National Political News:
1. Home Minister Raj Nath Singh states that the event held in JNU University Delhi to commemorate Afzal Guru, the Parliament attack master mind had the backing of Pakistan based LET and terrorist supremo Hafez Saeed.
JNU standoff continues. Lawyers rough up Kanhaiya Kumar in Delhi Patiala House court precincts before his bail hearing.
2. Jat agitation for reservation as Backward Caste stirs up in Haryana. Jat agitators block road and rail tracks on NH10 and Delhi-Rohtak-Ferozepur rail track.
BJP MP R.K. Saini from Kurukshetra ruffles Jat feathers.
The agitation has spread to most of Haryana barring Panchkula, Ambala, Yamuna Nagar and Kurukshetra districts. Rohtak is the epicenter of agitation and the heartland of Haryana Jat politics. Former Congress CM B.S. Hooda belongs to Rohtak.
With each passing day the Jat agitation is getting out of hand with arson and looting in Rohtak and Jhajjar districts. The Army has been called in to restore order and curfew clamped in Rohtak and Jhajjar towns.
3. The Make in India program may see the production of American F-16 fighter Jets in India. Lockheed Martin expresses willingness to manufacture the same in India at the 2016 Singapore air show.
International Political News:
1. Rebel held Syrian town of Azaz near the Turkish border hit by missiles damaging a children hospital, school and other locations killing at least 50 people.
Kurds are advancing from north towards this town and government forces from the south of the town. Anti-Government insurgents are in control of the town presently.
Russian bombings are helping the Syrian army to advance towards Allepo, Syria’s largest city.
2. A car laden with explosives detonated next to military buses near Turkey’s armed forces headquarters in Ankara, capital of Turkey. 28 people have been killed in the attack and dozens wounded.
3. US air raids are targeting ISIS in Libya killing 40 people. ISIL operates a training camp near Sabratha in Libya.
Business News:
1. Supreme Court directs the RBI to give a list of companies who had defaulted on loans of Rs. 500 Crores and above. A PIL petition in the Supreme Court claims that banks had written of Rs. 80,000 Crores of NPA’s.Furthermore the banks under the 5/25 scheme had restructured loans worth Rs. 3 lakh crores.
2. Vodafone’s retrospective taxation case is again at centre stage as a Rs. 14,000 crores recovery notice is sent by Income Tax department to the company. Acquisition of Hutch’s telecom business and the payment for it on foreign shores is the issue.
Science and Technology:
1. China is setting up World’s largest radio telescope which shall enable earth netizen’s to search for alien life in the milky way and beyond it. The 500 mt. long aperture spherical radio telescope (FAST) is being setup nested between hills in Guizhou area of South West China. All residents within 5 km of the telescope are being relocated, so that there is no interference in the functioning of the listening device.
Sports:
1. India thrash Sri Lanka in the last T-20 match at Vishakapatnam to take the series home 2-1.
2. India continue with their winning spree in the South Asian games. The latest to add to the list of medals are boxers and marksman.
India’s total tally at the games is 308 medals out of which 188 are gold, 90 are silver and 30 are bronze. Sri Lanka comes 2nd with 186 and Pakistan 3rd with 106 medals.
India have lost the hockey gold to Pakistan and Football to Nepal.
3. South Africa take the ODI series 3–2 against England as their AB De Villiers smashes 101 in his 200th ODI to take his team to a 5 wicket win.
4. Brazilian authorities block assets worth $50 million of Barcelona soccer star Neymar including a yacht, jet and several properties. He has been found guilty of evading $16 million in taxes in Brazil.
5. Soccer’s Champion League quarter final stage for this year’s tournament has reached its final stage. Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Barcelona are the contenders for the quarter final berth.
