The ED on Wednesday hit back at Chidambaram's defence in the Supreme Court by taking a page from their argument. Senior advocate Singhvi, appearing for Chidambaram, had

'Not humiliation but prevention': ED counters Chidambaram

The ED on Wednesday hit back at&nbsp;Chidambaram's&nbsp;defence in the Supreme Court by taking a page from their argument.&nbsp;Senior advocate Singhvi, appearing for Chidambaram, had on Tuesday questioned why the ED wanted to arrest his client? He had said and I quote, "The answer is - to humiliate me, to humiliate me and to humiliate me, all letters of humiliation in capitals,&nbsp;minute by minute and hour by hour". Solicitor General Tushar&nbsp;today hit back saying,&nbsp;"It's not done for 'humiliation, humiliation, humiliation', as Mr&nbsp;Singhvi said yesterday, but only for prevention, prevention, prevention with capital P". He also reiterated that the probe was not a witch-hunt saying,&nbsp;"We have evidence in our possession and it is cogent evidence".

The ED on Wednesday hit back at Chidambaram's defence in the Supreme Court by taking a page from their argument. Senior advocate Singhvi, appearing for Chidambaram, had on Tuesday questioned why the ED wanted to arrest his client? He had said and I quote, "The answer is - to humiliate me, to humiliate me and to humiliate me, all letters of humiliation in capitals, minute by minute and hour by hour". Solicitor General Tushar today hit back saying, "It's not done for 'humiliation, humiliation, humiliation', as Mr Singhvi said yesterday, but only for prevention, prevention, prevention with capital P". He also reiterated that the probe was not a witch-hunt saying, "We have evidence in our possession and it is cogent evidence".

The West Bengal CID has summoned six CISF personnel who were on duty at Jorpatki booth in Sitalkuchi assembly constituency where four persons were killed in a firing by

The West Bengal CID has summoned six CISF personnel who were on duty at Jorpatki booth in Sitalkuchi assembly constituency where four persons were killed in a firing by the central forces personnel during voting.
The six CISF officials, including two of its officers, have been asked to meet sleuths of the Special Investigating Team of the CID, formed to investigate the killings, at Bhawani Bhawan&nbsp;on Tuesday morning.
Reports said the CISF's&nbsp;request to appear before the CID virtually citing the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic were turned down.
&nbsp;

The World Health Organziation said on Monday that the B.1.617 or the Indian coronavirus variant was being classified as a variant of global concern. WHO's technic

The World Health Organziation said on Monday that the B.1.617 or the Indian coronavirus variant&nbsp;was being classified as a variant of global concern.
WHO's technical lead on Covid-19, Maria Van Kerkhove,&nbsp; said there&nbsp;is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility&nbsp;and also possibly some increased resistance to vaccine protections&nbsp;in the cases of variant first found in India. Despite the precautions, however, South Africa, on Monday reported four cases of the Indian variant of coronavirus.

After recording over 4 lakh new cases for the past 4 days, India reported a single-day rise of 3,66,151 Covid cases on Monday. Maharashtra’s daily cases dropped

In a reprieve, the coronavirus&nbsp;cases in the two epicentres of infections showed a considerable dip in infections on Monday.&nbsp;
For the first time since March 31, Maharashtra&rsquo;s daily cases dropped below 40,000 to 37,236 on Monday.
Delhi reported 12,651 new infections, which is lowest in 4 weeks. The positivity rate which has remained above 20% since April 17 also dipped to 19.10%.
Kerala&rsquo;s positivity rate also showed signs of decline at 27.56 per cent. The southern state recorded 27,487 new cases and 65 fatalities.
With 21,331 fresh infections, the daily cases dropped for the fourth straight day in Uttar Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh crossed the 13 lakh mark with 14,986 cases. The last 1 lakh cases were recorded in the last 5 days.
West Bengal, were elections were held recently,&nbsp;on the other hand recorded the highest single day spike with 19,445 new cases. Karnataka logged 39,305 cases, taking the total caseload to 19,73,683.
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A day after he was admitted to the Medanta Hospital in Lucknow with coronavirus infection, Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan was shifted to the ICU. The 72-year-ol

A day after he was admitted to the Medanta Hospital in Lucknow with coronavirus infection, Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan was shifted to the&nbsp;ICU.
The 72-year-old leader&nbsp;Rampur Lok Sabha MP and his son Abdullah Khan were confirmed Covid-19 positive on April 30 and they were admitted to the private hospital from the Sitapur jail on May 9.
The hospital said Azam Khan's oxygen needs shot up during the day to '10 litres per minute', which is why 'the critical care team shifted him to the ICU'. Azam Khan, along with his son and wife Tazeen Fatma, was lodged in the jail in February last year in connection with various cases.
The Allahabad High Court had in December granted bail to Tazeen Fatma in all 34 cases registered against her.

