Top Stories on 17th August in a capsule
13 killed, 1 arrested in Barcelona van attack; Over 100 injured
At least 13 people were killed and more than 100 were injured after a van rammed into a crowded city centre area in Barcelona's Las Ramblas district on Thursday, multiple media reports quoting police sources said. The local police have confirmed the incident as a terrorist attack, the report added. Multiple media reports suggested that two gunmen who were in the van were holed up inside a nearby bar and got involved in a confrontation with the police. A second van reportedly used by the gunmen during the attack was also been identified and a suspect was also arrested from the spot. All bus and metro stations in the area were shut as the police went about conducting the search operation. Till now suggest four terrorists have been gunned down following the incident. Meanwhile, terrorist group ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack.
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10-year-old Chandigarh rape survivor delivers baby after court refuses abortion
A 10-year-old rape survivor from Chandigarh gave birth to a baby girl on Thursday after the high court and Supreme court rejected her pleas for abortion, media reports said. However, the survivor was not aware that she has given birth as her parents had termed the baby as a giant stone in her stomach. The girl was alleged raped by her uncle several times in the past seven-months and was arrested after the case came to light. The girl and the baby are doing fine following the c-section, media reports quoting officials said. The baby is now in pre-natal intensive care as she’s born prematurely at 35 weeks. However, she will be looked after by the child welfare committee until she is put up for adoption, an official said.________________________
Jayalalithaa’s death to be probed, announces CM Palaniswami
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami on Thursday ordered a one-man Commission of Inquiry, to be headed by a retired judge to probe into the case of former chief minister J Jayalalithaa’s death. CM Palaniswami further announced that the late leader’s residence, Vedha Nilayam in Poes Garden, will be converted to a government memorial that would be open for public. The decision of the Chief Minister seems to be a step towards a merger with the AIADMK faction led by former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, as these were his central demands. The death of Jayalalithaa has been a matter of trouble for the state government, as with her demise on December 5, many political upheavals were witnessed in Tamil Nadu.________________________
Tata Sons break 80-year-old ties with Shapoorji Pallonji over Mistry tussle
Tata Sons’ Chairman N Chandrasekaran on Thursday announced that he has decided to cut off the 80-year-old relationship between the Tata Group and Mistry family's Shapoorji Pallonji (SP) Group. The decision puts hundreds of crores at risk and around 50 SP Group companies are likely to be impacted. However, Shapoorji Pallonji Group on Thursday said Cyrus Mistry, during his tenure as the chairman of Tata Sons in November 2013, had issued a directive to all Tata group companies to stop awarding new engineering and construction contracts to the Shapoorji Pallonji (SP) Group._______________________
Gorakhpur Children’s death: Panel blames Lucknow-based firm for disrupting oxygen
An inquiry by the five-member panel of the Gorakhpur district administration has now held a Lucknow-based firm responsible for disrupting oxygen supply to the Baba Raghav Das (BRD) Medical College. The panel said the Head of department of anaesthesia, Dr Satish Kumar, was “prima facie guilty of not discharging his duties”. However, the report didn’t talk about the cause of the deaths and who was responsible. It further said, it was Dr. Satish and Chief Pharmacist, Gajanan Jaiswal’s responsibility to maintain the records of oxygen cylinders. However, these “were not maintained, and overwriting was done.” CM Yogi Adityanath had said earlier that those responsible would face action._______________________
34 farmer suicides reported since last week in Maharashtra's Marathwada
34 farmers have ended their lives in eight districts of Marathwada in the last eight days following below-average rainfall in the region, a data by the Aurangabad Divisional Commissioner said on Thursday. However, the cause of the deaths has not be ascertained in every case yet. In total, around 350 deaths have been reported in Marathwada from January 1 to August 15 this year, with Beed district topping the list at 107 suicides, the report added. According to the Met Department, good showers are expected after August 15 although the rainfall in the last two days has been scattered._______________________
SC forces two Gujarat Police officers accused in Ishrat Jahan case to resign
