India’s captain Rohit Sharma and spinner Kuldeep Yadav celebrate a wicket during the semi-final match against England in the ICC Mens T20 World Cup 2024, at Providence Stadium in Guyana on June 28, 2024
| Photo Credit: ANI

INDIA bloc plans adjournment motions in both Houses of Parliament on NEET issue

Opposition parties belonging to the INDIA bloc will move adjournment motions in both the Houses of Parliament on June 28 over the alleged irregularities in the National Entrance-cum-Eligibility Test (NEET) and paper leaks in other public exams. 

Rohit Sharma, spinners guide India to third T20 World Cup final

Skipper Rohit Sharma’s grace was matched by the might of Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav as India exorcised the ghosts of 2022 by handing defending champions England a 68-run thrashing to enter the final of the T20 World Cup in Georgetown on June 27.

Students protest at Jantar Mantar, want NTA dissolved

While the President addressed the NEET issue in Parliament on Thursday, only a few km away, Jantar Mantar saw back-to-back protests with students and youth leaders demanding the dissolving of the controversy-riddled National Testing Agency (NTA) and the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. Simultaneously, Congress-affiliated NSUI members marched to the NTA and demanded its closure, attempting to lock the office from outside.

CBI arrests two in Patna in NEET paper leak case

In its first arrests from Patna in the NEET-UG paper leak case, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took Manish Prakash and Ashutosh Kumar into custody on Thursday. According to the agency, the accused played a crucial role in arranging to rent the Learn Boys Hostel and Play School in Patna’s Khemnichak locality, where the leaked question papers were allegedly distributed to the 20 to 25 candidates gathered there on the eve of the examination, so that they could memorise the answers overnight.

Plea in Supreme Court to stay implementation of new criminal laws

A petition was moved in the Supreme Court on June 27 seeking a stay on the implementation and operation of three new criminal laws, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023, scheduled to come into effect from July 1.

Manipur BJP president meets Amit Shah for ‘permanent solution’ to conflict in State

The chief of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Manipur met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi on Thursday urging “immediate attention to bring permanent solution and tranquillity to the State”. A. Sharda Devi met Mr. Shah for “an extensive discussion on the current situation in Manipur”. Her three-year tenure as party president ended on Thursday.

President Murmu flags NEET, Emergency in address to Parliament, says government fully committed to investigating ‘paper leaks’

In her first address to Parliament since the Lok Sabha election results were announced, President Droupadi Murmu asked MPs to rise above “partisan politics” with regard to the row over “paper leaks” in examinations for medical college admissions and government recruitment. The Union government is “fully committed” to investigating the issues and punishing the guilty, she said.

AAP MP’s suspension revoked, six new members take oath in Rajya Sabha

Six newly-elected members of Parliament from Bihar, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh took oath as members of the Rajya Sabha on June 27. The Upper House held its first setting after the constitution of the 18th Lok Sabha on Thursday and it was first day of the 264th session of the Rajya Sabha. 

Pro-Israel posters pasted, black ink thrown outside Owaisi’s residence in Delhi

A group of five men pasted posters outside the residence of AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi in New Delhi on Thursday evening, demanding his suspension from the Lok Sabha, officials said. According to a police officer, four-five men reached Mr. Owaisi’s 34 Ashoka Road residence located in Central Delhi and pasted three posters at the entry gate and wall of the house about 9 p.m.

17 people arrested in attempted coup that shook Bolivia, government says

Bolivia’s government on Thursday announced that a total of 17 people have been arrested over their alleged involvement in the attempted coup that shook the economically troubled country the day before.

Prague-to-Budapest train collides with a bus in Slovakia, killing 5 people and injuring 5

A train travelling from the Czech capital of Prague to the Hungarian capital of Budapest collided with a bus in southern Slovakia on Thursday, leaving at least five people dead and five injured, officials said.

RBI unveils revised Currency Swap Arrangement for SAARC countries

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on June 27 said it with the concurrence of the Government of India has decided to put in place a revised Framework on Currency Swap Arrangement for SAARC countries for the period 2024 to 2027. Under this Framework, the Reserve Bank would enter into bilateral swap agreements with SAARC central banks, who want to avail of the swap facility. 

