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release after the sentence. 

Holmes offered a tearful apology before the judge issued the sentence, quoting the poet Rumi, "Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself," reported ABC News. -- ANI

A team of the Delhi police arrived at Vasai in Palghar district of Maharashtra on Friday to investigate the case.    

According to sources, it took around 4-5 hours to record the statement of Laxman. 

Further the Delhi police team also recorded a statement of the owner of the house where Shraddha and Aftab used to live on rent before going to Delhi.           

Pertinent to mention, before going to Delhi, Shraddha used to live in a rented house in the Vasai area of Palghar district.           

A senior officer of Manikpur police station said that the local police would provide all necessary help to Delhi police team.           

Sources said the Delhi police also tried to contact Aftab's family with the help of Manikpur police station but Aftab's father's mobile number went switched off and the family could not be contacted.           

The Delhi police will also record the statements of Shraddha's friends who were in contact with Shraddha since 2019. 

Further, police will also interrogate the manager of the call centre where Shraddha used to work. -- ANI

In an interview to Geo News on its show Naya Pakistan, Sanaullah said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has completed the process and will bring it to paper in two days time. 

"I believe the prime minister has completed this process (of consultation about the army chief appointment) and will bring it to paper, today or tomorrow or the next two days,' he said. 

He elaborated that consultation didn't mean giving some the right to dictate terms as it was the prerogative and right of the prime minister to appoint the Army chief. 

Lately, this exercise in the nuclear-armed country has also attracted global attention due to the implications of the job performed by the head of the military. 

The appointment of a successor to Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, who is set to retire on November 29, is an administrative matter. 

Under the law, the incumbent prime minister is empowered to select any one of the top three-star generals. 

But politically it means installing someone who may pull the strings and even determine the fate of the person who appointed him. 

The power of the Army chief flows not from the canon of any statute book but from the cannons of steel and fire; this power is historical and not constitutional. Still, it is a real hard power. -- PTI

The Union minister for Sports and Youth Affairs commended the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for making Gujarat 'riot-free'. 

"If Gujarat is riot-free today then it is because of the BJP and PM Modi," the minister said. 

Addressing a public rally at Gujarat's Mangrol on Friday, Thakur said, "The more Gujarat progresses, the more India will progress. If Gujarat wins, it will be a victory for the country. 

At another public rally in Gujarat's Mandvi assembly constituency earlier on Friday, Thakur took a swipe at the Congress saying that it ruled the country to 'divide' people. 

"Congress ruled only to divide the country on the basis of caste, religion and area. It ruled the country this way for over 60 years," the Union minister said. 

Hitting out at the former UPA government at the Centre, he said it didn't pay attention to the tribal communities of the country. 

"Earlier governments didn't pay attention to the tribal people. In 2013 and '14, only Rs 4,200 crores were allotted for tribals in the Union Budget. However, the government led by Modi-ji allocated Rs 8,500cr for the tribal communities. Now, tribal communities in every state are showing progress," Thakur said. -- ANI