Category: NATIONAL NEWS

 The Supreme Court Friday paved the way for entry of women of all ages into the Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala in Kerala.The five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, in its 4:1 verdict, said that banning the entry of women into the shrine is gender discrimination and the practice violates rights of Hindu women.The CJI said religion is a way of life basically to link life with divinity.While Justices R F Nariman and D Y Chandrachud concurred with the CJI and Justice A M Khanwilkar, Justice Indu Malhotra…

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 The BJP Thursday said it does not see any grand alliance taking shape against it as there are many “gaps and contradictions” among opposition parties, even as it exuded confidence of increasing its tally in Uttar Pradesh in the next Lok Sabha polls.“The BJP’s performance will be better in 2019 compared to 2014, when the party and its allies bagged a lion’s share of 73 seats (of total 80 seats),” state BJP President Mahendra Nath Pandey told PTI in an interview here.Asked about the opposition parties’ attempt to form a…

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Petitioners and activists Wednesday welcomed the Supreme Court’s verdict declaring the Aadhaar scheme as constitutionally valid.Tehseen Poonawalla, one of the petitioners in the case, expressed happiness at the apex court stating it was not necessary to link it to bank accounts and that telecom service providers couldn’t seek linking of Aadhaar.”Oh jeez, Sekhri just said #AadhaarVerdict does NOT have to be linked to mobiles and banks!!! Amazing. He struck down section 57 of the #Aadhaar act!!,” he tweeted.  Section 57 allows not only the State but also any “body corporate…

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A day after he was rescued from the Indian Ocean off Australia, Indian sailor Abhilash Tomy, who suffered a grievous back injury while participating in the Golden Globe race, has been admitted to a hospital in a remote island, a Defence spokesman said here Tuesday.He said the French fisheries vessel Osiris, which rescued Commander Abhilash Tomy, reached off Amsterdam isle by 9:30 AM and the sailor was subsequently transferred to the hospital there for further medical evaluation and treatment.Tomy, 39, and Irishman Gregor McGuckin, 32, were injured after their boats…

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Firing fresh salvo at the prime minister on the Rafale deal, Congress president Rahul Gandhi Monday charged country’s “chowkidar” Narendra Modi with snatching away money from the poor and handing it over to industrialist Anil Ambani.He asked the prime minister for answers on why Rafale price was not disclosed and how Ambani got the contract.”The chowkidar of the country has taken out Rs 20,000 crore from the pockets of the poor, martyrs and the jawans and put it in the pocket of Ambani,” Gandhi said at a meeting in the…

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Congress president Rahul Gandhi Sunday hit back at Arun Jaitley on the Rafale issue, saying it is time the finance minister and the prime minister “stop lying” and call for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe for an “uncorrupted truth” to come out.He accused Jaitley of having the ability to spin “2 truths or lies” with “fake self-righteousness” and “indignation to defend the indefensible”.  “Mr Jetlie’s speciality is his ability to spin ‘2 truths’, or lies, with fake self righteousness and indignation to defend the indefensible. It’s high time he,…

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The Delhi High Court has asked the AAP government by when it can shift students from one of its schools, the building of which is 99 years old and in a dilapidated state, saying it was concerned with the safety of the children. A bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V K Rao asked the Delhi government to file a status report indicating by when the students would be accommodated in other schools and the time frame for repairing or reconstructing the building.The court, however, made it clear…

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Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram Friday slammed the Modi government for its banking policy, saying due to its “heavy-handed” approach towards non-performing assets, banks have no money to lend.In a series of tweets, the former finance minister also claimed that though export credit had declined from Rs 39,000 crore in June, 2017, to Rs 22,300 crore in June, 2018, the government thinks that it is taking steps to boost exports.”In a climate of suspicion and vendetta, the only thing a banker looks forward to is the date of retirement. “Thanks to…

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The ongoing Ganesh festival has become a public outreach opportunity for city-based politicians, who are eyeing blessings of both Lord Ganesh and his devotees ahead of an election year.As both the Lok Sabha and Maharashtra polls are due in 2019, political leaders, especially ticket-aspirants, are making it a point to visit people in their constituencies who have installed Ganesh idols at home, apart from going to several pandals that dot the city during the 11-day festival. “The idea is just to be seen with voters,” said a worker of a…

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Cyclonic circulations in the Arabian Sea near the Gujarat coast caused rain in Mumbai and its neighbouring districts in Maharashtra Wednesday morning, a MeT official said. The showers brought down temperatures in the megapolis and its surrounding areas which were witnessing a dry spell. Light to moderate rain occurred in Mumbai and its adjoining areas in the morning.“The cyclonic circulations formed over the Gujarat coast have brought lot of moisture, leading to cloud formation over most parts of Maharashtra,” India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) senior director Shubhangi Bhute told PTI.Due to…

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