Supreme Court upholds revocation of Kashmir’s autonomy
The Supreme Court on Monday upheld a move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to revoke the limited autonomy of Muslim-majority Kashmir, where an insurgency has raged for decades.
The 2019 declaration was “a culmination of the process of integration and as such is a valid exercise of power”, the court said in its verdict.
The court upheld removing the region’s autonomy, but said Jammu and Kashmir should be restored to the same statehood as any other Indian state – with no separate autonomy rights – “as soon as possible”.
New chief ministers in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Mohan Yadav was sworn in as the new chief minister of Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday, while the party’s Vishnu Deo Sai assumed office in Chhattisgarh.
The BJP’s Bhajan Lal Sharma was scheduled to be sworn in as the chief minister of Rajasthan on Thursday.
Army rescues more than 800 stranded tourists in Sikkim
Indian Army personnel on Wednesday rescued more than 800 tourists stranded in high altitude areas in eastern Sikkim, officials said.
The tourists, including the elderly, women and children, were stranded due to snowfall and inclement weather.
The rescue mission by the Trishakti Corps ensured that all of them were moved to safer areas and provided with shelter, warm clothing, medical aid and hot meals.
External affairs ministry denies ‘secret memo against Nijjar’ report
The ministry of external affairs on Sunday denied a report on separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar that claimed that New Delhi sent a “secret memo” to consulates in North America to launch a “sophisticated crackdown scheme” against Sikh diaspora organisations in Western countries.
Calling the report by news outlet The Intercept fake and completely fabricated, the ministry said there was no such memo.
“This is part of a sustained disinformation campaign against India,” it said. “The outlet in question is known for propagating fake narratives peddled by Pakistani intelligence. Those who amplify such fake news only do so at the cost of their own credibility.”
Trinamool Congress leader expelled from Parliament
Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra has been expelled from the Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament) following an ethics committee report into the “cash for query” charges against her.
The 49-year-old is accused of taking bribes, including Rs2 crore ($320,000) in cash and “luxury gift items”, from businessman Darshan Hiranandani in exchange for asking questions critical of the government in Parliament.
Ms Moitra was also accused of surrendering log-in credentials to her personal and confidential account on the parliamentary website, so that Mr Hiranandani could post questions directly.
A fiery critic of the Narendra Modi government, Ms Moitra has denied the bribery charges but admitted to sharing the log-in details.
Punjab jail inmate taken for check-up seen dancing at wedding
In an embarrassment to the Punjab Police, a jail inmate was seen dancing at a wedding ceremony after he was taken for a medical check-up, prompting the authorities to suspend two police officers including a sub-inspector.
Youth Congress leader Savottam Singh alias Lucky Sandhu, who was lodged in the Ludhiana Central Jail following a kidnapping case, was taken to the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh on Dec 8 after he complained of a urinary problem, officials said.
But a video of him at a wedding in Hissowal soon surfaced online.
Boy dies after abandoned bomb explodes in Uttar Pradesh
A 12-year-old boy was killed on Wednesday when an abandoned army bomb lying in a firing range near Shahpur Gada village in Saharanpur went off, police said.
Hanif, who lived near the army firing range, had gone to a nearby forest to graze his buffalo when he found the bomb, Superintendent of Police Sagar Jain told PTI.
The bomb exploded when he tried to smash it with a heavy object.
Massive protests in Kerala over ‘mismanagement’ at temple
Massive protests have broken out in Kerala over “mismanagement” at Sabarimala temple, which has been witnessing an extremely high footfall of pilgrims this year.
The protests came a day after an 11-year-old girl died after falling unconscious amid the trek to reach the Lord Ayyappa shrine.
The number of pilgrims has steeply risen since Dec 6, leading to massive queues at the hillock temple. Some of them claimed that they had to wait for more than 18 hours to offer prayers.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has asked officials to control the situation without causing inconvenience to the pilgrims.
4 dead as car falls into water-filled pit after hitting wild boar
A couple and their two children drowned when their car plunged into a water-filled pit after hitting a wild boar crossing the road in Gujarat’s Patan district on Wednesday.
The incident occurred in the morning near Fangli village, Deputy Superintendent of Police Hardevsinh Vaghela said.
The family was on their way to a wedding function in Kutch district when the driver lost control after the car hit the wild boar on the highway.
Hospital operator rejects allegations of illegal kidney transplants
Indraprastha Medical Corp, which manages two Apollo hospitals in Delhi, has said that allegations regarding its involvement in illegal kidney transplants are false.
UK’s Telegraph newspaper reported last week that Apollo was embroiled in a “cash for kidneys” racket in which impoverished people from Myanmar were being enticed to sell their organs for profit.
The Delhi government will initiate an investigation into the allegations, CNBC-TV 18 reported, citing sources.
Court dismisses plea against order to shoot tiger that killed man
The Kerala High Court on Wednesday dismissed a plea challenging a government order to kill a tiger, which had last week killed a man in Wayanad district, if it could not be captured or tranquillised.
A bench of Chief Justice A.J. Desai and Justice V.G. Arun said the petition appeared to be filed for publicity and not public interest, and imposed a cost of Rs25,000 on the petitioner-organisation, according to a lawyer associated with the matter.
The plea had been moved by the Animals and Nature Ethics Community challenging the Dec 10 order of the principal chief conservator of forests and chief wildlife warden.
The order was issued after strong protests from locals as well as members of both the ruling and opposition fronts demanding that the tiger be shot.