The official Twitter handle of Lt Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha was suspended briefly on Monday.However, the Raj Bhawan officials maintaining that it w

The official Twitter handle of Lt Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha was suspended briefly on Monday. However, the&nbsp;Raj Bhawan officials maintaining that it was a technical error.
The Raj Bhawan officials said that the issue had been taken up with the authorities concerned and the "technical error" would be resolved soon.
The handle was subsequently restored.
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Shortage of vaccines is starting to hit the pace of vaccination in it's third phase across infection epicentres. Only 6.89 lakh doses of vaccine against COVID-19 were a

Shortage of vaccines is starting to hit the pace of vaccination drive in it's third phase across infection epicentres. Only 6.89 lakh doses of vaccine against Covid-19 were administered in the last 24 hours, the lowest count since March 29. In fact experts point out that the seven-day average for vaccination slipped below 18 lakh for the first time since April 1 when it was opened for all adults across India.&nbsp; As per reports the government had received 8.7&nbsp;crore doses of Covishield till May 3 as against the last order of 10 cr&nbsp;doses. While the govt had received only 88 lakh&nbsp;doses of Covaxin&nbsp;vs an order of&nbsp;2 crore doses.

India is among the few countries in the world which is charging its citizens for the Covid jab, not just that, reports indicate the cost of vaccines being administered

India is among the few countries in the world which is charging its citizens for the Covid jab, not just that, reports indicate the cost of vaccines being administered by private hospitals in India, is among the costliest as well.
According to a Times of India report, the cost of vaccines in the private sector has increased six-fold. Private hospitals are now charging between ₹1,250-1,500 for Covaxin and ₹700-900 for Covishield. As per the CoWIN website, the major share of inoculation in the private sector is being done by four big corporates:&nbsp;Apollo, Max, Fortis and Manipal.
Initially, the Centre was procuring both jabs at ₹150 each and distributing them to states and private hospitals. The new vaccine policy opening up jabs to free market pricing, is creating an inequity, as sale of vaccines to private players at a higher cost is more beneficial for the vaccine makers.
BharatBiotech is charging ₹1,200 per dose of Covaxin for private hospitals while Serum Insititue of India has capped the price at ₹600. Both the figures are double the amount quoted for the state governments.
States and smaller hospitals are now struggling with procurement of the jabs. Experts say that even within the private sector, it is just a small section of&nbsp;corporate hospitals which are being favoured, and the new vaccine policy is going to make universal vaccination more difficult.

Decomposing bodies washed up on the banks of Ganga at Bihar's Buxar on Monday, causing panic among the locals. Dozens of bodies were seen floating in the river at Chaus

Decomposing bodies washed up on the banks of Ganga at Bihar's Buxar on Monday, causing panic among the locals. Dozens of bodies were seen floating in the river at Chausa town on Bihar's border with Uttar Pradesh. The bodies are believed to have floated down from neighbouring Uttar Pradesh and belong to Covid patients whose relatives were unable to find space to cremate or bury them.&nbsp; Local administration believes the bodies were in the water for four to five days. &lsquo;Need to investigate which UP town the bodies are from," a district official KK Upadhyay said. There is panic in the town over infection from the bodies and from the river water.

The Delhi High Court on Monday agreed to hear a petition seeking an interim stay on the construction of Central Vista during the peak phase of the pandemic. The c

The Delhi High Court on Monday agreed to hear a petition seeking an interim stay on the construction of Central Vista during the peak phase of the&nbsp;pandemic.
The court had earlier listed the case for hearing on May 17 but will now hear the plea on Tuesday. The redevelopment project envisages a new triangular Parliament building, a common Central Secretariat, the revamping of the three-km-long Rajpath from the Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate and new residences for the prime minister and the vice president.
The government has brought the construction work under the ambit of &ldquo;essential services&rdquo; to ensure smooth movement of labourers during the lockdown in Delhi.
Last week, the&nbsp;Supreme Court had declined&nbsp;to entertain the plea against the High Court&rsquo;s adjournment of the petition and told the petitioners to request the High Court for an urgent hearing.

