National news from across India
Maharashtra’s political landscape witnessed a swift shift over the past 24 hours, with the BJP-led ruling alliance buoyed by Sunday’s local body election results, while the opposition camp was forced into introspection amid signs of internal strain.
The political standoff between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress over the newly passed G RAM G law, which seeks to replace the 20-year-old MGNREGA, escalated on Monday after the BJP dismissed Sonia Gandhi’s criticism as “mischaracterisations” and “flights of political fancy”.
A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) councillor in Delhi has sparked controversy after a video surfaced showing her allegedly threatening an African national, asking him to learn Hindi within a month or face a ban from entering a public park where he works as a football coach.
New Delhi/IBNS: Hundreds of Indian professionals holding H-1B visas have found themselves stranded in India after travelling home to renew their US work permits, following abrupt interview postponements linked to Washington’s tightened social media vetting rules.
Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will visit Sri Lanka on Tuesday, when he is likely to meet the Sri Lankan leadership.
New Delhi/IBNS: The Supreme Court on Monday refused to urgently hear a plea seeking to stop the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) from offering a ceremonial chadar at the Ajmer Sharif dargah on December 22, media reports said.
New Delhi/IBNS: In a significant diplomatic success, India and New Zealand on Monday signed the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), ending negotiations that began in March this year, media reports said.
New Delhi/IBNS: An Air India Boeing 777 aircraft safely returned to New Delhi on Monday after a technical issue with its right engine was reported shortly after take-off, media reports said.
A Sikh religious procession known as a nagar kirtan was briefly disrupted in New Zealand’s South Auckland region on Saturday after a group of local protesters blocked the route and confronted participants.
The alleged abuse of Bengali singer Lagnajita Chakraborty by a Muslim man during a live concert in East Midnapore has once again thrown the spotlight on growing tensions around public expressions of Hindu faith in West Bengal, amid a series of incidents this year that have sparked allegations of intimidation, selective policing and shrinking space for religious practices.
India and the Netherlands have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation in maritime heritage, marking a significant step toward the development of the National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) at Lothal, Gujarat.
Indian PM Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of Ammonia-Urea Fertilizer Project of Assam Valley Fertilizer and Chemical Company Limited at Namrup in Dibrugarh, Assam on Sunday.
The Indian government on Sunday dismissed reports in sections of the Bangladeshi media claiming that protests outside Bangladesh’s High Commission in New Delhi posed a security threat, calling them “misleading propaganda”.
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Jitendra Singh, on Sunday, said that weight-reducing or anti-obesity drugs, currently available, ought to be used very judiciously.
Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy on Saturday announced that the Congress-led state government is planning to introduce a new law to punish those who insult any religion, with amendments to existing laws to ensure stricter penalties for religious abuse.
A man has been arrested after Bengali singer Lagnajita Chakraborty alleged that she was abused and nearly assaulted for not singing a “secular” song during a live concert in East Midnapore on Saturday.
Hyderabad/IBNS: The Congress-ruled Telangana government has announced plans to introduce state legislation against hate speech, following Karnataka’s recent passage of a similar law that seeks to penalise inflammatory public rhetoric, officials and media reports said.
Kolkata/IBNS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday renewed his attack on the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government in poll-bound West Bengal, accusing the ruling dispensation of stalling development projects in the state.
Kolkata/IBNS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s public rally in West Bengal’s Nadia district on Saturday was delayed after his helicopter was unable to land due to dense fog, media reports said.
Guwahati/IBNS: Eight elephants were killed and one calf was injured after a herd was hit by an express train in Assam’s Hojai district in the early hours of Saturday, media reports said.
Sometimes, the most unforgettable travel experiences don’t come from famous landmarks or carefully planned itineraries—they come from unexpected encounters along the way. A recent viral video from New Delhi captures this beautifully, showing how a simple auto rickshaw ride with a local driver turned into a full day of laughter, stories, and shared discovery for a group of foreign travellers.
Curlie’s, the popular beachside pub in North Goa, was sealed by the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) authorities on Friday as part of a crackdown on regulatory violations following a recent fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane, media reports said.
Following deadly shootings at Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) that killed three people and injured several others, US President Donald Trump has ordered the suspension of the diversity visa programme, commonly known as the green card lottery.
PM Narendra Modi on Thursday addressed the India–Oman Business Forum in Muscat when he highlighted the centuries-old maritime trading ties between the two countries, from Mandvi to Muscat, which today forms the bedrock of vibrant commercial exchanges.
Union Minister Giriraj Singh on Wednesday strongly defended Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar amid the growing controversy over an incident in which Kumar was seen pulling down the veil of a woman doctor during an official event, triggering widespread political backlash.
Income tax officials conducted searches at actor Shilpa Shetty Kundra’s residence on Thursday in connection with a case linked to her upscale restaurant brand, Bastian, media reports said.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has intensified its probe into alleged money laundering linked to illegal online betting and gambling platforms, conducting searches at the residence of YouTuber Anurag Dwivedi in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao.
New Delhi/IBNS: India is facing its “greatest strategic challenge” in Bangladesh since the 1971 Liberation War, a parliamentary committee chaired by Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has warned.
Lucknow/IBNS: A chilling crime has come to light in Uttar Pradesh’s Shamli district, where a man is accused of killing his wife and two young daughters and burying their bodies inside his own house.
Kolkata/IBNS: Bangladesh's participation in the 26th Cable TV Show Kolkata owing to visa constraints amid the volatile political situation in Dhaka, media reports said.
Get the latest news delivered to your inbox
Connect with us on social media
