Breaking News: Maharashtra Govt imposes night curfew from 9 to 6 amid Omicron spread

"With deep sorrow, IAF conveys the sad demise of Wing Commander Harshit Sinha in the flying accident this evening and stands firmly with the family of the braveheart", Indian Air Force informed. 

Eight more people tested positive for Omicron in Kerala today, the total number in the State is 37. The first Omicron case in the State has been discharged, Health Minister Veena George informed. 

A MiG-21 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed in the evening hours on Friday, December 24, according to sources. The incident occurred near Rajasthan's Jaisalmer. Till last reports came in, a search was on for the pilot. 

Considering the Omicron cases reported in the state, the Maharashtra government has imposed a 9-hour night curfew from 9 pm to 6 am in the state which will be effective immediately. 

According to Health Ministry report, India’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage has crossed the 140 crore mark today with more than 59 lakh vaccine doses have been administered till 7 pm on Dec 24. 

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, on Friday, December 24, dismissed the demands for relaxing the stringent prohibition law in the states for the people arriving in Bihar from outside. Nitesh Kumar also condemned the suggestions that stated on medical grounds, an exception has been made for certified alcoholics. He asserted the health of the people is spoiled by drinking and not by being prevented from doing so.

Kumar, who is the longest-serving chief minister of the state said, "Many people are angry with me because I have brought in prohibition. They say we should at least exempt those coming from other states. Do people come to Bihar to drink?”

On Thursday, Kerala High Court stated that while freedom of speech and expression is a "valuable" right, some "misuse it to the extreme" and added that social media is useful in the hands of the worthy only, otherwise it can be "an unrestrained playground of their wildest predilections" for some.

Justice Devan Ramachandran made the remarks while responding to comments made on social media by a former judicial officer who made "disrespectful" and "vitriolic" comments against the high court's directives regarding the inquiry against self-styled antique merchant Monson Mavunkal.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan chaired a COVID-review meeting in Bhopal. CM Chouhan said, "MP ranks no.1 in 2nd dose vaccine inoculation. Ensure the completing of everyday testing target & arrangements of institutional isolation".

According to Gujarat Chief Minister's Office, a night curfew will be in force from 11pm to 5am daily in Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Gandhinagar and Junagadh from 25th December, in view of current COVID19 situation. 

"I'm sorry that an innocent&unarmed person died in a brutal attack. We've arrested Amarjeet Singh in the matter; One pistol was recovered. We've added sections 302 & 307 IPC to the case. 100 persons remain unidentified", said IG Jalandhar.

The anticipatory bail plea of Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia was rejected by Mohali Court. Bikram who has been booked under the NDPS Act had moved a court in Mohali on December 23 for anticipatory bail.

Haryana Government begins the process of withdrawing cases registered against the farmers in Haryana during the farmers' protests. According to Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, 276 police cases were registered against protesters during the year-long stir against farm laws.

BMC has issued an SOP for people travelling from Dubai to Mumbai. According to the guidelines, travellers will have to undergo mandatory home quarantine for 7 days.

According to sources, Union Home Secretary held another high-level internal security meet at MHA and discussed the Ludhiana Court explosion incident. IB Director Arvind Kumar, CRPF &NIA Chief Kuldiep Singh, and BSF DG Pankaj Singh attended the meeting along with other officials of NIA and MHA. 

Assam Police informed, "3.162 kgs of heroin, 1,11,256 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup, 2,172 kgs of ganja, and 4,51,505 YABA tablets worth around Rs. 40 crores were destroyed during a ‘Drugs disposal program’ held at Police Reserve ground, Junitilla in Karimganj district today morning'.

According to the statement released by the Odisha government, "In view of the current COVID situation, Odisha Government has restricted the Christmas & New Year celebrations w.e.f 25th Dec to 2nd Jan. Social gatherings, rallies, orchestras, celebrations in hotels, clubs, restaurants, parks, etc will be banned across the State".

"Suicide bombing cannot be ruled out; seems like a bomb exploded when the suspect was trying to assemble it", said Ludhiana Police Commissioner Gurpreet Bhullar.

"The predominant strain in India is Delta including the recently identified clusters. Therefore, we need to continue with the same strategy of COVID appropriate behaviour and ramping up of vaccination", informed Dr. Balram Bhargava, DG-ICMR.

According to Health Ministry, there are 358 Omicron cases in 17 States/UTs of India. The number of persons recovered is 114.

