In its first move against Bihar JD(U) MLA Sarfraz Alam, who had been accused on Sunday of molesting a woman on the Rajdhani Express to Dibrugarh, the Government Railway Police asked him to depose before an investigating team within 24 hours, reports The Telegraph. The victim's husband had filed an FIR against Alam on Monday, but the MLA said he had never boarded the train. However, CCTV footage proved otherwise, and since then, both the RJD and the JD(U) parties in Bihar have seemed inclined to take action against him. Alam and his police bodyguards will all be questioned.

Fourteen men suspected of links with Syria and Iraq based terror group IS were arrested across six cities on Friday, ahead of Republic Day, reports The Indian Express. The men were apparently part of a group called 'Junud ul Khalifa e Hind' or 'Soldiers of the Indian Caliphate' which had an "ameer" (chief) from Mumbai, a military commander and a finance chief. Three of the men were from Mumbai, four from Hyderabad, four from Bengaluru, and one each from Mangalore, Tumkur and Lucknow. They had been under surveillance for six months, but arrested now as it appeared that they had were preparing for attacks on vital installations.

Photo: @aNYTaxCab/Twitter

A winter storm that hit the East Coast of US on Friday is expected to continue to carry through Sunday in some regions, as much of the affected region lies under a blanket of snow. According to the National Weather Service, gusts of wind travelling at 60 miles an hour, are moving upward. Over the weekend, 20 people have been feared dead in weather-related incidents in the area. Public transit has been shut for the weekend in Washington DC and New York City. NYC is seeing 24-30 inches of snowfall and the mayor has enforced a travel ban while Washington DC is expecting another 2-3 feet of snowfall. 10,000 flights have been cancelled over the weekend. 40,000 people are without electricity in New Jersey alone.

On Sunday, three female students of VS Medical College of Naturopathy and Yoga Sciences in Vilippuram, Tamil Nadu, killed themselves by jumping into a well in the college premises. In their suicide note, they blamed the college management. The second year students had been protesting the lack of basic infrastructure facilities in their medical college. The protests, reportedly, started month back but it was over the past two weeks that the protests turned intense. The son of Institute Chairman, Shokkar Verma, has been arrested by the police and an investigation has been initiated.

French President Francois Hollande, who will begin his three-day visit to India on Sunday (he is the chief guest of our 2016 Republic Day Parade) with a tour of Chandigarh, was interviewed by PTI ahead of his visit. In the written interview, he said stated that the Rs 60,000 crore Rafale jet deal between France and India, which is under last minute negotiations, is unlikely to be signed during his current visit. However, Hollande insisted that "we are on the right track." On the Pathankot attacks, Hollande said that India is "fully justified" in asking Pakistan to take action against the perpetrators of the horrific terror attack on the Indian Air Force Base.

The French President also congratulated PM Narendra Modi for "his diplomacy reflecting both a sense of proportion and a strong determination."