UltraTech Cement acquires 23% stake in India Cements

Aditya Birla Group’s UltraTech Cement Ltd. announced it was making a non-controlling financial investment to pick up 23% equity stake in India Cements Ltd (ICL). Block deal data showed UltraTech initially bought 6.02 crore ICL shares, or 19.4% stake. Earlier in the day, UltraTech’s Board approved the purchase of up to 7.06 crore equity shares of ICL at up to ₹267 apiece.

New Delhi:

Lieutenant Governor (LG) V K Saxena has approved temporarily dissolving the Delhi Dialogue and Development Commission (DDCD) and the removal of its non-official members till a mechanism is developed for the screening and selection of domain experts as its vice-chairperson and members, Raj Niwas officials said on Thursday.

Reacting to the development, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi said it will challenge the LG’s “illegal” decision in courts.

In a file noting marked to the Delhi chief secretary, Mr Saxena said the entire exercise of creating the DDCD by the incumbent government was only to extend financial benefits and patronage to certain favoured political persons of partisan inclinations.

“Ostensibly, the commission was created to serve as a policy think-tank manned by domain experts, on the lines of the Planning Commission/NITI Aayog, so as to provide inputs of governance that a political executive assisted by mostly generalist civil services may be deprived of.

“It was not meant to accommodate favoured individuals, unelected friends or politically partisan people,” the file noting read.

The LG said the positions of the vice-chairperson and non-official members were envisaged to be co-terminus with the incumbent government.

“Albeit initially these positions were honorary, they were subsequently converted into highly-paid and perked positions, viz. the vice-chairperson, DDCD in the rank, pay and facilities equivalent to the minister of GNCTD and the non-official members in the rank, pay and facilities equivalent to the secretary to the Government of India,” he said.

Mr Saxena noted that according to the Delhi government’s planning department, there is no work allocation amongst the members of the DDCD.

“Therefore, the continuation of the non-official members, whose appointments were made in an arbitrary manner without following any procedure, drawing huge salaries is not only undesirable but also patently illegal. To say the least, it is a blatant and clear case of nepotism and favouritism in utter disregard of all rules.

“Accordingly, the proposal of the service department … for rescinding the appointment orders of the non-official members is approved,” the file noting read.

“Additionally, the proposal of the services department … regarding exploring the possibility of dissolving the DDCD as an interim measure etc. … is also approved,” it read.

In the communication, Mr Saxena cited an April 29, 2016 notification that said the non-official members are appointed by the chief minister in the rank, pay and facilities equivalent to the secretary to the Government of India or as may be determined by the chief minister.

“However, all the members were paid salaries in the rank and pay equivalent to the secretary to GoI, without exercising any option of determination of their pay by the chief minister.

“This clearly demonstrates that the chief minister did not exercise any prudence in determining the salaries payable to the non-official members, which should have been commensurate with their job description. The payment of such a huge salary without such determination is a clear violation of the said notification dated 29.04.2016 and is a clear case of favouritism only on political considerations,” the file noting read.

The LG has also asked the finance department to humanly explore the possibility of recovering the salaries paid to the non-official members of the DDCD.

In 2022, DDCD Vice-Chairman Jasmine Shah was restricted from discharging his duties and his office sealed, while the facilities enjoyed by him were withdrawn following an order issued by the LG.

In a statement, the AAP government said the LG’s decision to dissolve the DDCD and remove its three non-official members is “illegal”, “unconstitutional” and “a brazen violation of the jurisdiction of his office”.

Asserting that the DDCD comes under the chief minister and only he has powers to take action on its members, the statement alleged that the LG’s sole purpose in dissolving the DDCD is “to stop all the work of the Delhi government, which has been his singular contribution to the governance of Delhi ever since he assumed office”.

“We will challenge this illegal order of the LG in the courts. The DDCD was constituted vide gazette notification dated 29.04.2016, which was approved by the then LG of Delhi. A plain reading of sections 3 and 8 of the notification explains that the non-official members of the DDCD are appointed solely by the decision of the chief minister and only he has powers to remove any of the members before the completion of their term.

“However, in brazen disregard of existing rules and laws as well as decisions of his predecessors, LG Vinai Saxena, acting in collusion with officers of the services department, has chosen to exceed the jurisdiction of his office and tried to usurp the powers of the elected chief minister of Delhi by taking action on the DDCD. It is categorically stated that the appointment process for the vice-chairperson and members of the DDCD is similar to the process followed for public commissions in all state governments across India, including in BJP governments,” the statement read.