"Ministry of Health and Family Welfare preemptively advised States on 21st December -to impose restrictions like night curfew, regulating large gatherings. increase bed capacity and other logistics and strict enforcement of COVID appropriate behavior", Union Health Secretary informed. 

The world is witnessing the fourth surge and the overall positivity is 6.1%. Therefore, we have to be on guard and we can't afford to slacken", said Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on COVID-19

"While Europe, North America & Africa are seeing an increase in COVID19 cases week-on-week, Asia is still witnessing a decline in cases week-on-week", he added. 

"Aam Aadmi Party will give a strong and stable government to Punjab. Only under such a government, incidents of 'beadbi' or sacrilege can stop and those guilty be punished", said AAP Supremo Arvind Kejriwal in Gurdaspur

Union Health Ministry holds a press conference briefing on the actions taken, preparedness, and updates on COVID-19.

My sincere appeal is to not bring a political angle into this issue, the state and Centre needs to work in unison on the incident; People of Punjab need to ignore any inciting statements: Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Ludhiana court blast

'I visited the blast site, met with victims also; we will go into the root of the incident & take strong actions against people who are trying to destabilize peace in Punjab': Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Ludhiana court blast

Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju briefed media on Ludhiana Blast investigation after visiting Ludhiana Court premises

Maharashtra Minister Vijay Wadettiwar informed Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in a written reply that 1076 farmers have committed suicide in the state in 5 months. 

Identified as Imran Majeed Magray and Aqib Amin from Magray Mohalla Mochwa of Budgam district. Both were involved in providing logistics,  shelter,  transportation of arms & ammunition in the areas of Mochwa, Kralpora, Chattergam, Sathsoo, Nowgam, Chadoora and other adjoining areas of the Budgam district.

Recovery: 02 Hand Grenades, 02 AK-47 Magazines, 30 live AK-47 rounds recovered from their possession.

In view of the upcoming Christmas and New year celebrations with increasing Omicron infections, the Police Commissionerate of Gautam Buddh Nagar in Uttar Pradesh has implemented Section 144 CrPC across the district. The restrictions under Section 144 have been in effect since December 1 and will continue to remain in effect till December 31, 2021. Issuing a press release for the same, a series of restrictions and guidelines have also been issued for keeping a check on the spread of COVID-19, especially, in view of the recent spike in Omicron cases across the country. 

The Election Commission will decide the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election schedule after reviewing the situation in the state next week, Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra revealed. He was responding to a question on the Allahabad High Court's order dated December 23 wherein it requested the EC to stop all rallies and delay the UP polls for a couple of months. Addressing the media in Uttarakhand on Friday, Chandra assured that the EC will take all possible steps to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus amid the Omicron threat. 

CEC Sushil Chandra remarked, "Today morning, I asked the Chief Secretary as to how many Omicron cases have been detected in this state. I was told that only one case has been detected in this state till now. I also told you the steps being taken by the Commission to manage COVID-19. We will take a constitutional position and take action when required."

As per Republic TV's top sources, the Centre is set to conduct a study to determine the need for COVID booster dose. 3000 people will be part of the study.

Goa's COVID-19 task force will meet on Friday to consider recommendations for Christmas and New Year celebrations, state Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said, citing the growing threat of the Omicron variant of Coronavirus in the country.  In a late-night press conference on Thursday, he also urged the tourism industry to follow all coronavirus-related precautions, particularly during the holiday season.  He advised tourism industry stakeholders to take all necessary precautions to prevent the virus from spreading throughout the state.

"Although no case of Omicron infection has been detected in Goa so far, all necessary steps need to be taken during the festive season. A few states have imposed a night curfew in view of the virus variant. But we need to make sure that we don't have to go undertake such measures," Sawant said.

"Those who test positive are isolated, and other passengers who arrive with them are also watched," he stated, adding that the state had been testing overseas passengers arriving at the airport.

A terrorist who was eliminated by Jammu and Kashmir security forces in the Anantnag encounter has been identified as Shehzad who belonged to the Hizbul Mujahideen terror outfit. The deceased terrorist was also involved in a number of killings in the valley and he hailed from Kulgam district of J&K. As per the J&K Police officials, the gunfight broke out on early Friday at the Mumanhal (Arwani) area of South Kashmir.

Additionally, an AK-47 and one pistol have also been recovered from the slain terrorist along with his body. 

