Live: SC transfers Gyanvapi Mosque case to district judge in Uttar Pradesh

Live news updates: From Pegasus snooping case to BJP meeting in Jaipur, catch all the live updates here

6:01 PM

Pegasus: SC extends time for submitting probe report on use of Israeli spyware

 

The Supreme Court Friday extended the time for submitting the report by the apex court-appointed technical and supervisory committees to look into the Pegasus row, saying 29 infected mobile phones are being examined for the spyware and the process should be over in four weeks.

 

A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana said the technical committee has been examining mobiles for the spyware and has also recorded statements of persons including some journalists and activists.

 

Standard operating procedure for testing the 'infected devices' will be finalised too, it said, adding the probe by the technical committee may be over by the May end and then the supervisory judge would be making a report for the perusal of the bench.

5:34 PM

Hyderabad encounter: Killing of 4 suspects in veterinarian rape and murder case 'deliberate', says SC Panel

A three-member inquiry commission on the encounter killings of four suspects in a case of gang-rape and murder of a veterinarian (named changed as Disha) here in December 2019 revealed that the firing by the police personnel was deliberate.

 

The Commission headed by apex court judge Justice (since retired) V S Sirpurkar also revealed that they opined that three of the deceased were minor at the time of death.

 

The four suspects -- Mohammed Arif, Chintakunta Chennakeshavulu, Jolu Shiva and Jollu Naveen -- were arrested in connection with the gang-rape and murder of veterinary lady doctor on November 29, 2019.

 

The Commission in its 387-page report opined that there are a lot of discrepancies in the police version with regards to the two of the deceased throwing mud and soil at police, stanching weapons from police and firing indiscriminately.

 

The four suspects were killed in an alleged encounter by police on December 6 at Chattanpally near here -- the same highway-- where the charred body of the 25-year old veterinarian was found.

5:28 PM

ED attaches over Rs 187-cr assets in money laundering case against PACL

The Enforcement Directorate Friday said assets worth more than Rs 187 crore have been attached under the anti-money laundering law in connection with a probe against a company called PACL which is alleged to have duped investors by promising them plots in various parts of the country.

 

PACL India Limited (PACL), the Enforcement Directorate said, collected money from the public under different schemes for allotting plots in various parts of the country or giving an option to take back their expected tentative value of land in lieu of the allotted plot under the scheme on maturity.

4:58 PM

SC transfers Gyanvapi civil suit to Varanasi district judge, says experienced officer needed

The Supreme Court Friday transferred the civil suit filed by Hindu devotees on Gyanvapi mosque from civil judge (senior division) to district judge, Varanasi saying looking at the complexities and sensitivity of the issue, it is better for a senior judicial officer to handle the case.

 

A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud, Surya Kant, and PS Narasimha said that it is not casting any aspersion on the civil judge (senior division) who was earlier dealing with the suit.

 

The top court directed the district judge to first decide the application under Order 7 Rule 11 of CPC (on maintainability) filed by the Mosque committee saying the civil suit is barred by a law of Parliament be decided upon the transfer of papers from the civil judge (senior division).

 

4:24 PM

Sidhu reaches court in Patiala to surrender after SC sentencing in 1988 road rage case

Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu reached a court here Friday afternoon to surrender a day after he was sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment by the Supreme Court in a 1988 road-rage case.

 

Some party leaders including Navtej Singh Cheema accompanied him from his home to the district court, located close to the former Punjab Congress president's residence.

4:16 PM

RBI to pay Rs 30,307 crore dividend to govt for FY21-22

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday said its board has approved a dividend payment of Rs 30,307 crore to the government for the financial ended March 2022.

 

The board approved the transfer of Rs 30,307 crore as surplus to the central government for the accounting year 2021-22 while deciding to maintain the Contingency Risk Buffer at 5.50 per cent, RBI said in a statement.

 

The decision on the dividend payment was made in the 596th meeting of the Central Board of Directors of RBI, headed by Governor Shaktikanta Das, held on Friday.

 

4:09 PM

Selective leaks must stop, says Supreme Court in Gyanvapi Mosque case

3:48 PM

G7 countries eye $18 bn for Ukraine defence

Germany's finance minister says the Group of Seven leading economies are set to agree on more than USD 18 billion in aid for Ukrainian defence efforts.

 

Finance Minister Christian Lindner said in an interview with Bloomberg Television on Friday that Ukrainians resisting Russia's invasion are not only defending themselves, they are defending our values.

 

A representative from the US Treasury Department declined to confirm the amount set to be allocated at a meeting of G-7 finance ministers in Germany, and a spokesman from the German finance ministry declined to comment to The Associated Press.

3:39 PM

Russia taking 'counter measures' as Finland, Sweden seek to join NATO

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Finland and Sweden joining NATO has led to an increase in military threats near the border and that Moscow is taking "adequate countermeasures", Interfax news agency reported on Friday.

 

RIA news agency quoted Shoigu as saying Russia would respond by forming 12 new units in its western military district.

 

Finland and Sweden formally applied to join the Western defence alliance NATO on Wednesday.

3:21 PM

Amit Shah on two-day visit to Arunachal Pradesh from from May 21

Union Home Minister Amit Shah will undertake a two-day visit to Arunachal Pradesh starting Saturday during which he will inaugurate and lay foundation stone of several development projects and interact with security forces deployed in forward areas along the Sino-Indian border, officials said.

 

During his visit, the home minister will also interact with the civil society.

 

This will be Shah's second visit to Arunachal Pradesh as the Union Home minister.

 

He had last visited Arunachal Pradesh in 2020 to attend the 34th statehood day celebrations.

2:47 PM

Karnataka mining: SC permits firms to export excavated iron ores

The Supreme Court on Friday permitted mining firms to export their excavated iron ore from mines in districts of Ballari, Chitradurga, and Tumakuru in Karnataka.

A bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices Krishna Murari and Hima Kohli took note of the stand of the Central government and lifted the curb on export of iron ore and asked the firms to observe the conditions imposed by the authorities.

2:21 PM

Monkeypox spreads to more European countries, Australia, Canada

Italy, Sweden, Australia and Canada have joined a slew of countries with confirmed cases of monkeypox, signalling a global outbreak.

Health officials in Australia have confirmed a case in Victoria and another likely case in New South Wales (NSW).

The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) had also confirmed two cases of monkeypox in Quebec. Health authorities are investigating about 17 people for potential cases of the virus.

According to the Swedish Public Health Agency, a person in the Stockholm region has been confirmed infected with smallpox.

 

2:05 PM

12 killed in Severodonetsk as Russian troops attack Ukrainian cities

Russian forces attacked the cities of Lysychansk and Severodonetsk in Ukraine's eastern region of Luhansk, the region's governor said Friday.

Serhiy Haidai said in a Telegram messaging app post on Friday that 12 people were killed in Severodonetsk as a result of the assault, and more than 60 houses were destroyed across the region.

 

1:41 PM

Delhi HC issues notice to CBI on Ramkrishna's bail plea in NSE case

The Delhi High Court sought the response of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the bail application of National Stock Exchange's (NSE) former chief Chitra Ramkrishna, who was arrested in connection with the NSE co-location scam case.

Seeking the response of the central probe agency, Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain posted the matter for the next hearing on May 31.

1:15 PM

9 dead in fire due to tanker-truck collision in Maharashtra's Chandrapur

Nine persons were charred to death in a fire that broke out following a collision between a diesel-laden tanker and a truck carrying wood on the outskirts of Chandrapur city of Maharashtra, a police official said