The sole purpose of Mr Saxena’s “illegal” order is to stop all the work and policy reforms being carried out by the Arvind Kejriwal government, it added.

“In the process of hating the elected government under Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, LG Vinai Saxena has started hating the people of Delhi. He very well knows that the DDCD, which acts as the policy think-tank of the Delhi government, has played a key role in shaping the Delhi model of governance over the years,” it said.

The statement added that the DDCD has made a defining contribution in shaping many flagship policies and welfare schemes of the government, such as the Delhi EV Policy 2020, the Delhi Solar Policy 2016 and 2024 and the Rozgar Bazaar initiative.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will boycott President Droupadi Murmu’s address to the joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on Thursday to protest against the arrest of its convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

AAP general secretary (organisation) and Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak slammed the BJP over the arrest of Kejriwal and said they will boycott the address.

Mr Kejriwal was on Wednesday arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the alleged Delhi liquor policy scam being probed by it.

President Murmu will address the joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, where she is expected to unveil the priorities of the newly-elected government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

President Murmu’s address to the joint sitting of Parliament will also be the first after the constitution of the 18th Lok Sabha. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will today challenge the Delhi High Court’s stay on the bail granted to Arvind Kejriwal in the Supreme Court. This decision comes after the trial court had previously granted bail to Mr Kejriwal on June 20 in connection with the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, only for the High Court to stay the bail order on Tuesday.

The trial court, in its June 20 decision, had ordered Mr Kejriwal’s release on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh. However, a vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain of the Delhi High Court stayed the trial court’s order, criticising it for not adequately considering the material presented by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and for not allowing the sufficient opportunity for the agency to argue its case.

High Court’s Criticism

Justice Jain remarked that the trial court had failed to properly evaluate the evidence against Mr Kejriwal presented by the ED. “We disagree with the Delhi High Court order. We will challenge it in the Supreme Court,” AAP said in a statement. 

Delhi Cabinet Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, when asked about the High Court’s decision at a press conference, expressed skepticism and indicated that AAP’s legal team would strategise the next steps. “A High Court bench stayed the order of the lower court without even the order getting uploaded. I did not have any hope from the High Court. I think the High Court bench was prejudiced. We will approach the higher court,” Mr Bharadwaj said.

The Delhi excise policy, which was scrapped in 2022, has been under scrutiny following allegations of irregularities and corruption in its formulation and execution. Both the CBI and ED allege that undue favours were extended to license holders and that there were significant irregularities in the policy’s implementation.

AAP’s Response

Mr Kejriwal was questioned by the CBI in Tihar Jail on Monday and Tuesday, each session lasting over an hour.

AAP leader Sanjay Singh accused the BJP of conspiring with CBI officers to allegedly frame Mr Kejriwal in a “fake case.” In a video message, Mr Singh alleged that the BJP-led Centre was attempting to manipulate the legal process to target Mr Kejriwal.

“We have learnt from reliable sources that the BJP-led Centre has hatched a conspiracy with CBI officers at a time when there is a huge possibility of Kejriwal getting bail from the Supreme Court. They have planned to frame him in a fake case by the CBI and get him arrested. The entire country is watching the atrocities of the BJP. How will one get justice in such circumstances? People will stand up against this,” Mr Singh said.

New Delhi:

In a setback for Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi High Court paused his release order in a corruption case related to the Delhi Liquor Policy until Enforcement Directorate’s petition is heard. The ED today challenged Mr Kejriwal’s bail in the case, just hours before his release from Tihar jail.

The ED mentioned its petition challenging the trial court order for an urgent hearing before a bench of Justices Sudhir Kumar Jain and Ravinder Dudeja, which said the case file will come to it in 10-15 minutes and after that it will hear the matter.

The high court said till then the trial court order shall not be acted upon.

Mr Kejriwal’s wife, Sunita Kejriwal, and Aam Aadmi Party leaders had planned to visit Tihar Jail at 4 pm today to greet the Delhi Chief Minister.

Yesterday, a Delhi court ordered Mr Kejriwal’s release on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh but imposed certain conditions before granting him the relief, including that he would not try to hamper the investigation or influence the witnesses. The court had accepted Mr Kejriwal’s argument that the probe agency hasn’t presented enough evidence since arresting the Delhi Chief Minister on March 21.

