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Congress parliamentarian Jairam Ramesh on Sunday wrote to information technology minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, urging him to «pause, review and repeal» Section 44 (3) of the Data Protection Act, 2023, claiming that otherwise it would eliminate the proviso in Section 8 (1) of the Right To Information Act (RTI), 2005, which gives citizens equal right to information as legislators who represent them. Pointing out that Section 44 (3) of the Data Protection Act, 2023, states that «In section 8 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, in sub-section (1), for clause (j), 2005, the following clause shall be substituted, namely, (j) information which relates to personal information», Ramesh argued that «the implications of this on Section 8 (1) (j) of the RTI Act, 2005, are that almost everything in it gets deleted.» Maintaining that proviso in Section 8 (1) of the RTI Act, 2005, that gives citizens equal right to information as legislators who represent them is eliminated, Ramesh told Vaishnaw: «The existing Section 8 (1) (6) of the RTI Act, 2005, had enough guardrails to protect unwarranted invasion of privacy.

Sirajuddin Haqqani, who acknowledged planning a January 2008 attack on the Serena Hotel in Kabul, which killed six people, including US citizen Thor David Hesla, no longer appears on the State Department's Rewards for Justice website. The FBI website on Sunday still featured a wanted poster for him. Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani said the U.S. government had revoked the bounties placed on Haqqani, Abdul Aziz Haqqani, and Yahya Haqqani. «These three individuals are two brothers and one paternal cousin,» Qani told the Associated Press. The Haqqani network grew into one of the deadliest arms of the Taliban after the U.S.-led 2001 invasion of Afghanistan.

electronics and automobile sectors, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. Addressing an event organised by Chennai Citizens' forum on Saturday evening, Sitharaman dismissed charges of the state government that the Centre has neglected Tamil Nadu in terms of funding. She said major 'big ticket' projects have been announced and are progressing at various stages of implementation across the State. «Tamil Nadu has been the largest beneficiary under the PLI- scheme in electronics, electronic parts and automobiles. Out of the 27 companies that have received approval from the Centre, 7 are based out of Tamil Nadu,» the Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs noted. Sitharaman highlighted that 25 per cent of the companies availing benefits from the PLI scheme are from the state, she said drawing applause from the audience at the M O P Vaishnav College in the city. Without naming the government or any individual, she rejected claims that the state received minimal revenue from central taxes. «These people arrive at a calculation that the Centre was giving a minimal amount of revenue from the central taxes. I really do not know how they pose such an argument. All I have to say is that the State has been a beneficiary in various central schemes and sector specific initiatives in the last 10 years.» She also pointed out that Tamil Nadu hosts one of the country's two major electronic parts manufacturing clusters, alongside Gujarat. An allocation of Rs 1,100 crore has been made for setting up the cluster in Tamil Nadu.

Parliamentary constituencies, based on the 1971 Census population, by another 25 years and decided that MPs would submit a joint representation to press for demands to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the ongoing Parliamentary session. A resolution adopted in the JAC meeting said that any delimitation exercise carried out by the union government to improve the «content and character» of democracy should be carried out transparently, enabling political parties of all the states, state governments and other stakeholders to deliberate, discuss and contribute. «Given the fact that the legislative intent behind the 42nd, 84th and 87th Constitutional amendments was to protect / incentivise states which have implemented population control measures effectively and the goal of national population stabilisation has not yet been achieved, the freeze on Parliamentary constituencies based on 1971 Census Population, should be extended by another 25 years,» it said. The states which have effectively implemented the population control programme and consequently whose population share has come down, should not be penalised and the Centre must enact necessary constitutional amendments for this purpose. «The core committee consisting of Members of Parliament from the represented states will coordinate the parliamentary strategies to counter any attempts by the union government to undertake any delimitation exercise contrary to the principles mentioned above. The core committee of MPs shall submit a joint representation on the above lines to the Prime Minister of India during the ongoing Parliamentary session,» the resolution said.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Chinese leader Xi Jinping is battling petty corruption through a nationwide campaign that has swept up more than half a million low-level officials over the past year, as Beijing grapples with rising public resentment over a sagging economy.

Elliot Rosenberg moved abroad and now lives comfortably for less than ₹1 lakh per month.