70 per cent of Delhi residents are in favour of an extension of the Covid-19 lockdown by two weeks in the wake of increasing Covid-19 cases, a survey by citizen engagem

70 per cent of Delhi residents are in favour of an extension of the Covid-19 lockdown by two weeks in the wake of increasing Covid-19 cases, a survey by citizen engagement platform Local Circles has revealed.
Around 47% of Delhi residents said the lockdown&nbsp;could be extended by 3 weeks, 23% said extend it by 2 weeks, and 15% said extend it by 1 week.&nbsp;Only 9%&nbsp;wanted the lockdown&nbsp;to end and all restrictions removed.
The findings of the poll indicated that 85% residents of Delhi are in favour of at least a 1-week lockdown extension, 70% favoured extending it by at least two weeks, while 47% wanted an extension of the lockdown by three weeks.&nbsp;The survey received 11,402 responses across Delhi.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in a letter to PM Modi, said his state cannot spare any further oxygen to neighbouring states as they have already supplied their

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in a letter to PM Modi, said his state cannot spare any further oxygen to neighbouring states as they have already supplied their buffer stock and are now left with just 86 metric tonne.
Kerala will allow 40 metric tonnes of oxygen to Tamil Nadu till May 10, as per the May 6 decision of the Central Committee of Oxygen Allocation.&nbsp; After this &lsquo;it will be practically impossible to allow oxygen to be taken out of the state considering the present situation&rsquo;, Vijayan wrote to PM Modi.
The state will need 450 metric tonnes of oxygen by May 15 given the surge in cases. Vijayan has requested that the entire 219 MT oxygen produced in Kerala be allocated to the state itself.

The Congress decided to put off the election of a new party president citing Covid. The Congress Working Committee (CWC), which met on Monday, postponed the polls despi

The Congress decided to put off the election of a new party president citing Covid. The Congress Working Committee (CWC), which met on Monday, postponed the polls despite setting a date. The CWC what was mulling over holding the long-awaited internal polls on June 23 said the elections should be put off given the COVID-19 crisis. The date was postponed after the majority of members opposed the date. The post of Congress president has remained vacant since Rahul Gandhi resigned after the drubbing in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Delhi’s Saket Court on Monday refused interim relief to businessman Navneet Kalra in the case related to hoarding of oxygen concentrators in the capital. Kalra h

Delhi&rsquo;s Saket Court on Monday refused interim relief to businessman Navneet Kalra in the case related to hoarding of oxygen concentrators in the capital.
Kalra had moved the court for an anticipatory bail plea, but the Court asked Delhi Police to file its reply to the plea and the matter will be heard on Tuesday.
The Delhi Police had issued a lookout notice for Kalra who has been on the run since the raids last week. The Delhi police seized 524 concentrators from restaurants and offices owned by Kalra in Khan Market, Lodhi Colony and Chhatarpur.
The case has now been transferred to the Crime Branch.

As the country struggles to tackle the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, a video of a wedding in Chhattisgarh is going viral. The clip, which shows 100-150 people d

As the country struggles to tackle the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, a video of a wedding in Chhattisgarh is going viral. The clip, which shows 100-150 people dancing, was shared by BJP leader Lata Usendi on May 7. 
Forget social distancing, people were seen dancing in small groups with hands on each other&rsquo;s waist. Masks were nowhere to be seen. All Covid-19 protocols seemed to be thrown out of the window for this wedding.
While sharing the video, Usendi claimed the video was of May 5 wedding of Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee president Mohan Markam&rsquo;s nephew. She added that the MLA was also present there.
However, MLA Mohan Markam now says, it's not right to call everyone his nephew. "Lata Usendi alleges that I got my nephew married off like that. She can look at my lineage. Everyone is connected to everyone in villages. It's not right to call everyone my nephew. If COVID-19 norms are violated, the administration takes action," said the Kondagaon MLA.

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Himanta Biswa Sarma was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Assam on Monday. He along with 13 members of his cabinet, was administerd the oa

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Himanta Biswa Sarma was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Assam on Monday. He along with 13 members of his cabinet, was administered the oath by state Governor Jagdish Mukhi. He succeeded Sarbananda Sonowal as the 15th Chief Minister of the state.
The simple swearing-in ceremony was attended by BJP National President J P Nadda and other party as well as opposition leaders. Sarma who left the Congress in 2015 despite being close to then Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi played a crucial role in leading the BJP-led alliance to a victory in the assembly elections. PM Modi congratulated Sarma and said he was confident "this team will add momentum to the development journey of Assam".