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan has failed to deliver the COVID-19 pandemic-related stimulus package as the country reels under the economic woes from the Delta variant wave, and the nations worldwide prepare to deliver to tackle the upsurge of the B.1.1.529 Omicron variant of concern. According to an audit report compiled by Islamabad’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance has managed to allocate just Rs 186 billion funding from the total Rs 500 billion packages promised towards the recovery of the pandemic battered businesses now struggling to survive as Omicron related restrictions hit the country. 

This amount is just 37% of the total funding that was announced by the Imran Khan-led government, the ANI news agency reported citing the Nation. The government in Pakistan had promised Rs 200 billion for daily wagers but released just Rs. 16 billion, an amount being reported as critically insufficient to sustain the pandemic-related recovery goals. Several sectors are feared to collapse due to insufficient funding for the stimulus package such as the supply stores, which were promised approximately Rs 50 billion but were given just Rs 10 billion. Similarly, the subsidies for electricity and gas were Rs 100 billion, but the sector received only Rs 15 billion, reported ANI. 

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma tweeted that, based on intelligence, an operation in Doboka (Hojai) resulted in the seizure of 61 soaps carrying 680 gms suspected of Heroin. He said it was buried in a compartment between the car's footboard and base. He went on to say that two people from another state had been apprehended.

Months after the Darbhanga railway station blast, National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday, filed a chargesheet establishing an ISI-Lashkar-e-Taiba (LET) conspiracy for mass murder. As per the NIA charge sheet, the LET operatives used sulphuric acid and high boiling fraction of petroleum product to cause a big fire in the Darbhanga-bound Secunderabad express train. Moreover, the NIA stated that the faulty wiring in the IED bomb to be parcelled from Secunderabad failed to explode but burst into flames at Darbhanga.

The NIA added that the main accused Md Nasir Khan had been trained by a LET operative and had allegedly met Hafiz Saeed also in Pakistan. Nasir allegedly also travelled to Bangladesh to complete his 'Jihad' training under Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army before hatching the plot in UP's Kairana at his co-accused Haji Saleem's house. After being transferred Rs 2 lakh via Hawala channels, the terror accused used Signal and Telegram apps to avoid detection.

In the course of investigation, one of the accused - Imran Malik confessed to the IED-making process. NIA alleged that the plan of the operatives was to infiltrate the farmer protests on Delhi's outskirts armed with small weapons and 60 associates. Targets assigned to the terror accused were several local RSS and BJP leaders, stated the NIA.

A bench of Justice Vipin Sanghi and Jasmeet Singh, during the hearing on dengue menace in Delhi, said , "steps local bodies are taking are obviously not sufficient for mosquito infestation in NCT of Delhi. Each of the local body should set up task forces headed by the concerned committee of the executive local body as the case may be and take subordinates."

The bench has also asked the local bodies to amend their by-laws in order to increase the fines for the violations.

Around 70 illegal migrants have drowned this week off the coast of Libya, which also includes a significant number of children, and another 100 have gone missing this week, as the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) suggests.

On Thursday, UNICEF's acting special representative in Libya, Lana Wreikat, announced the drowning of 70 migrants while they were attempting to cross the Central Mediterranean, which is one of the world’s most dangerous and lethal migration routes. This includes children too, as per the reports of Xinhua. She also said that 100 people are missing.

Wreikat then asked for assistance for the migrants and refugees in a statement, as well as the strengthening of search and rescue operations. She also emphasised the importance of addressing the root causes of illegal migration and supporting safe movement for children and young people by increasing safe and legal channels. The statement claims that UNICEF will continue to work with partners to identify a safer alternative to sea crossing and long-term solutions for children attempting to cross the sea.

In a strong response to AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi's threatening remarks to the Uttar Pradesh Police and for making "unconstitutional" comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanth, Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that "criminal and communal mindset" of such people will never be accepted in India.

Naqvi, while speaking to Republic TV on Friday, slammed Owaisi for his threatening statements and said that society will never accept these people.

"People like them will continue giving such kind of statements. However, society is smart and they will be not provoked by such statements. Though, it is surprising that these people are being supported by leaders chanting about 'secularism' in the country", he added.

In another reaction, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra also lashed out at the AIMIM chief. Taking to Twitter, he said, "Whenever people like Aurangzeb and Babar step on this land, heroes like Shivaji, Maharana Pratap, and Modi-Yogi will stand against them."

BJP legislators protesting in Maharashtra Assembly premises against the state government over the issues of Maharashtra State Road Transport employees, students' exam paper leaks and farmers' issues.

