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New Delhi, July 16 (IANS) After key NDA ally Telugu Desam Party (TDP) sought clarity on controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral poll, senior Congress leader Pramod Tiwari on Wednesday called it a clear signal that more NDA allies could break ranks and speak out against what he described as a “grave threat” to democracy.Tiwari's remarks came a day after the TDP submitted a detailed four-page representation to the ECI, questioning the intent and implications of the ongoing SIR process.“This is not just an administrative issue. This is a big danger, a danger to democracy. The way the BJP is allegedly misusing the ECI, it seems they are trying to wipe out established voter bases to bring in dictatorship through the back door. This is nothing short of the murder of democr...

Kolkata, July 16 (IANS) The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday allowed the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) to apply new rules and weightage criteria in the fresh process for recruiting teachers in the state-run schools. Notably, the teachers' posts fell vacant following an order of the Supreme Court in April this year, cancelling 25,753 school jobs.A Division Bench of Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Smita Das dismissed the petition challenging the two new weightage criteria introduced in the fresh recruitment notification, carrying 10 marks each, first under the head of "prior teaching experience" and the second under "lecture demonstration".The petitioners contended that the procedure to be followed in the fresh recruitment process should be the same as that of 2016, the entire...

Bhopal, July 16 (IANS) A photograph with title "Ek Desh Do Kanoon" (one nation two laws) was shared from the Congress' official social media account -- 'With Congress' -- that has sparked a political controversy in Madhya Pradesh. The Congress' social media post has two photographs - one that shows Kanwar Yatra, while another part shows people from the Muslim community offering 'namaz' (prayer) on the roadside.The background of Kanwar Yatra has a saffron background, while the portion of the photograph showing Muslims offering namaz has green background, and a policeman is kicking one of the Muslims offering namaz on the roadside.The photograph showing Muslims offering namaz is from New Delhi as the background (signboard showing direction on road) also mentioned Tis Hazari.This alleged con...

New Delhi, July 16 (IANS) As the security challenges in Jammu and Kashmir heighten following Operation Sindoor, there are speculations that the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is likely to play a bigger role with the deployment of new battalions.Top sources told IANS, "Around 20 new battalions (20,000 troops) will be raised in a phased manner. However, their deployment will not be limited to J&K.”The proposal to raise new battalions was raised last October, but it did not yield any results. Although the proposal to raise 20 new battalions is less than the original demand by the CRPF, given the evolving situation in J&K, especially after the deadly Pahalgam attack in which 26 innocent people were killed by Pakistan-based terrorists, followed by Operation Sindoor by the Indian ...

New Delhi, July 16 (IANS) The Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, appeared before the MP/MLA court in a defamation case on Tuesday and was subsequently granted bail. However, a controversy broke out over his alleged photo-op session as lawyers made a beeline to take a picture with the Congress MP apparently inside the court premises.The BJP took strong exception to the incident and spokesperson Ajay Alok lashed out at the Congress MP and said that this shows his utter disregard for the judiciary.“This man has no shame. He is a habitual offender and will continue to do so. After getting bail, he was posing for photo ops, that’s how little shame he has left," the BJP spokesperson said in a terse reply, responding to viral pictures of LoP Gandhi's photo with lawyers...

New Delhi, July 16 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Haryana Special Investigation Team (SIT) for unnecessarily broadening the scope of its probe into the two FIRs filed against Ali Khan Mahmudabad, a professor of political science at Haryana-based Ashoka University, over his controversial social media posts on Operation Sindoor. After senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing on Mahmudabad's behalf, submitted that the SIT had seized his electronic devices and sought his travel history over the last decade, a Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymala Bagchi remarked, "Why is the SIT on the face of it misdirecting itself? They were supposed to examine the contents of the social media posts. They can say that his article is an opinion and does not constitute an offence or other...

New Delhi, July 16 (IANS) Shubhanshu Shukla’s space mission energises the nation’s resolve to build Viksit Bharat by 2047, said the Cabinet on Wednesday, while adopting a resolution hailing his space odyssey.IAF Group Captain Shukla, who on June 26 became the first Indian to reach the International Space Station (ISS), landed back safely on Earth on Tuesday.“The Cabinet joins the nation in celebrating the return of Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla to Earth, following the successful completion of his historic 18-day mission aboard the International Space Station,” a Cabinet Communique said."It will ignite the scientific temper, fuel curiosity, and inspire countless youth to pursue careers in science and embrace innovation.“The Cabinet reaffirms its firm conviction that this mission will ener...