Highlights: Sunita Kejriwal releases phone number to rally support for Delhi CM

From Muktar Ansari's death to the dip in student applications to Harvard University, catch all the latest updates from around the world here

5:56 PM

Kejriwal arrested as Union government wants to weaken opposition, democracy: MP Cong chief Patwari

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the ED as the Narendra Modi government wants to weaken the opposition, Madhya Pradesh Congress president Jitu Patwari said on Friday.

Speaking to PTI, he also exuded confidence the Congress will win at least 15 of the 29 Lok Sabha seats in MP, where polling will take place in four phases between April 19 and May 13.

"Kejriwal's arrest is an attempt to weaken the opposition and wipe out the democratic system in the country. While Kejriwal was arrested, they have spared others who joined hands with the BJP. Of the 154 persons against whom there were ED and CBI probes, 121 joined the BJP and investigation stopped. But propaganda against opposition leaders (on such probes) continues," he said.

He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has double standards when it comes to this issue (of probes against persons by ED and CBI) and every attempt was being made to weaken the opposition.

"They (government through IT department) have frozen the accounts of the Congress just ahead of polls. It means they want to cripple the opposition financially and arrest leaders to terrorise democracy," he said.

 

5:55 PM

Kamlesh Shah, Congress MLA from Amarwara in Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara district, joins BJP

Kamlesh Shah, Congress MLA from Amarwara in Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara district, joins BJP ahead of Lok Sabha polls.

5:11 PM

9 detained in Tajikistan in relation to Moscow concert hall attack, reports Russian state media

Nine people have been detained by Tajikistan's state security service over suspected contact with the perpetrators of last week's attack by gunmen on a suburban Moscow concert hall that killed 144 people, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti said Friday. “Nine residents of the Vakhdat district were detained for contact with the persons who committed the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall on March 22,” the agency reported, citing information from an unnamed source in Tajikistan's special services, who said that Russian security forces were also involved in the operation to detain the suspects. Those detained are also suspected of having connections with the Islamic State group, according to RIA Novosti.

4:12 PM

TDP announces final list of candidates for LS polls in Andhra Pradesh

The TDP on Friday announced its final list of candidates for the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls in Andhra Pradesh, which included a YSR Congress MP, who joined the party recently. TDP fielded M Srinivasulu Reddy from Ongole, who recently quit the ruling YSRCP. He was elected to the Lok Sabha from the same constituency on a YSRCP ticket in 2019. The opposition party also announced the candidature of K Appalanaidu from Vizianagaram, A Lakshminarayana from Anantapur and C Bhupesh Reddy from Kadapa. TDP had finalised the candidates list after taking public opinion. With the announcement of four names, TDP completed the process of choosing candidates for 17 Lok Sabha seats, it has been allotted as part of the NDA in the state.

3:00 PM

S Jaishankar meets Ukrainian counterpart, says bilateral relationship gathering momentum

During his meeting with Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, EAM S Jaishankar in his opening remark said, "...In recent months, we have had interactions at various levels, I am glad to see some of our bilateral mechanisms have also met and this has created certain momentum in our bilateral relationship." Our teams have prepared substantial agenda for our discussions, Jaishankar added.

2:42 PM

Union minister Hardeep Puri compares Sunita Kejriwal to Rabri Devi

BJP leader and Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri compared Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's wife to former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi, and said she is perhaps preparing to hold the post in place of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.

2:29 PM

RVNL-Salasar JV gets Rs 60 cr transmission project in central Africa

A joint venture of state-owned RVNL and private steel company Salasar Techno Engineering has secured a transmission project worth around Rs 60 crore in central African nation Rwanda.

 

2:02 PM

LS polls: Over 79K violations reported so far through C-Vigil app, says EC

The Election Commission on Friday informed that its C-Vigil mobile application has become an effective tool in the hands of people for flagging poll code violations.  According to the commission, since the announcement of the Lok Sabha election, more than 79,000 complaints have been received.

 

1:45 PM

Procurement through govt's online marketplace GeM crosses Rs 4 trillion so far this fiscal

The procurement of goods and services through government's online GeM portal has crossed Rs 4 trillion so far this financial year due to higher buying activities by various ministries and departments, a senior government official said on Friday. The GeM portal was launched on August 9, 2016, for online purchases of goods and services by all central government ministries and departments.

1:33 PM

LIC to keep offices open on March 30, 31 to facilitate tax saving

LIC will keep its offices open on March 30 and March 31 to facilitate taxpayers to complete tax saving exercise before the closing of the fiscal year.

 

1:19 PM

Toll rates on Mumbai's Bandra-Worli sea link to go up by 18% from Apr 1

The toll charges on Mumbai's iconic Rajiv Gandhi Bandra Worli Sea Link are set to rise by about 18 per cent from April 1, officials from the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation said.

 

12:29 PM

Sunita Kejriwal releases phone number to rally support for Delhi CM

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal's wife, Sunita Kejriwal in a video statement; released a WhatsApp number for people to voice their support against Delhi CM's arrest. In the video she said, "...We are starting a drive from today - Kejriwal ko aashirvaad. You can send your blessings and prayers to Kejriwal on this number..."