"No COVID-related restrictions as of now in the state, but we request people to follow guidelines"

Night curfew to be put in place from December 25 from 11 pm-5 am. Not more than 200 people are allowed at wedding ceremonies. 

During Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla visit to Myanmar, India had sought a meeting with deposed leader Aung San Suu Ki, however, the country’s ruling junta turned down the request. According to ANI, Shringla had called on the Chairman, State Administrative Council and other senior representatives, and held meetings with the members of civil society and political parties, including leaders from the National League for Democracy (NLD). He had good discussions on bilateral issues, but when the Foreign Secretary sought a meeting with jailed human rights activist Suu Kyi, who he has known since 2011, his request was turned down by the state administrative council of Myanmar. 

"During his meetings with all concerned, Foreign Secretary emphasized India's interest in seeing Myanmar's return to democracy at the earliest; release of detainees and prisoners; resolution of issues through dialogue; and complete cessation of all violence," according to the MEA. 

As per sources, Shringla specially discussed security and people to people ties to raise matters relating to India’s security especially in light of the recent incident in the Churachandpur district in southern Manipur. Additionally, Shringla went on to stress the need to put an end to any violence and maintain peace and stability along the border area. 

• "I had a word with Amit Shah and taking assistance from the Centre. Today a minister from the Centre is also here to discuss."
• "Deceased was handling the explosive in the blast. Either he was carrying or assembling the explosive."
• Law minister Kiren Rijiju likely to reach Ludhiana around 12:30 PM 

Amid the Omicron scare, a PIL was filed in the Supreme Court seeking the strict enforcement of COVID-19 norms during the 2022 Assembly elections. Contending that the novel coronavirus cases are expected to rise sharply as Omicron has replaced Delta as the dominant variant, petitioner Vishal Tiwari argued that the processions and public gatherings pertaining to the upcoming polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur need to be restricted. Therefore, he also asked the SC to direct the Election Commission of India to direct all parties to conduct its election campaign via the digital medium. 

The petitioner observed, That it is prominent and established that the instructions, guidelines issued by the Election Commission of India has remained forceless and has never witnessed ground level practical enforcement. The rallies, promotional campaigning and public gathering do not follow the principle of social distancing and compulsory mask wearing, the instructions have never been complied by the political parties. Such has derogated the notion of public health". At present, there are 358 Omicron cases in India. 

The White House is “grateful” that former United States President Donald Trump received and promoted getting the COVID-19 vaccine booster shot, said press secretary Jen Psaki on Thursday. Psaki’s remarks came Trump recently said in an interview that he received a booster shot against COVID-19 and even hailed Coronavirus vaccines as “one of the greatest achievements of mankind”. Welcoming former US President’s remarks, White House press secretary said “We’re grateful that he made clear” that COVID-19 vaccines are safe. 

Psaki said during a news briefing on Thursday, “We are grateful that the former president got the booster.  We’re also grateful that he made clear in a recent interview that they’re effective and they’re safe.  And that’s an important message for anyone to hear.”

This is not a partisan issue.  This is about saving lives, communicating accurate information, pushing — pushing back against inaccurate information.  And in that — this particular case, the former president did that,” she added.

"Nagesh Karale, a 37-year-old wrestler shot dead in Chakan area of Pune district by four men, yesterday, December 23. Probe underway," Pimpri Chinchwad Police Official told ANI. 

Minister of Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya shared images on Twitter, "Combination of determination and commitment. Photos of vaccination campaign in Barmer district of Rajasthan."

"Today we have been called by the party leadership and we will follow the instructions accordingly. Won't be commenting on Harish Rawat Ji's tweets...There is no dispute in the party," he told ANI.

Punjab Chief Minister's scheduled media address over Ludhiana blast begins, watch live:

NIA officials have reached Ludhiana court where the incident took place and are being briefed over the matter. 

Watch live:

Sources informed that a preliminary probe reveals that the court complex had faulty metal detectors at the security channel. 

For those planning to fly somewhere for Christmas or New Years, the chances of getting infected with COVID-19 may be higher because of the new Omicron variant. It is to mention that the new Omicron strain is highly transmissible and has also become dominant across the world in the matter of just weeks. The new variant has already been detected in 106 countries and it accounts for more than 70% of all new cases in the US alone. 