Nationalist Congress Party (SP) MP Supriya Sule criticised Air India over delaying her flight for more than one hour, and urged the Union Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu to enforce stricter regulations to hold airlines accountable. Supriya Sule said that her flight AI0508 was delayed by 1 hour and 19 minutes, noting the continuous trends of delays affecting passengers. «I was travelling on Air India flight AI0508, which was delayed by 1 hour and 19 minutes — part of a continuous trend of delays affecting passengers. This is unacceptable. Urging Hon'ble Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu to enforce stricter regulations to hold airlines like Air India accountable for repeated delays and ensure better service standards for passengers.» Sule wrote on X. In an another post, Sule added that these flights are never on time, affecting professionals, children, and senior citizens with their mismanagement. «Air India flights are endlessly delayed — this is unacceptable! We pay premium fares, yet flights are never on time. Professionals, children, and senior citizens — all affected by this constant mismanagement. Urging the Civil Aviation Minister to take action and hold Air India accountable,» Sule wrote.

Balancing Technology, Judiciary Workload, and Legal Ethics for a Better India

Pinarayi Vijayan said on Thursday. Hailing the law enacted on Wednesday, the Chief Minister said this new commission would focus on protecting the rights, welfare, and rehabilitation of the elderly. «The LDF government is implementing policies that wholeheartedly embrace senior citizens. Kerala, which ranks first in the country in elderly welfare, is setting another example in this field. »To strengthen the initiatives launched for senior citizens since the previous government's tenure, the state is now establishing the country's first-ever Senior Citizens Commission. As a step towards this, the Kerala Legislative Assembly passed the Kerala State Senior Citizens Commission Bill yesterday (Wednesday)," Vijayan said in a Facebook post. He said that with the establishment of this commission, «we will be able to ensure the rehabilitation, security, and welfare» of senior citizens more effectively. «The commission will prioritise addressing the hardships faced by the elderly, including neglect, exploitation, and loneliness. It will be responsible for providing the necessary guidelines to tackle these issues,» Vijayan said.

Canada's Foreign Minister Melanie Joly told reporters in Ottawa on Wednesday that China had executed four Canadian citizens in recent weeks, defying pleas from Ottawa for leniency. «We strongly condemn the executions that did happen against Canadians in China,» Joly said. She said she was unable to discuss details of the case due to privacy requests from the affected families. However, Beijing suggested on Thursday the Canadians had been convicted over narcotics offences, saying "… combating drug crimes is the common responsibility of all countries".

government of India did not participate in any exercise related to the Corruption Perception Index, and took various measures to combat graft in pursuance of its commitment to "zero tolerance against corruption", the Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday. The assertion came in response to a question whether the «government is aware that India's score on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2024 declined to 38 points, ranking 96th out of 180 countries, as per the Transparency International report», and reasons behind it, among others. In a written reply, Union Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said, «No such surveys were conducted by any agency at the behest of the government of India.» Further, the government of India did not participate in any such exercise related to the Corruption Perception Index, Singh said. However, the government of India, in pursuance of its commitment to «zero tolerance against corruption», has taken several measures to combat corruption, which include systemic improvements and reforms to provide transparent citizen-friendly services and reduce corruption, the minister said. He cited the disbursement of welfare benefits directly to the citizens under various schemes of the government in a transparent manner through the direct benefit transfer (DBT) mode, implementation of e-tendering in public procurements, introduction of e-governance and simplification of procedures and systems besides the introduction of procurement through the government e-marketplace (GeM), as measures to check corruption.

Yogi Adityanath on Thursday said glorifying invaders who attacked India's heritage and dishonoured its people was equivalent to treason, which the 'new India' will never accept. Amid the ongoing controversy over demands to remove Mughal ruler Aurangzeb's tomb in Maharashtra's Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district, Adityanath warned against celebrating historical figures who sought to destroy Sanatan culture. Addressing a public gathering in Bahraich, Adityanath said, «Glorifying invaders means strengthening the very roots of treason. New India will never accept those who insult our great ancestors and praise those who attacked our civilisation, violated our women, and struck at our faith.» «When the entire world is acknowledging India's rich heritage, it is the duty of every citizen to uphold respect for our great leaders, and not eulogise those who sought to erase our identity,» he added. Adityanath's remarks came as he spoke on the recently-concluded Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, which he called «the largest human congregation ever witnessed». He also referred to Narendra Modi's recent speech in Parliament, in which the prime minister praised Uttar Pradesh for hosting the event for which «over 66 crore devotees» gathered at the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the mystical Saraswati.