Congress president Sonia Gandhi did some plain speak at a meet with senior party leaders to brainstorm on the party's defeat in the recent Assembly polls. Sonia called

Congress president Sonia Gandhi did some plain speak at a meet with senior party leaders to brainstorm on the party's defeat in the recent Assembly polls.
Sonia called on her party to "take note of our serious setbacks and put our house in order". She told the CWC meet that a small group will be set up to look at every aspect that caused party's electoral reverses.
"We need to candidly understand why Congress failed to dislodge incumbent govts in Kerala, Assam and drew complete blank in West Bengal," Sonia Gandhi stated, adding that "If we do not face reality, we will not draw right lessons".
The party chief's strong words come days after she described their performance in last month's Assembly elections as "very disappointing" and added that it was "unexpectedly so".

Delhi has enough Covaxin to last only a day and Covishield enough for around four days, the state government sent SOS to the Centre on Monday. Delhi Health Minister Sat

Delhi has enough Covaxin to last only a day and Covishield enough for around four days, the state government sent SOS to the Centre on Monday. Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain said Delhi needs vaccines at the earliest. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had earlier flagged a shortage of vaccines, pointing out that people from neighbouring areas like Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurgaon were also driving to Delhi for Covid shots. Kejriwal has requested the Centre to provide Delhi with 83 lakh doses every month to vaccinate all adults within the next three months.

In a tragic incident, seven Covid patients at the government-run King Koti Hospital in Hyderabad died after an oxygen tanker heading to the hospital lost its way. Repor

In a tragic incident, seven Covid patients at the government-run King Koti Hospital in Hyderabad died after an oxygen tanker heading to the hospital lost its way. Reports said that the delay in the arrival of Oxygen disrupted the supply and seven patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital died on Sunday as the oxygen pressure dropped. Hyderabad Police traced the tanker and guided it to the hospital, but seven patients had already lost their lives by then. The officials have not clarified yet if the Oxygen tanker was provided with a green corridor or not.

80 doctors at Delhi’s Saroj Hospital, have tested Covid positive so far even as the hospital continues to treat patients. Of the 80 doctors who have been diagnose

80 doctors at Delhi&rsquo;s Saroj Hospital, have tested Covid positive so far even as the hospital continues to treat patients. Of the 80 doctors who have been diagnosed with Covid-19, 12 are now admitted to the hospital for treatment while the rest of are in home quarantine. A senior surgeon, Dr AK Rawat who worked at the facility for nearly three decades has succumbed to the disease. With the Covid outbreak at Saroj Hospital, all out-patient departments (OPDs) have been closed for now. Over 300 doctors and paramedic staff across Delhi hospitals have reportedly tested positive for Covid so far.

After a sweeping victory in the hotly contested Bengal election, forty-three members of the Mamata Banerjee led Trinamool Congress were sworn in on Monday at the Raj Bh

After a sweeping victory in the hotly contested Bengal election, forty-three members of the Mamata Banerjee led Trinamool Congress were sworn in on Monday at the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata. The swearing-in ceremony conducted by West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankar was low-key affair due to the Covid-19 emergency. &nbsp;Mamata Banerjee took charge as the Chief Minister of West Bengal for her third term on May 6.
Out of the 43 candidates who were sworn in, 24 are full ministers, 19 are state ministers and 10 will be holding independent offices. The 16 new faces in the new government include former India cricketer Manoj Tiwar, former IPS officer Humayun Kabir among others.

'Not humiliation but prevention': ED counters Chidambaram

National

Sitalkuchi killings: West Bengal CID summons 6 CISF personnel

Coronavirus strain in India a 'variant of concern at global level': WHO

Covid-19: cases dip in two major infection epicentres

SP leader Azam Khan shifted to Covid ICU in Lucknow hospital

Twitter briefly suspends account of J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha

Vaccination rate slows down, falls to the lowest since April 1

India: 'Covid-19 jabs at private centres among the costliest in the world'

Panic as 40 bodies believed to be of Covid patients wash up on banks of Ganga in Bihar

Delhi HC agrees to hear plea seeking interim stay on Central Vista project

70% of Delhiites want Covid lockdown to be extended by 2 weeks: survey

'Can't spare Oxygen, Kerala needs it': Pinarayi Vijayan writes to PM

Congress postpones date for president elections amid Covid crisis

No interim relief for Navneet Kalra in oxygen concentrators seizure case

'Not everyone is my nephew': Cong MLA on wedding that flouted Covid norms

Himanta Biswa Sarma sworn in as Chief Minister of Assam

'Put house in order': Sonia's plainspeak at Cong meet on poll debacle

Covaxin stocks to last a day, Covishield for 3-4 days, Delhi govt's SOS to Centre

7 Covid patients die in Hyderabad hospital as oxygen tanker loses way

Delhi’s Saroj Hospital: 80 doctors have tested Covid +ve so far, 1 senior surgeon died

Mamata Banerjee's 3rd cabinet: 43 ministers take oath in Bengal

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