Now, amid the spread of the new strain, the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Medical Advisor, David Powell, has warned that aircraft passengers are twice or even three times more likely to catch coronavirus during a flight since the emergence of the new Omicron variant. According to Fox News, the top medical adviser to the world’s airlines informed that the chance of transmission aboard a plane is less than packed places on the ground like airports bars and gyms because flights use hospital-grade air filters. 

In view of the recent spate of targeted killings in Jammu and Kashmir, on December 23 the Home Affairs Ministry (MHA) convened a high-level security meeting with security forces, investigation agencies along with J&K Police. Sources informed Republic TV that Home Secretary at Ministry of Home Affairs Ajay Bhalla and DGP J&K Police Dilbag Singh were present at the conclave who directed competent forces to beef up security and maintain vigil while the Border Security Force (BSF) was alerted to thwart attempts of infiltration amid snowfall in higher altitudes. 

While the MHA conducted a meeting with an objective to assess the Union Territory's law and order, it was brought to the fore that cross-border infiltration and wrongful entries of Pakistan-based terrorists are heightened at present. Therefore, the BSF was directed to up the vigil and special investigation agencies have been asked to deal with terror link probes with utmost priority. In addition, J&K Police was asked to strengthen on-ground mechanisms while identifying OGWs (overground workers). 

Read more about recent violence in J&K 

DGGI raids underway at Kanpur’s famous pan masala company.

In a major embarrassment for the Imran Khan-led government, a UK parliamentary panel report has exposed the condition of Pakistani women from minority communities. Citing the reports of the UK parliamentary panel report, Just Earth News stated that Pakistani Muslim men target girls from minority communities for forced marriage.

Later, the report claimed that the girls are pushed into prostitution by their "so-called" husbands. The UK report categorically mentions that powerful Muslim men from Pakistan's Sindh and Punjab provinces forced the girls from minority communities to convert to Islam and marry them. The Muslim men especially target the girls from poor and marginalised families who are not capable of fighting a legal case.

According to Just Earth News, several of the girls are forced into prostitution or sold as sex slaves. The observation comes as a part of a United Kingdom parliamentary panel report published in September this year. Earlier, the panel highlighted how the powerful men, their families, and Muslim organisations practice these illegal activities under the banner of religion.

According to the report, The girls are abused twice, once when they are forced to convert their religion, and then when their illegal marriage is legalised. Notably, this is not the lone incident when a foreign agency highlighted the grim condition of minority communities in "Naya Pakistan".

Earlier, a report published by Dawn in 2014, an estimated one thousand Christian and Hindu women were forced to convert and marry Muslim men in Pakistan every year. Citing the report by the Movement for Solidarity and Peace in Pakistan, Dawn reported that up to 700 of these women were Christian and 300 were Hindu.

"Achievement of 70% coverage with COVID-19 vaccines in all countries as a global imperative by mid-2022. All countries to work with COVAX with considerable urgency to optimize the strategic use of the growing vaccine supply," Independent Allocation of Vaccines Group of COVAX, WHO. 

Shocked at the open call for Muslim genocide by right-wing Hindu leaders at the 3-day 'Dharam Sansad'in Haridwar, AIMIM on Thursday, filed a complaint in Roorkee against it. Taking to Twitter, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi demanded exemplary action to the hate speech spewed in the event. An FIR has been filed by Uttarakhand police against Wasim Rizvi aka Jitendra Tyagi and others under Section 153A (promoting enmity between different religious groups) IPC.

Owaisi said, "The calls for genocide & ethnic cleansing against Muslims are a culmination of 60 yrs of dehumanising speech by Sangh Parivar against Muslims & Christians. Most speakers at the event are repeat offenders & enjoy close relationships with powers that be. BJP govts at Centre & state are complicit in this call for genocide. This is why there have been no arrests, no condemnation from govt & not even a whisper from moderate Hindus".

As per reports, the second 'Dharam Sansad' was organised by controversial monk Yati Narasinghanand saw the congregation of many hardline monks, calling for 'genocide against Muslims', among a few other call to action in the event. Other leaders like Annapurna Maa - General secretary of Hindu Mahasabha, claimed that she will use 'weapons' to defend Hindu Sanatan Dharm from those threatening it. Most leaders also vowed to emulate Nathuram Godse and kill anyone who hurt religious sentiments.

Videos, now viral on Twitter, from the event show Bihar's Dharamdas Maharaj threatening to kill ex-PM Manmohan Singh for saying 'minorities have first right over national resources'. Emulating the Mahatma's assassin, he said that he would 'not have hesitated to shoot at him (Singh) six times in the chest', had he been an MP. Narasinghanand, who has habitually spewed communal statements, coined the term, "Shastrameva jayate', on the lines of India's motto - 'Satyameva Jayate'.