12:17 PM

On CBI clean cheat over AI-Indian Airlines merger, Sanjay Raut asks BJP to apologise

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Thursday asked the BJP to apologise to former prime minister Manmohan Singh after the CBI filed a closure report in its Air India-Indian Airlines merger case.

 

12:01 PM

Cong bats for women reservation in govt jobs, says women key to India's destiny

The Congress will reserve 50 per cent of government jobs for women if it is voted to power, former party chief Rahul Gandhi said on Friday, asserting that empowered women will play a key role in shaping India's future.

11:56 AM

Akhilesh Yadav's demand for CM Yogi's resignation unfortunate: JDU's KC Tyagi

"It is unfortunate that Akhilesh Yadav is demanding resignation of CM Yogi Adityanath. Akhilesh Yadav had been a custodian of law and order when he was the CM. He (Akhilesh Yadav) should not issue such statements on the death of a criminal." 

11:47 AM

Ceiling for LS polls expenditure: District poll panels fix menu, rates

Candidates in Punjab's Jalandhar can spend Rs 15 for a cup of tea and the same price for a samosa they offer to people during public meetings and campaign trails in the Lok Sabha elections.

 

11:21 AM

I-T serves Rs 1,700 crore tax notice to Congress after HC rejects plea

Indian National Congress on Thursday claimed that the Income Tax (I-T) department had served a notice of nearly Rs 1,700 crore, including penalty and interest, for the assessment years 2017-18 to 2020-2021.

11:19 AM

ED wants AAP's poll strategy from Kejriwal's phone, says Atishi

The Enforcement Directorate is hand in gloves with BJP and is acting as its political weapon, said AAP leader Atishi Marlena. ED wants to get details of AAP's Lok Sabha election strategy by accessing Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's personal mobile phone, senior AAP leader Atishi alleged.

10:54 AM

Oppn to protest against CM Kejriwal's arrest, security tightened in Delhi

The police have set up Multiple layers of barricades alongside deploying a large number of police personnel on roads leading to the BJP headquarters. Security has been tightened in view of opposition INDIA bloc's protest on Friday against the arrest of AAP convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

 

10:39 AM

Baltimore collapse: Building a new key bridge could take years, say experts

Experts have said that Rebuilding the Baltimore's collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge is likely to take anywhere from 18 months to several years, while the cost to built the structure could be at least $400 million or more than twice that.

10:22 AM

Such deaths will erode people's confidence in govt, Akhilesh Yadav on Mukhtar Ansari's death

Responding to Mukhtar Ansari's death in jail, SP Chief Akhilesh Yadav said, "A government that cannot protect life has no right to remain in power. Uttar Pradesh is going through the worst phase of 'government anarchy'. This is the 'zero hour' of law and order in UP. "

10:13 AM

If used without proper training, AI can be misused: PM Modi

Speaking about artificial intelligence, PM Modi said, "If such a good thing (AI) is given to someone without proper training, it is likely to be misused...I suggested that we should start with clear watermarks on AI-generated content. So that nobody is misguided...In a democratic country like India, anybody can use deepfake...It's crucial to acknowledge that deepfake content is AI-generated...We need to think about some dos and don'ts..."

10:04 AM

Ten killed after vehicle falls into gorge in J-K's Ramban district

Ten people were killed after an SUV skidded off the Jammu-Srinagar national highway and fell into a gorge in Ramban district on Friday.

9:57 AM

Not an expert on technology but fascimated by it, says PM Modi to Bill Gates

PM Modi in interaction with Bill Gates says that he is fascinated by technology. He further added that he is not an expert but have childlike curiosity for it: 

9:52 AM

PM Modi meets Bill Gates, says his new govt will allocate funds to scientist for research in cervical cancer

PM Modi says that his new govt will allocate funds to scientists for local research in cervical cancer, want to vaccinate all girls

9:43 AM

"Technology can play big role in agriculture, health, education", says PM Modi

Technology can play big role in agriculture, health, education: PM Modi in interaction with Bill Gates

9:38 AM

India made huge investments in developing its own Covid-19 vaccine: PM Modi

During his discussion with Bill Gates, PM Modi said that India made significant investments towards developing indegenous vaccine against Covid-19. I was among the first persons to have been administered with the Covid-19 vaccine, PM Modi said. I took the vaccine publicly to build confidence among the masses about the effectiveness of the vaccine. My 95 year old also took the vaccine publicly, PM Modi said.

9:33 AM

Millets can grow with minimum need of water, a healthy option: PM Modi

PM Modi talked about the benefits of promoting millet cultivation in the country and the world. He underlined that millet crops can be grown with minimum irrigation and yet provide maximum nutrition value compared to other grains. PM Modi said that we need a cultural shift towards using more millets in our meals.

9:30 AM

We need to change the parameters of growth, create green jobs: PM Modi

We need to change the parameters of growth that measure development in terms of steel produced, energy consumed, among other metrics, PM Modi told Bill gates during his discussion.

9:22 AM

I decided to prevent digital divide in country, ensured digital infra in villages: PM Modi

I decided that I will not allow digital divide in India. To do this, our governmen ensured taking digital infrastructure to villages, says PM Modi in interaction with Bill Gates