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Unnao rape and murder case: MLA’s brother arrested, SIT formed. Atul Singh Sengar, the brother of Bangermau MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, was arrested Monday in connection with the death during judicial custody of the father of a minor who has accused the brothers of gang-raping her last June — a murder charge will now be included in the case. The front page of The Hindu also informs us that a five-member special investigation team has been set up to probe the case.
Meanwhile, ThePrint’s Ananya Bhardwaj reports that “the doctor who first examined the girl’s father at the district hospital discharged him with minor first aid. He also gave a medical report saying that the man was ‘fit for custody’, despite several visible injuries, including abrasions and cuts on his body”. Also read The Times of India’s coverage on the autopsy report, which “revealed that there were 18 injuries on his body and his intestines were ruptured”.
The Indian Express chooses to cover Unnao as a smaller segment on their front page, focusing on the politics surrounding the crime. The clout of MLA Sengar and his family is so strong in Makhi, 15 km from Unnao, “that the girl and her family have refused to return home, saying they fear for their lives”, the national daily reports.
Trying to re-send a friend request to the senate, Mark Zuckerberg testified before US senators Monday in the wake of the Facebook data breach scandal. “2018 is an important year for the whole world. Several countries like India, Pakistan will have elections. We’ll do everything possible to ensure these elections are safe,” Zuckerberg said at the joint hearing of the senate judiciary and commerce committees, at the Capitol Hill. Taking full responsibility for the data breach of millions of users, the Facebook CEO added, “It was my mistake, and I’m sorry.”
Focusing on new findings in the Kathua rape-murder case in Jammu & Kashmir, ThePrint’s Amrita Nayak Dutta reported the shocking details of the crime Tuesday morning, in her exhaustive report titled ‘Inside story’ of how one of the most horrific rape-murders of J&K was planned & executed. The Indian Express has also reported details from the 18-page chargesheet filed by the J&K police crime branch Monday.
The south also remembers: There’s strength in numbers, especially when you’re up against the central government. In an unprecedented move, the finance ministers of Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry met at a conclave in Thiruvananthapuram Tuesday to denounce the terms of reference for the 15th finance commission on revenue distribution among states. They also “decided to form a pressure group to oppose what they termed ‘anti-federal’ policies of the BJP-led NDA government”, Hindustan Times reports.
It’s raining money for the BJP. The party’s income was double that of the other six national parties (Congress, BSP, Trinamool, CPM, CPI and NCP) put together in 2016-17. “BJP’s income soared 81 per cent to Rs 1,034 crore in 2016-17 from Rs 570 crore in 2015-16, according to updated annual audit reports filed with the Election Commission,” The Times of India reports. The Congress didn’t earn nearly as much during the UPA’s tenure at the Centre.
A bid to ‘end Marxist propaganda’: Tripura’s new BJP chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb has charged the “Tripura Board of Secondary Education (TBSE) under the previous Left government of spreading Marxist propaganda over the last two decades”. The Indian Express tells us that the CM said Tuesday that his government will soon “introduce” NCERT syllabus in state-run schools, and is in the process of “setting up a committee” to discuss the same.
Protests continue in Tamil Nadu over the Centre’s failure to set up a Cauvery management board. Over 8,000 cadres from Tamil regional parties and other outfits participated in a protest rally Tuesday. “Thousands of protesters blocked all roads leading to the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in the evening”, where an IPL match between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders was underway, the Hindu reports.
In Karnataka, however, politicians say the Cauvery order should come after elections. In the poll-bound state, politicians are being more guarded in terms of declaring their support one way or another, Rohini Swamy reports for ThePrint.
May we sit with you? The Indian Express is the only major daily today to give prime space to India’s attempts at convincing China to let them join the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). “Almost two years ago, in June 2016, Wang Xun (Beijing’s top interlocutor) had blocked the proposal to include India as a member of the elite export control group at a plenary meeting in Seoul,” the paper reports.