Invoking slain LTTE terrorist V Prabhakaran, Narasinghanand said, "If any youth worker is prepared to become the Hindu Prabhakaran, then before anyone else, I will give him Rs 1 crore. If he continues for one year, I will raise at least Rs 100 crore to give". The leaders also claimed that India was turning into an Islamic nation inspite of Hindus constituted of 70% of the population. The first Dharam Sansad - headed by Narasinghanand - was held in January 2020, days before the Delhi riots.

In light of the rising concerns regarding COVID-19 variant Omicron, Maharashtra Government has issued fresh guidelines for Christmas celebrations. According to the new guidelines provided on Thursday:

• Churches should operate with a 50 per cent seating capacity during festivities.

• Only a minimum number of choristers should be allowed to perform choirs inside the churches and separate mics should be given to each performer.

• Maintenance of social distancing at churches, usage of masks and availability of hand sanitisers.

• People should celebrate Christmas by taking all precautionary measures to avoid viral infection as Omicron variant can spread rapidly, the guidelines added. 

BMC stresses on COVID vaccination ahead of Christmas

On December 15, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) issued fresh guidelines ahead of Christmas and New Year celebrations. According to BMC's notice, dated December 13, the mentioned rules will be imposed starting from December 16 till December 31.

"Nalini Sriharan, one of the convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, was granted a month’s parole by the State Govt at the request of her ailing mother," the Government told the Madras High Court on Thursday. 

"She will be released on parole today after completing surety formalities," Nalini's advocate Radhakrishnan told ANI.

Nearly nine months after French President Emmanuel Macron announced to speed up the declassification of secret documents related to Algeria's 1954-66 war, the concerned department has finally unveiled archives of court cases and police investigations. According to the announcement of the Official Journal of the French Republic, the classified documents contain decades-old court cases and police investigations related to the Algerian war (1954-1966). 

"This decree provides free distribution of... state archives' materials of cases related to the Algerian War between 1 November 1954, and 31 December 1966, and stored in the national archives", news agency Sputnik quoted the statement of Journal of the French Republic.

It said that the archive also includes formal communication shared between Algeria and the French Foreign Ministry.  The archives were classified for 75 years and could be accessed only by authorized personnel, according to the Journal of the French Republic.

In a massive development that can mark a decisive shift in Pakistan politics, PML(N) supremo Nawaz Sharif hinted at returning to his country very soon. The third-time Pakistan PM made this announcement on Thursday in an address to his party workers from London, where he has been staying since November 19, 2019, for "medical treatment". On this occasion, he said, "I hope that I will meet all of you in Pakistan soon". 

His arrival in the country is likely to hasten the downfall of the Imran Khan-led government which is facing a huge backlash from across the political spectrum over the surging inflation, increasing debt and purported misgovernance in Pakistan. As Khan's party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has only 156 members in the 342-member National Assembly, the government's survival depends on the support of allies such as MQM-P, BAP and PML(Q). Amid resentment of these alliance partners, it is being speculated that the main opposition parties PML(N) and PPP will join hands to table a no-confidence motion against the ruling dispensation.

According to Sharif, the root cause of Pakistan's problems was the military's refusal to accept the writ of the elected representatives and the existence of a parallel government. While the PML(N) supremo will have to undergo imprisonment on coming back to his homeland, his return is likely to galvanise the opposition to take on the Imran Khan-led party which also recently suffered a shock defeat in the local body polls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a province which it rules. 

Read why Nawaz Sharif will undergo imprisonment in Pakistan

With an aim to end cow slaughter and smuggling in the state, the Assam government has passed amendments to its Cattle Preservation Act bringing several major changes into it. The bill was passed by the Assam Legislative Assembly on Thursday just after four months of passing the Assam Cattle Preservation Act 2021. 

Some of the major additions to the amendment bill will include easing the transportation of cattle for agricultural purposes and further ensuring stringent punishment for cattle smugglers. Also, one of the key amendments will allow an appropriate court to order for the sale of seized vehicles or conveyance except cattle through a public auction after it has been produced before the court during trial or inquiry. Speaking about transportation, another addition will allow inter-district movement of cattle except for border district. 