The bail came after multiple rounds in trial courts where Arvind Kejriwal has been repeatedly denied bail. He hasn’t stepped down as Delhi Chief Minister despite calls from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party for his resignation.

In May, the Supreme Court had issued interim bail to Mr Kejriwal for election campaigning. He returned to prison two days before the results were declared.

The ED arrested Mr Kejriwal over money laundering allegations while framing the Delhi liquor policy for 2021-22, which was later scrapped after the Lieutenant Governor raised red flags. The ED has alleged the money Mr Kejriwal got from the liquor sellers was used to fund the party’s campaign in Goa since he is the convenor of the AAP.

New Delhi:

Lok Sabha elections over, and with it his interim bail, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal surrendered in Tihar jail this evening. His route was circuitous. Starting from his home around 3 pm, he went to Rajghat to pay his respects to Mahatma Gandhi, then to Hanuman mandir and then party headquarters. The last stop was the jail, which he left 21 days ago after getting interim bail from the Supreme Court.

Speaking to party workers at the Aam Aadmi Party headquarters today, Mr Kejriwal thanked the Supreme Court. He said interim bail had been fruitful.

“I did not waste even one minute of the 21 days. I campaigned for all parties. I campaigned to save the country. The country is important, Aam Aadmi Party is second,” he said, tagging it an “unforgettable” experience.

“The best thing that happened during this campaign was that Prime Minister Narendra Modi admitted that he did not have even an iota of evidence against me,” Mr Kejriwal added. He also accused the Central government of dictatorship, questioning how the Chief Minister of a government that had a sweeping majority could be put in jail without evidence.  

“This is dictatorship. I will put anyone I wish in jail and send a message to the whole country that when I can put Kejriwal in jail, I can put anyone in jail,” he added.

The AAP chief was accompanied by his wife Sunita Kejriwal, and party leaders including Delhi ministers Atishi, Kailash Gahlot and Saurabh Bharadwaj, Rajya Sabha MPs Sanjay Singh and Sandeep Pathak, and leaders Durgesh Pathak, Rakhi Birla and Reena Gupta.

Mr Kejriwal, accused in the Delhi liquor policy case, has been in jail since April 1 till he got relief from the Supreme Court.

His stay in Tihar was marked by a massive row over his diabetes and medication, with the Chief Minister and his party alleging that the authorities had withheld medication since his arrest. The Enforcement Directorate alleged that Mr Kejriwal ate food that was inappropriate for diabetics.

Mr Kejriwal, who had asked for an extension of his bail on health grounds yesterday but got no immediate relief, said today that he was unsure what sort of treatment he would receive this time.

“I don’t know what these people will do to me… We are disciples of Bhagat Singh, we are going to jail to save the country… When power becomes dictatorship, jail becomes a responsibility,” he added.

New Delhi:

A video of Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Atishi is going viral on social media platforms with a claim that she allegedly talked about the AAP government’s decision to cancel the power subsidy scheme in the national capital.

In its investigation, the PTI Fact Check Desk found that an edited version of an old video dating back to April 2023 was shared on social media with the false claim.

Claim

A Facebook user shared on May 26 a video of Delhi Minister Atishi, in which she was heard saying that the AAP government had decided to cancel the power subsidy scheme in the national capital. Meanwhile, the text running on the video read that ‘free electricity ends in Delhi’.

The caption of the video read, “लो भाई उतर गया बुखार people who voted for freebies deserved this. Freebies are a sure recipe for economic disaster”

An English translation of the caption read, “The fever is gone. People who voted for freebies deserved this. Freebies are a sure recipe for economic disaster.”

Here is the link and archive link to the post and below is a screenshot of the same:

“The power subsidy for 46 lakh families in the national capital ends today, which means from tomorrow subsidized electricity bills will not be provided. Those previously receiving zero bills will see an increase, and those with 50 per cent subsidy will face higher bills,” Atishi says in the video.

Investigation

Starting the investigation, the Desk ran the video through InVid Tool Search and found several keyframes. On running one of the keyframes through Google Lens, the Desk found several posts carrying the same video with similar claims. 

Three such posts can be viewed here, here, and here and their archived versions can be found here, here, and here respectively.

The video was widely shared on X as well. Three such videos can be found here, here, and here and their archive versions can be seen here, here, and here respectively.

The Desk noticed one of the comments on the posts which mentioned that the video was old.