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Nagpur on Monday evening following rumours that the holy book of the Muslim community had been burnt during an agitation by a right-wing group demanding the removal of Aurangzeb’s tomb. Amid the tense situation, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis called for peace and urged people not to believe in rumours.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reassured depositors of IndusInd Bank that “there is no cause for concern” amid recent worries about the bank’s financial health. IndusInd Bank recently revealed that it faced some financial discrepancies concerning its currency derivative transactions over the past seven to eight years, which will result in a financial hit of Rs 1,600 crore. “There has been some speculation relating to IndusInd Bank in certain quarters, perhaps arising from recent events related to the bank. The Reserve Bank would like to state that the bank (IndusInd Bank) is well-capitalised and the financial position of the bank remains satisfactory,” the RBI said in a press release on March 15, 2025. Also read: After DCB Bank, Shivalik SFB, this bank slashes FD interest rates: Check latest FD interest rates

Venezuelan gang to be imprisoned in El Salvador, President Nayib Bukele said Sunday, after US counterpart Donald Trump invoked wartime authorities to expel migrants. Trump signed an order invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 on Friday, but it was not publicly announced until Saturday. The wartime authority allows a president to detain or deport citizens of an enemy nation, but has been invoked only three times before during major international conflicts. Civil rights groups sued to block the order, with a federal judge Saturday granting a temporary suspension of the order, apparently as planes were already headed to El Salvador. «Today, the first 238 members of the Venezuelan criminal organization, Tren de Aragua, arrived in our country,» Bukele said on X. Bukele, in a meeting last month with US secretary of state Marco Rubio, had offered to house prisoners from the US in his country. He said in his post that the alleged gang members had been sent to the country's maximum security Terrorism Confinement Center. The detention and expulsion order will apply to all Venezuelan Tren de Aragua members who are over 14 and not naturalized US citizens or lawful permanent residents.

The Senior Citizens League has proposed that a one-time financial relief payment be issued to eligible recipients, drawing from funds that the government typically receives through overpayments each year. This recommendation aims to provide much-needed support to senior citizens who rely on Social Security benefits for their daily expenses. ALSO READ: Is Elon Musk planning to use AI to run the US government? What you need to know

Ministry of Home Affairs has sought an umbrella probe in the cases of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants staying in the country. A senior officer informed that in a recent meeting, instructions have been passed to all states and UTs to investigate the cases of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants as umbrella cases and identify the persons who have helped the illegal immigrants in obtaining documents to generate Aadhar and other documents pertaining to the citizenship of India. The officer added that in some cases, it has been found that the documents were prepared for the purpose of travel to European countries or the Middle East, and the persons didn't stay for long in India. The investigation officers have been instructed to also identify the persons who have helped the illegal immigrant in generating documents and make them accused in the case. During the investigation, it has been instructed to identify the loopholes used to generate documents. All suspicious aadhar cards have been sent for re-verification, which includes scrutiny of the documents submitted for aadhar generation. In a meeting with Aadhar officials, they have been asked to pass instructions to all aadhar centers to inform the police in case they find any person trying to modify or generate aadhar on suspicious documents. In case of confirmation of illegal Bangladeshi nationals, the persons will be kept in the detention centre, and FRRO will be informed to facilitate their safe return as per protocols.

Accompanying her post with an image on X (previously known as Twitter), she shared a snapshot of a signboard listing various park guidelines, which included instructions like “No Jogging,” “Walk in a Clockwise Manner,” and “No Recreational Games.” Sahana, the concerned citizen, raised questions about these directives, particularly focusing on the ban on jogging in a place meant for exercise and outdoor activities. In her online post, she expressed shock at the restriction, challenging the logic behind preventing individuals from jogging in the park. She also employed sarcasm to make her point, suggesting that, at this rate, the next rule might involve outlawing Western attire in public parks.