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma who was also present at the legislative Assembly assured that no restrictions have been put up to cattle rearing for farming purposes and the motive is focused on stopping the smuggling of cattle, especially in the border areas. Notably, no amendment has been passed concerning buffaloes. 

Amid all measures, the Centre has advised the states to ensure maximum testing, ramped up vaccination and enforcement of COVID containment zones in the areas reporting maximum cases. At the review meeting on the status of COVID-19 spread across all states and UTs, the Union government officials have advised the centre to do as follows:

1. States have been asked to observe all precautions and not let the guard down. They were advised to be vigilant and monitor case positivity, doubling rate, clusters of new cases across Districts.

2. Centre advised States to enforce local curbs/restrictions ahead of the upcoming festive season.

3.  As a part of the containment measures- States were advised to impose night curfews & ensure strict regulation of large gatherings, especially, notify containment zones, buffer zones in the case of new COVID-19 clusters.

4. The centre had exerted pressure on states to ramp up vaccination. They were directed to ensure 100% coverage of left out first and second dose eligible beneficiaries in an accelerated manner & strengthen door-to-door vaccination campaigns in States/UTs where vaccination coverage is below the national average.

5. In view of the Omicron threat, special emphasis was given on the states going for elections in the near future to exponentially ramp up the COVID19 vaccination, especially in the low coverage districts to protect the vulnerable population.

Maharashtra on Thursday reported 23 new cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, highest in a single day so far, the state health department said.

The day before, not a single case of the new variant had come to light.

The tally of Omicron cases in the state rose to 88. Four of the new patients are below 18 years, the official release said.

As many as 17 of these patients were asymptomatic while six had mild symptoms, it added.

Of the fresh cases, 13 were from Pune district -- three from Pune Municipal Corporation areas, three from rural parts and seven from Pimpri Chinchwad township.

Five cases were reported from Mumbai, two from Osmanabad and one each from Thane, Nagpur and Mira-Bhayander.

Further, 18 of these new patients were fully vaccinated, one was unvaccinated and four were not eligible for inoculation, being minor.

Sixteen of these patients have history of international travel while seven others had come in close contact with them.

A 50-year-old man, held on charges of raping three minor girls, was shot at when he allegedly attempted to flee police custody in Assam's Morigaon district on Thursday.

He was arrested on Wednesday, two days after family members of the girls filed complaints against him.

According to a local police officer, the complainants have claimed that the accused raped the three girls, all below 10 years of age, on several occasions, with the latest incident having been recorded on Sunday.

The officer also said that the accused, on being interrogated, admitted to have raped a fourth girl, too.

He claimed to have retained pieces of the fourth girl's clothes at his residence.

The police, in their bid to gather evidence, was taking the accused to his residence early on Thursday when he attempted to flee custody, the officer said.

He was shot in the leg by the police.

The accused is undergoing treatment at Gauhati Medical College Hospital, the officer added.

Taking to Twitter, Special Director General of Police G P Singh said rape of any kind is "abominable and deserves strongest lawful action. Well done @Morigaon Police".

Miffed over not getting a chance to speak in a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 'Azadi ki Amrit Mahotsav', West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday made it clear that she would not attend the December 24 meeting convened by the Centre. The meeting is to discuss ways to commemorate the birth anniversary of philosopher and revolutionary leader Rishi Aurobindo on August 15 next year, as part of the 75th Independence Day celebrations.

The CM, who was addressing a meeting of government officials, academicians and prominent personalities said, "I would have given inputs if allowed to speak at the meeting chaired by the PM. "Now, I will not be able to attend tomorrow’s meeting," she said, adding, "We have already charted out a number of programmes on Rishi Aurobindo already."

The CM also decried alleged attempts to “distort” history at several levels, stating that “the younger generation should get to know facts, not twisted facts”. She pointed out, “Whatever be one’s ideology, history cannot be subjected to changes to suit his or her narrative. A separate chapter chronicling all important events of our freedom struggle should be incorporated in the school curriculum, education minister Bratya Basu must look into the matter."

Karnataka's 'anti-conversion bill' is similar to several recent laws brought by the BJP in states like Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. However, even before the BJP governments ushered in the much-criticised enactments, states like Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha and Uttarakhand had laws restricting religious conversion.

Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh

While there have been anti-conversion laws in India since 1967, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh were the first states to introduce a clause regarding marriages. Uttarakhand's Freedom of Religion Act, 2018 prohibits conversion by misrepresentation, force, fraud, undue influence, coercion, allurement or marriage. Its punishment ranges from a jail term of 1-5 years and a fine, making it a non-bailable offence. Himachal Pradesh followed suit with a similar law in 2019.