They found the satellite! Remember when ISRO lost complete contact with communication satellite GSAT-6A, about 10 days ago? Well, now they’ve found it. ISRO chairman Dr K. Sivan told The Times of India, “With the help of the satellite tracking system and other sources, we now know the exact location of GSAT-6A.” Looks like we’re back online, folks.
Bharat Bandh 2.0: Because the best way to protest against a protest is to organise one of your own. Over a dozen people were injured in clashes in Bihar as upper caste groups tried to enforce a ‘Bharat bandh’ to protest against reservation in jobs and education. They “blocked roads and railway tracks and forced markets to shut down in nearly half a dozen districts”, NDTV reports.
Business Class
Coming out as a dark horse, Sudhir Valia of Suraksha Asset Reconstruction Company has emerged the front-runner to acquire the insolvency-hit company Jaypee Infratech, reports The Times Of India.
With summer approaching, we expect achhe din for soft drink companies. But quite the contrary seems true for PepsiCo, with about 15 senior to mid-level executives moving out in the last four months owing to a slowdown in the sector, reports The Economic Times.
The wait seems to be unending for ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar. The Economic Times reports that the board of the bank is waiting for some directive or signal from the RBI before taking their next step about the Kochhar’s future role in the company.
News it’s just kinda cool to know
Everybody wants to get married in India, even if it’s to Google. “Google’s voice-based assistant, Ok Google, has received about 4.5 lakh proposals for marriage in India,” The Hindu reports Rishi Chandra, VP of product management, as saying during a launch Tuesday.
The Obamas, Donald Trump, Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn have not been invited to Prince Harry’s royal wedding to American actor Meghan Markle. Apparently, the church is too small, and Prince Harry is after all, only fifth in line to the throne. BBC news tells us the details.
Prostitution in Kerala joins the ‘Digital India’ bandwagon. Business transactions in the world’s oldest profession are now being carried out via smartphones and apps, according to a study conducted by the Kerala State AIDS Control Society (KSACS) along with NGOs. “It said that most of those engaged in this profession solicit business through WhatsApp,” The Hindu tells us.
In some great news, transgenders are now an independent gender category on the PAN form. “As per a notification issued by the finance ministry Monday, the Income Tax rules, 1962, have been amended to include ‘Transgender’ in the gender column of forms 49A and 49AA,” Hindustan Times reports. The column was added as members of the transgender community were finding it difficult to link their PAN cards with Aadhaars.
Point of View
The Supreme Court passed an order in the Hadiya case stating, “The right to marry a person of one’s choice is integral to Article 21 (right to life and liberty) of the Constitution”. The Indian Express, in its editorial, hails the verdict, writing, “The judgment in Hadiya case is a robust defence of the individual’s rights against the writ of clan, community, family.”
It seems the Cauvery water dispute is not going to die any time soon. The Hindu, in its editorial, has criticised the central government for not implementing the Supreme Court order in the matter. It writes, “For the Centre, it was embarrassing to be asked to demonstrate its bona fides by submitting a draft scheme for the court’s consideration by 3 May.”
The Supreme Court order on the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities Act) has opened a Pandora’s box. Lok Sabha member Baijayant ‘Jay’ Panda, in his column in The Times Of India, writes, “At issue are two opposing viewpoints that are like the proverbial meeting of an immovable object and an irresistible force.”
The just-concluded visit of the Nepal Prime Minister has helped the India-Nepal relationship. Former diplomat Rakesh Sood, in his column in The Hindu, writes, “Pragmatism has finally taken root in Delhi and Kathmandu — project implementation will be the test.”
Every individual has a collective identity that is acquired “through complex social, psychological and historical mechanisms”. Ashoka University vice-chancellor Pratap Bhanu Mehta, in his column in The Indian Express, writes, “While identities matter, when they are carelessly ascribed, they become inimical to freedom.”
The terms of reference (ToR) for the 15th finance commission are in the news again as the chief ministers of the south have expressed serious reservations about it. Bibek Debroy, chairman, economic advisory council to the PM, writes in his column in The Indian Express, “If we want to engage in a public debate, that shouldn’t be about the ToR, but about the broader theme of public finance and devolution all the way down to local bodies…”