MHA likely to file review petition against SC verdict on Governor, President role in assenting to State laws

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is likely to file a review petition against the Supreme Court’s April 8 judgement allowing judicial intervention if Governors withhold assent to legislative Bills for too long. It also prescribed a three-month timeline for the President to decide on Bills referred by the Governor. A senior government official told The Hindu that a petition was being readied against the judgement, which lays down definite timelines for the Governors and the President.

Russian missile strikes warehouse of Indian pharma firm in Ukraine, says Kyiv’s mission in Delhi

A Russian missile struck a warehouse of an Indian pharmaceutical company in Ukraine on Saturday (April 12, 2025), the Ukrainian Embassy in India said. In a social media post, the mission alleged that though Russia claimed “special friendship” with India, it was deliberately targeting Indian businesses in Ukraine.

Waqf protests: Three killed in fresh violence reported from West Bengal’s Murshidabad

Three persons were killed on Saturday in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district as violent protests over The Waqf (Amendment) Bill continues to rage in certain parts of the State. “Two deaths have been reported in communal clashes. One person who was injured in the firing yesterday in Suti has died a short while ago,” a senior police official told The Hindu. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, while appealing for restraint said that the Waqf (Amendment) Bill will not be implemented in the State.

National Herald case: ED issues notice to take possession of assets in Congress-linked AJL case

The Enforcement Directorate said on Saturday (April 12, 2025) that it has issued notices to take possession of immovable assets worth ₹661 crore that it had attached in the probe into the money laundering case against Congress-controlled Associated Journals Limited (AJL).

Electronic Voting Machines safe, tamper-proof: Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar said the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) are "safe" and "tamper-proof." He said EVMs used in India cannot be connected to internet, bluetooth or infrared and it is not possible anyway to tamper with it. He said more than five crore VVPAT (voter-variable paper audit trail) slips have been counted and no discrepancies have been reported so far. Mr. Kumar arrived in Ranchi on Friday (April 11, 2025) evening on a three-day visit to Jharkhand. The CEC on Saturday (April 12, 2025) interacted with election officials in Ramgarh.

Two militants, one soldier killed in gunfights in J&K’s Kishtwar, Rajouri

Two more unidentified militants and a soldier were killed on Saturday in two separate gunfights in the Jammu region, where multiple anti-militancy and anti-infiltration operations are on. A spokesman of the Army’s White Knight Corps said one soldier, identified as Subedar Chand, died while foiling an infiltration attempt by terrorists close to the Line of Control (LoC) in Keri Battal area of Rajouri’s Sunderbani .In the Chenab Valley’s Kishtwar district, where an anti-militancy operation is on for the past four days, the Army killed two more militants, which took the toll to three.

India votes in favour of first global carbon tax on shipping

India and 62 other countries voted in favour of the world's first-ever global carbon tax imposed on the shipping industry by the United Nations' shipping agency. The decision, taken at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) headquarters in London on Friday (April 11, 2025) after a week of intense negotiations, aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships and promote cleaner technologies. For the first time a global carbon tax has been imposed on an entire industry.

Kathak legend Kumudini Lakhia passes away

Eminent Kathak exponent and choreographer Kumudini Lakhia passed away at her residence in Ahmedabad on Saturday (April 12, 2025) at the age of 95 due to an age-related ailment. Lakhia was conferred with the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian award, on the Republic Day this year in recognition of her lifelong dedication to Kathak. Born on May 17, 1930, in Ahmedabad, Lakhia went on to become a celebrated Indian Kathak dancer and choreographer. At Kadamb Centre, she developed technique, vocabulary and repertoire of Kathak dance.

Flight operations hit at Delhi Airport after dust storm; 50 flights delayed, several cancelled

A dust storm disrupted flight operations on Friday (April 11, 2025) evening at Delhi Airport, affecting passengers traveling to and from the city. According to airport sources, over 50 domestic flights operating from Indira Gandhi International Airport were delayed from Friday (April 11, 2025) evening till Saturday (April 12, 2025) morning, around 25 flights were diverted, and seven were cancelled due to the dust storm.

Nainar Nagenthran elected as Tamil Nadu BJP chief

BJP MLA Nainar Nagenthran was elected as president of the party's Tamil Nadu State unit, with outgoing chief K Annamalai declaring that the goal is to oust the ruling DMK from the corridors of power and the path, to be led by Nagenthran, in alliance with the AIADMK is clear.

Government sites start trying Hindi web addresses

Many Union government websites have started using a Hindi web address, following years of efforts by supporters of Universal Acceptance (UA), a movement that has advocated for having more of the Internet be available — and accessible — in languages other than English. Two key efforts under the UA umbrella have been so-called internationalised domain names (IDNs) and email addresses.

Trump says tariff policy ‘really doing well’ after China hits U.S. with 125% tariffs

U.S. President Donald Trump insisted that his tariff policy was “doing really well” despite China hiking levies on U.S. goods to 125% in the spiraling trade war between the world’s two biggest economies. Investors dumped U.S. government bonds, the dollar tumbled and stocks seesawed after Beijing’s retaliation against Mr. Trump deepened concerns on already traumatized global markets.

Supreme Court puts President on a deadline, says prudent to consult apex court before taking a call on State Bills

The Supreme Court has put the President on a three-month deadline to decide whether or not to assent to State Bills referred to her by a Governor. The clock would begin ticking from the day the Governor referred the Bill to the President for her consideration.

Sukhbir Badal re-elected as SAD president in Punjab; Akali rebels call it a jolt to unity efforts

Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday (April 12, 2025) was re-elected as president of Shiromani Akali Dal, the century-old party that has been passing through a rough phase and its leaders have been toiling hard for the party’s revival to stay relevant in State politics.

Israeli forces have completed encirclement of Gaza’s Rafah, military says

Israeli forces have completed the encirclement of Gaza’s Rafah, the military said on Saturday (April 12, 2025), part of an announced plan to seize more areas of the enclave, accompanied by large-scale evacuations of the population. The military has issued repeated evacuation warnings to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians across Rafah since it resumed operations in Gaza on March 18, forcing them into a diminishing space limited by the sea.

Iran says ‘indirect talks’ begin with a U.S. envoy over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program

Iran and the United States have begun negotiations in Oman over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program. Esmail Baghaei, a spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, made the announcement on the social platform.

White House aims to eliminate NOAA climate research in budget plan

The administration of President Donald Trump aims to eliminate the arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that oversees research on climate change and refocus the U.S. fisheries service to support energy development, according to a draft White House budget document.

Delayed ‘Phule’ to clear controversy, already complied with CBFC amendments: Anant Mahadevan

Phule, based on the lives of social reformers Jyotirao Govindrao Phule and Savitribai Phule, has been delayed due to objections raised by the Brahmin community and not because of the censor board-suggested amendments, film’s director Anant Mahadevan said on Friday.

UPI outage: Several users say transactions failing; NPCI says working to resolve ‘intermittent technical issues’

Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services have been affected with multiple reports of failure of transactions from across the country. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which manages the UPI operations, acknowledged the outage and said that it was working to resolve the issue, hours after several users flagged the issue.