Uttar Pradesh

Last year, UP came under considerable limelight over its 'Love Jihad' law, which became the crux of national and political debate. Interestingly, the law does not even mention the term 'love Jihad' or defines it. What it does is make a forceful religious conversion (including through marriage) punishable with a jail term of 1-5 years with a Rs 15,000 penalty. Moreover, if the woman is a minor or belongs to Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, the jail term would be extended, ranging between 3-10 years and the penalty up to Rs 25,000. The law also punishes mass conversions with a jail term of 3-10 years and a fine of Rs. 50,000 on the organisations conducting it. 

Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat

After the UP government's law, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat passed similar enactments. Last year, the Shivraj Singh Chouhan Cabinet approved the MP Freedom to Religion Bill, 2020, nullifying the Dharma Swatantrya Adhiniyam Law of 1968. The bill aims to prevent conversion by marriage. In addition, it also seeks to prohibit religious conversion by financial allurement, fraudulent, and forceful means. 

Gujarat on the other hand ushered in the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, 2021 with a majority, to bring more stringent punishment against forced religious conversions through marriage. 

Dealing with a bail order, the Allahabad HC bench headed by Justice Shekhar Yadav urged the Election Commission to immediately issue direction to stop political parties from organising political rallies in the state. Appealing to the election body and PM Modi, Justice Yadav suggested that the polls be delayed for another few months since 'if there was life, hope would remain' (jaan hai toh jahaan hai.) On a side note, the court also lauded India's mass vaccination campaign and praised PM Modi for providing free Coronavirus vaccination to the people of the country.

"...order the political parties to do their campaign and publicity not by mobilizing the crowd in the rally and meeting, but through the medium of Doordarshan, newspapers and if possible, postpone the elections scheduled to be held in February for a month or two because if life would remain, the election rallies, meetings will continue to happen," the bench noted.

With political parties holding massive rallies across the state to bolster support ahead of the crucial polls, there has been a looming threat of a resurgence of infections given that the highly transmissible new variant has made its way into India. 

Britain's public health agency says preliminary data suggest people with the omicron variant are between 50% and 70% less likely to need hospitalisation than those with the delta strain of the coronavirus.

The U.K. Health Security Agency findings add to emerging evidence that omicron produces milder illness than other variants -- but also spreads faster and better evades vaccines.

The agency said that based on cases in the U.K., an individual with omicron is estimated to be between 31% and 45% less likely to attend a hospital emergency department compared to delta, “and 50 to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital.”

It cautioned that the analysis is “preliminary and highly uncertain” because of the small number of omicron patients in hospitals and the fact that most were in younger age groups. As of Dec. 20, 132 people had been admitted to U.K. hospitals with confirmed omicron, of whom 14 -- aged between 52 and 96 -- died. 

A preliminary investigation has revealed that the person who died in the Ludhiana Court blast was himself handling the explosive substance, informed Commissioner of Police (CP) Gurpreet Singh Bhullar. 

The Ludhiana CP said, "Either that person was carrying the explosive or assembling that will be revealed in further investigation. One person died and 6 injured. And all injured are stable. NSG teams have reached and investigated the spot."

Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi is scheduled to hold a press conference on Friday at 10 am at the Punjab Bhawan whereas Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya is set to chair a security review meet at 11 am on December 24 in Chandigarh. The meeting will be attended by the IGPs and SSPs.

Read more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting to review the COVID situation on Thursday. The meeting had in attendance top health officials from the Centre and the state to brief the PM as Omicron's tally breaches the 300-mark in India. Data published by the Union health ministry showed Maharashtra with 65 cases of the new Omicron variant -- the maximum across states. Delhi is second on the list with 64 reported cases. As many as 24 cases have been reported in Telangana, 21 in Rajasthan and 19 in Karnataka. 

Meanwhile, in the last 24 hours, India has reported 7,495 new COVID-19 cases. With this, the country's caseload reached 3,47,65,976. India's active caseload currently stands at 78,291, going up by 101 active cases today.

In the meeting, PM was briefed of the various actions taken since 25th November 2021 when the first advisory of the Union Health Ministry was shared with the States. Revised travel advisory for international passengers, review meetings with states/UTs on COVID-19 public health response measures, ramping up vaccination, installation of Oxygen supply equipments, etc., was briefed to PM.

Read more about COVID review meeting