Indian Sub-continent

New Delhi, Mar 24 (PTI) The INDIA bloc is intact despite Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's "somersault" and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee deciding to be Mamata Banerjee, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has said, rejecting as "hollow" Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pitch against the opposition on corruption.

In an interaction with PTI editors at the news agency's headquarters here, Ramesh also said the opposition will unitedly cross the halfway mark of 272 in the elections and oust the BJP from power.

New Delhi, Mar 24 (PTI) The opposition INDIA bloc will hold a "maha rally" at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan on March 31 to safeguard the country's interests and democracy, AAP leader Gopal Rai said on Sunday.

The announcement comes after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal (55) was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday from his official residence in connection with an excise policy-linked money-laundering case. A court on Friday sent the AAP national convenor to the central agency's custody till March 28.

New Delhi, Mar 23 (PTI) The BJP's Central Election Committee met here on Saturday to finalise the party's candidates in several states for the Lok Sabha polls.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and BJP president J P Nadda were joined by other CEC members as they went over the list of probables to take a final call.

The states for which candidates were discussed include Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Rajasthan.

New Delhi, Mar 23 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is in the ED's custody in connection with an excise policy-linked money-laundering case, will be released and bring a revolution in the country, his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann said on Saturday.

Kejriwal (55) was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) from his official residence on Thursday. On Friday, he was produced in a court, which sent him to the agency's custody till March 28.

Beijing, Mar 21 (PTI) China on Thursday condemned the Baloch militants' attack on Pakistan's Gwadar Port, which is part of the multi-billion dollar CPEC, saying Beijing firmly backs Islamabad’s efforts to fight terrorism and defend national security.

New Delhi, Mar 21 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed applications seeking a stay on the appointment of two new election commissioners, saying it would lead to "chaos" and "uncertainty" as the elections are round the corner.

Observing that the Election Commission is not under the "thumb of executive", the apex court also refused to grant any interim stay on the operation of the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Terms of Office) Act, 2023.

New Delhi, Mar 21 (PTI) A systematic effort is underway by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to cripple the Congress financially, Sonia Gandhi alleged on Thursday as her party stepped up its demand for access to its bank accounts to ensure a level playing field in the run up to the Lok Sabha polls.

Islamabad, Mar 20 (PTI) Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday approached the Supreme Court to form a judicial commission comprising serving judges to probe the authenticity of last month's elections marred by allegations of rigging.

The general elections were held on February 8 but Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf refused to accept the outcome by alleging that the results were manipulated.

Bahraich (UP), Mar 20 (PTI) A special court here on Wednesday sentenced a man to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment after convicting him in a case of kidnapping and rape of a minor girl, a lawyer said.

Special government advocate Sant Pratap Singh said the father of the minor had lodged an FIR against the accused, Mahesh, at the Nanpara police station on May 4, 2013.

Islamabad/Washington, Mar 20 (PTI) The IMF on Wednesday said it has reached a staff-level agreement with the new government in cash-strapped Pakistan on the final review of a USD 3 billion bailout, paving the way for the release of the last USD 1.1 billion tranche from the global lender.

The agreement, however, is subject to the approval of the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to be held in April.