India

Surat, Apr 3 (PTI) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday told a sessions court in Surat his conviction by a magistrate's court in a 2019 defamation case over his "Modi surname" remark was erroneous, patently perverse, and he was sentenced in a manner so as to attract disqualification as a Member of Parliament.

NEW DELHI (AP) — An Indian court on Monday suspended a two-year prison sentence for Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi as he appeals a criminal conviction for mocking the prime minister’s surname that saw him expelled from Parliament, dealing a huge blow to his Congress Party ahead of general elections next year.

Gandhi, a fierce critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his main challenger in the 2024 polls, was ousted after a court sentenced him to two years in prison for defamation for a comment made in a 2019 election speech.

Jaipur, Apr 2 (PTI) More than 4,200 criminals were arrested in 10 districts of Ajmer and Udaipur division in Rajasthan on Sunday, an official said. A campaign on direction by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot is being run to catch criminals. Under this, as many as 4,255 criminals were arrested in districts under Ajmer and Udaipur range on Sunday, Director General of Police Umesh Mishra said.

Rishra (WB), Apr 2 (PTI) Clashes broke out between two groups during a Ram Navami procession in West Bengal's Hooghly district on Sunday evening, following which prohibitory orders were imposed and the internet was suspended, police said.

Two Ram Navami processions were organised in the Rishra police station area, and the second one was attacked near Wellington Jute Mill More at GT Road around 6.15 pm, they said.

A few police personnel were injured in the violence, they added.

New Delhi, Apr 2 (PTI) Former president Ram Nath Kovind on Sunday said barring Narendra Modi, who spoke about building toilets from the ramparts of the Red Fort, no other prime minister had laid stress on the subject.

Kovind was speaking at the National Conference on Sociology of Sanitation where Modi's message was also read out.

Bengaluru, Apr 2 (PTI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday said that the West has had a "bad habit" for a long time, of commenting on others, and it thinks it has a "God-given right" to speak about the internal matters of other countries.

He said this during a 'Meet and Greet' interaction organised by Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya and Bengaluru Central MP P C Mohan with over 500 young voters, joggers and visitors at Cubbon Park here.

Dharwad (K'taka), Apr 2 (PTI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday said India was not a country that would put up with its national flag being pulled down by somebody; it was "very responsible" along with being "very firm".

Nagpur, Apr 2 (PTI) Union Minister Anurag Thakur on Sunday slammed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for insulting late Hindutva ideologue VD Savarkar and claimed Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru once "apologised" to get released from jail.

Etawah (UP), Apr 1 (PTI) Accusing the BJP of dividing the society in the name of religion, Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Singh Yadav on Saturday said the concept of Ram Rajya is meaningless without socialism.

Godhra, Apr 1 (PTI) A court in Gujarat has acquitted all 26 persons accused of gangrape and murder of more than a dozen members of a minority community in separate incidents in Kalol during 2002 communal riots for want of evidence in the 20-year-old case.

Of the total 39 accused, 13 died during the pendency of the case and the trial against them was abated.