Taking a cue from this, the Desk conducted a customised keyword search on Google and came across an X post by the official handle of Aam Aadmi Party on April 14, 2023.

The caption of the post read, “LG ने दिल्ली की मुफ़्त बिजली रोकी
46 लाख परिवारों, किसानों, वकीलों और 1984 दंगा पीड़ितों को FREE Bijli मिलनी बंद हो जाएगी
Delhi Govt की बिजली Subsidy की File LG लेकर बैठ गए हैं, Tata, BSES ने चिट्ठी लिखी—उनके पास सब्सिडी की सूचना नहीं आई तो वो Billing शुरू करेंगे”

An English translation of the caption read, “LG stopped free electricity in Delhi
46 lakh families, farmers, lawyers and 1984 riot victims will stop getting free electricity.
LG has taken the file of Delhi Govt’s electricity subsidy, Tata, BSES wrote a letter – If they do not get information about subsidy, they will start billing.”

Here is the link and archive link to the post and below is a screenshot of the same:

The Desk found that this was the complete version of Atishi’s speech. Below is a combination image, comparing visuals of the two videos:

While watching the extended video, the Desk found that the viral video was clipped from the timestamp from 0:14 minutes and 0:51 minutes. Atishi can be heard saying that the government needs to cancel the subsidy due to LG’s pending decision.

In the extended video, Atishi says, “Today I am going to hold a press conference on a very serious issue. An issue which is a topic of concern for 46 lakh families in Delhi. From today, the electricity subsidy for 46 lakh families will be stopped which the government of Arvind Kejriwal gives to the people of Delhi.”

Further in the video, she says, “This means that from tomorrow, the consumers will not get a subsidy on the electricity bills. So, the people who used to get zero bills, from tomorrow they will get electricity at increased prices, people who used to get 50 per cent subsidy will also get electricity at increased prices.” Atishi then elaborates on the reasons behind the subsidy withdrawal.

The Desk then conducted a customised keyword search and came across a video report published by the Times of India on April 14, 2023.

The title of the report read: “Delhiites not to get subsidised electricity bills from tomorrow; 46 lakh families to be impacted”.

Here is the link to the report.

Subsequently, the Desk found that a year-old video of Atishi was clipped and shared on social media as recent with false claims.  

CLAIM

Delhi Minister Atishi announced the withdrawal of the power subsidy scheme in the national capital.

FACT

An old and clipped video of Atishi was shared as recent on social media.

CONCLUSION

Several social media users shared a video of Delhi minister Atishi’s announcement discontinuation of power subsidy by the AAP government in the national capital. In its investigation, the Desk found that an old video of Atishi was clipped and shared as recent on social media with false claims.

(This story was originally published by PTI, and republished by NDTV as part of the Shakti Collective.)

New Delhi:

Home Minister Amit Shah today claimed that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will not even win a single seat in Delhi in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

“BJP will win all seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi with a huge mandate. AAP won’t be able to open its account there,” Amit Shah told NDTV’s Editor-In-Chief Sanjay Pugalia in an exclusive interview.

Taking a dig at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Mr Shah said the Delhi Excise Policy scam will keep haunting him. 

“People will see a huge liquor bottle whenever they will see Arvind Kejriwal campaigning. The Delhi Excise Policy scam will keep haunting him,” Mr Shah said.

Mr Kejriwal is out on bail until June 2 for campaigning in the Lok Sabha elections.

He was arrested in connection with a money laundering case related to the Delhi excise policy scam. The probe agency believes the Delhi Chief Minister played a key role in drafting the now-scrapped policy and seeking bribes, or kickbacks, in return for liquor licences. The agency has claimed the AAP received kickbacks of Rs 100 crore that was then used to fund its Goa and Punjab election campaigns.

To a question on whether “Ab ki baar 400 par” was just a slogan or a target based on facts, Mr Shah replied, “When we won the 2014 elections under Narendra Modi’s leadership on the slogan of absolute majority, many political analysts from Delhi had said this was not possible. But we got absolute majority. Then, in 2019, when we gave the slogan of ‘300 plus’, people said it is not possible. People are saying the same this time. But I think they will believe us in the next election before ‘400 par’ is happening this time.”

Delhi voted on May 25 in the sixth phase of elections amid an intense heatwave. The BJP won all seven seats in Delhi in the 2014 and 2019 elections and is aiming for a clean sweep for the third consecutive time.