Two senior Gujarat Police officers - NK Amin and TA Barot were accused in the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case, but were reappointed have now been chucked out by the Supreme Court, media reports said. Amin who was the Superintendent of Police, Mahisagar district, Gujarat and Barot who was the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Western Railways, Vadodara. have been forced them to resign from their post in connection to the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case. In June 2004, Ishrat Jahan and three others were killed in an alleged encounter by the Gujarat forces. However, a special investigation team set up by the High Court had found the encounter to be fake._______________________
Trump disbands business council after CEOs quits
US President Donald Trump disbanded two business advisory councils - Manufacturing Council & Strategy & Policy Forum, after several CEOs quit in protest over his remarks blaming Virginia violence on anti-racism activists as well as white nationalists. A prominent Republican parade rebuked Trump after his comment on Tuesday about the bloodshed in the college town of Charlottesville further enveloped his seven-month-old presidency in controversy. The Strategic and Policy Forum was headed by Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman._____________________
“Make in India is a failed campaign”, Rahul on Modi
After targeting the Prime Minister over his short Independence Day speech, Rahul Gandhi retorted to criticizing the BJP and PM Modi over failure of their election promises. Speaking at a meeting of Opposition leaders, ‘Sanjhi Virasat Bachao’ in Delhi, the Congress Vice President claimed, PM Modi’s initiative ‘Make in India’ of being a failed campaign. “PM Modi gave ‘Make in India’ but most things are ‘Made in China’. Truth is that PM Modi’s Make in India has failed,” Rahul said. He also took a dig at the Swacch Bharat campaign, saying the nation needs a ‘Sach Bharat’ instead. The RSS was also not spared by Rahul’s flak, as he alleged the party of trying to bend the Constitution._____________________
Rules should be same for both Namaz and Janmashtami, Yogi Adityanath
Speaking at an event on Thursday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath spoke about equalizing rules for festivals in state. Implying clearly that former government of Samajwadi Party restricted Janmashtami from being celebrated in police stations, Yogi said he has no right to stop the celebrations in police station, same as he cannot stop Namaz from being offered in the middle of the road. He also went on to say that when officers restricted the use of microphones, and speakers in Kanwar Yatra, he asked them if that could be assured for every festival. If not, then it should be equal for all. “Aap Christmas bhi manaiya, kaun rok raha hai, Bharat ke andar kabhi nahi roka gaya, Aap namaz bhi padhiye, araam se padhiye, par kanoon ke daayre me reh kar ke padhiye,” Yogi said._____________________
TMC retains stronghold in West Bengal, wins all the municipal seats against BJP
The invincibility of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in Bengal was proved yet again on Thursday, as it won all the seats in the seven civic bodies in the municipal elections, pushing prime rival, BJP to the second spot. The stronghold of TMC proved to be the Durgapur Municipal Corporation and Cooper’s Camp where it managed to secure all the 43 and 112 seats respectively. In the Haldia sector too, all of the 29 seats were elected by the TMC. Bringing a shift in the political scenario of the state, the BJP was the main competitor for the TMC this time. An ally of the Left, Forward Bloc, managed to secure one seat in Nalhati while the Congress gained none._____________________
Collector who barred Mohan Bhagwat from hoisting flag in Kerala transferred
Following the news of RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat hoisting the tricolor at a school in Kerala on Independence Day, the District Collector who restricted the leader from the same was transferred on Thursday. P Marykutty, the district collector of Palakkad, has now been designated as a Panchayat Director, and will be replaced by the managing director of Marketfed, Suresh Babu, after a Cabinet Meeting decision, which was headed by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The state government claimed that it was a routine transfer for Marykutty after his two and a half year stint. Bhagwat, on Tuesday, had defied the rule of Palakkad district authorities by unfurling the tricolor in Karnaki Amman School._____________________
Market indices close flat at Infosys’ Gain
The Indian benchmarks closed flat today after a fall in the banking stocks weighed down their growth, but Infosys saved them from losing. The Sensex ended up by 24.57 points at 31795, while the Nifty ended higher by 5.60 points at 9902. Infosys, the country’s second largest IT exporter, increased by 4.54%, after the board said that they will take up a proposal for buyback of shares on 12th August. The indices gained for the third straight day.
