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BJP man who booked train for 2014 Modi rally is now left with the bill

Vinod Samaria, a BJP leader from Agra, has threatened to commit suicide if the party does not soon pay its bill for a train he had booked on the party's behalf, but in his name, in 2014.

Samaria has been receiving constant reminders from the railways for the payment of Rs 12.3 lakh for a train used to take BJP supporters from Agra to Lucknow for a rally by then Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi. "If the payment is not made soon, I shall have no option but to commit suicide," Samaria told the Hindustan Times.

Mallya's men may have diverted Kingfisher loans for personal use

Some senior officials of the Vijay Mallya-led UB Group may have diverted money lent to Kingfisher Airlines for their personal use, says the Enforcement Directorate.

ED sources said: "The agency has found some evidence of diversion by senior officials and is working on it." While investigating a case of alleged money-laundering against Mallya, the ED has already questioned Ravi Nedungadi, former president and CFO at UB Group, and A Raghunathan, former CFO of Kingfisher Airlines, says The Indian Express.

Centre opposes proposal to bifurcate SC powers, SC insists on debate

The Centre on Tuesday opposed a proposal to bifurcate the Supreme Court's authority by creating national courts of appeals which will leave the apex court to deal solely with cases of constitutional importance.

However, the Chief Justice of India urged the Centre to explore the possibility of such a move, according to the Hindustan Times. "We want to initiate a debate, though the government does not support it," said CJI TS Thakur. "Today 98 per cent of our time is wasted reading files relating to traffic offences or cheque-bounce cases. We might dismiss them finally, but we still have to give our time."

Delhi police must provide Umar Khalid's family security: NHRC

The National Human Rights Commission has asked the Delhi Police to provide security to the family of JNU student Umar Khalid who has been arrested on charges of sedition. The NHRC notice asked for immediate action based on a complaint filed by Umar's father in a letter.

The letter said that Umar's family has been receiving threats ever since his son was charged with sedition after the 9 February event at the JNU campus where anti-national slogans were allegedly chanted, according to The Indian Express.

Masked outsiders took over JNU Afzal Guru event: Inquiry panel

Masked outsiders had attended the 9 February event at JNU which led to the arrest of three students for sedition. This was one of the findings in the report filed by the high level committee investigating the incident. The report says that the presence of masked outsiders was noted by security staff and confirmed by witnesses, according to the Hindustan Times. It adds that a JNU student was seen with this group.

"It is most unfortunate that the organisers allowed the event to be taken over by a group of outsiders who created a charged atmosphere by raising provocative slogans," said the committee.

Congress demands BJP MLA Ganesh Joshi's resignation

The Congress Party on Wednesday demanded the resignation of BJP MLA Ganesh Joshi for allegedly injuring a police horse during a protest rally in Dehradun. Congress leader Sarita Arya urged animal rights activist and Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi to take note of the issue. Congress leader Lalit Farswan described the BJP MLAs, who attacked the horse as 'shameless' and demanded a probe into the matter. Another Congress leader Mayukh Mehar condemned the incident and demanded Joshi's resignation.

Kabbadi player Sukhvinder Narwhal shot dead

National level kabaddi player Sukhvinder Narwhal was shot dead in broad daylight at Rohtak on 15 March. The incident has been captured on CCTV footage. Narwhal was walking home after a practise session when two men on a motorcycle stopped him and shot him dead.

JNU row: Umar Khalid, Anirban's bail plea reserved till 18 March

A Delhi Court on Wednesday reserved its order on the bail plea of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya for 18 March. During the hearing, the Delhi Police counsel opposed the bail plea of the duo and stated that they did not only depend on the video footage but also relied on the statements of 10 independent witness against both of them. However, the counsel of the two JNU students maintained the Delhi Government's report suggested that the video was tampered with while asserting that citizens have the right to criticise the government and the same can't be termed as sedition.

SAARC: Sushma Swaraj to raise 'Pathankot attack' with Sartaj Aziz

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is expected to raise the Pathankot terror attack with Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz on the sidelines of the SAARC ministerial meeting here on Thursday. This development comes amid the stalled Foreign Secretary-level talks between both nations following the impasse over the probe of the January 2016 Pathankot Air Base terror attack. According to official sources, the Foreign Secretaries will meet only after the Special Investigation Team (SIT) from Pakistan arrives in India and makes concrete progress in the probe.

Former refugee wins $1 million global teaching award

Hanan Al Hroub spent her growing years in a Palestinian refugee camp. As an adult and a teacher, she chose to stay and work with refugee children who have been traumatised by violence. Her efforts have been recognised and a $1 million global teaching prize was awarded to Al Hroub at a ceremony in Dubai. Prince William sent a video message congratulating her, as did the Pope, who said that teachers were "the builders of peace and unity." The finalists for the Global Teacher Prize, created by the Varkey Foundation, saw teachers from India, Kenya, Finland and the US. In her speech, Al Hroub told the audience that "teachers could change the world."

Scientists may be one step closer to solving Bermuda Triangle mystery

Scientists now believe that they have come a step closer to solving the mystery surrounding the Bermuda Triangle. This belief has been established with the discovery of a series of underwater craters at the bottom of the Barents Sea, off the coast of Norway. It is hoped that the craters are the key for explaining the bewildered phenomenon. According to a scientist, the crater areas represent one of the largest hot spots for shallow marine methane release in the Arctic, which creates enormous blowouts of gas bubbles, leading to sinking of ships. Details of the discovery will be released at the annual meeting of the European Geosciences Union next month.

5,00,000 will die by 2050, as climate change alters diets

Climate change will take 5 lakh lives by 2050, a new study has suggested. These deaths would be caused by the food scarcity, and are additional to deaths caused by other effects of global warming. The study was published in the medical journal The Lancet. Scientists behind the study predicted world temperatures to be two degrees higher than in the 1986-2005 time period. It found that there would be 3.2% lower food availability, and people would be consuming 4% less fruit and vegetables.

New SARS-like virus found

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers have found that the newly identified virus, known as WIV1-CoV, could bind to the same receptors as SARS-CoV that infected thousands in 2002.

They also showed that the virus readily and efficiently replicated in cultured human airway tissues, suggesting an ability to jump directly to humans. Researchers have said the capacity of this group of viruses to jump into humans is greater than was initially imagined. If the virus does jump, WIV1-CoV has the potential to seed a new outbreak with significant consequences for both public health and the global economy.