The opposition INDIA bloc partners AAP and the Congress are contesting the elections in Delhi under a four-three seat-share formula. This is the first Lok Sabha election in Delhi in which AAP and the Congress have fielded joint candidates.

New Delhi:

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, in his petition to the Supreme Court seeking an extension of his interim bail by seven days, has alleged that he suffered medical complications due to the callousness and negligence of Tihar Jail authorities. 

Mr Kejriwal, who was arrested in connection with a money laundering case related to the Delhi excise policy scam, has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court until June 1, allowing him to campaign for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. However, he is required to surrender and return to jail on June 2, just after the final phase of polling.

The Delhi Chief Minister’s legal team claimed that he suffers from an aggressive form of ‘diabetes mellitus’, which is characterised by volatile blood glucose levels, leading to episodes of hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia. 

“The appellant (Arvind Kejriwal) suffers from an aggressive form of diabetes mellitus, which is very volatile and undergoes a wide range of wild swings in blood glucose, including episodes of high sugar, that is, hyperglycaemia and low sugar, that is, hypoglycaemia,” the petition reads. 

“The appellant suffered a lot of health-related complications which is also partly attributable to the negligent and callous behaviour of the jail authorities,” it added.

During his time in custody, Mr Kejriwal allegedly lost 6-7 kg, a weight loss he has been unable to recover despite resuming his previous lifestyle post-release, his lawyers have claimed. Additionally, he has allegedly experienced periodic episodes of giddiness, palpitations, and overwhelming lethargy.

Mr Kejriwal’s lawyers said in the petitions that recent medical evaluations detected unusually high blood glucose and ketone levels, suggesting potential kidney damage and other complications. According to the lawyers, a doctor from a private hospital, who conducted an examination of Mr Kejriwal at his residence on May 25, has recommended a series of comprehensive medical tests to diagnose these issues accurately.

The prescribed tests include a whole-body PET-CT scan and a Holter Monitor Test to detect irregularities in heart function. These tests are to be conducted over a span of five to seven days. Mr Kejriwal’s plea stresses the necessity of early detection and intervention to prevent the progression of potentially fatal diseases.

The Supreme Court’s vacation bench, comprising Justices JK Maheshwari and KV Viswanathan, today acknowledged the urgency but said that the decision should be referred to Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud.

The bench questioned why Mr Kejriwal’s application was not mentioned earlier before a vacation bench headed by Justice Dipankar Datta, who was part of the bench that had reserved the verdict on Kejriwal’s petition on May 17. Mr Kejriwal’s legal team, spearheaded by senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi responded that he had no objection if the application was considered for a virtual hearing before Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta. 

Mr Kejriwal’s legal troubles stem from allegations of corruption and money laundering associated with the Delhi government’s now-scrapped liquor policy for 2021-22. Despite several summons from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), culminating in his arrest on March 21, Mr Kejriwal maintains that his detention was illegal.

The ED has issued multiple summons since October 2023, with the investigation focusing on the alleged financial irregularities and illicit benefits from the liquor policy. Mr Kejriwal’s arrest followed the Delhi High Court’s refusal to grant him protection from arrest.

New Delhi:

The National Commission for Women (NCW) has expressed grave concern over the allegations made against Punjab minister Balkar Singh of engaging in inappropriate sexual conduct and sought a prompt and impartial probe into the matter.

The allegations were brought to light by BJP leader Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga, who accused Balkar Singh, a member of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), of engaging in inappropriate sexual conduct.

According to Mr Bagga, Mr Singh was involved in a sexual activity during a video call with a woman seeking employment.

The NCW, led by its chairperson Rekha Sharma, has vehemently condemned the purported behaviour.

The NCW said in a post on X that Ms Sharma called for urgent intervention from the Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) to ensure a prompt and impartial investigation into the matter.

The NCW has requested a comprehensive report on the incident to be submitted within three days.

“The National Commission for Women is gravely disturbed by a Twitter post alleging inappropriate conduct by Punjab MLA Mr Balkar Singh. The reported acts, if substantiated, constitute serious violations under IPC sections 354 and 354B, directly affronting a woman’s dignity. @sharmarekha vehemently condemn such behavior and call for urgent intervention from @DGPPunjabPolice to ensure a prompt and impartial investigation. A comprehensive report to be submitted in 3 days,” the NCW said in a post on X. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)