Republic Top 10 Headlines: Sasikala to return to AIADMK; Digvijaya stirs fresh row & more

Mukul Roy to be made Trinamool vice president; Bengal povt to provide him Z security

Reaping reward for returning to Trinamool Congress, ex-BJP Vice President Mukul Roy is set to be made Trinamool Vice-President, report sources on Saturday. Furthermore, Roy will be provided Z security by Bengal govt while his son Subhranshu Roy will be given Y+ security, as per sources. Mukul Roy and his son returned to Trinamool after a 4-year BJP term, triggering a possible return of several TMC turncoats after BJP's Bengal loss.   

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Sasikala vows to 'definitely return To AIADMK' in another leaked tape ahead of party meet

"I will definitely come back," vows ex-AIAIDMK general secretary VK Sasikala in yet another alleged conversation with a party cadre. The alleged conversation between Sasikala and a party cadre - LKMB Vasu released on Saturday, once again has Saiskala vowing that she will not desert the party, months after she 'quit politics'. In the alleged conversation, Sasikala is heard saying she 'cannot bear the cadres' cries' as Vasu laments that AIADMK has won no seats in key districts, praying her to 'restore Amma's rule'. This is the fifth such tape Sasikala has allegedly released, fanning rumours of her political return.

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Heavy rains lash Mumbai; authorities gear up in view of IMD's alert

Heavy rains lashed Mumbai in 24 hours till Saturday morning, although no major water logging was reported and local trains as well as city buses largely ran as per their normal schedule, officials said. Mumbai had got some respite from rains on Friday morning after a downpour on two previous days brought the city to a halt. However, after a brief break, the city continued to get heavy rains throughout the day. A Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) official said that the island city recorded an average rainfall of 79.66 mm, while the western and eastern suburbs received 92.68 mm and 89.30 mm rainfall, respectively, in the last 24-hours ending 8 am on Saturday.

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Japan seeks WTO help against China's anti-dumping duties: 'It defies international rules'

Japan has filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) over China's anti-dumping duties on their stainless steel products, saying that the tariffs of up to 29 per cent violate international trade rules. On June 11, Japan initiated a request for consultations with China under the WTO Agreement regarding China's measure imposing anti-dumping duties on stainless steel products, which has been in place since July 2019. 

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PM Modi to join UK-hosted outreach sessions at G7 virtual summit in Cornwall today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take part in the G7 virtual summit in Cornwall, which is being hosted by the United Kingdom. According to officials, Prime Minister Modi will participate in virtual G7 outreach sessions on June 12 and 13. The UK now holds the G7 presidency and India, Australia, South Africa and South Korea have been invited to the forthcoming meeting.

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Congress' Digvijaya Singh sparks fresh row, says 'revocation of Art 370 must be relooked'

BJP IT Cell chief Amit Malviya on Saturday shared a clip of an alleged clubhouse chat of the Congress party, where senior leader and Madhya Pradesh MP Digvijaya Singh can be heard hinting at a possible return of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, when his party returns to power. In the 1-minute clip shared by Malviya, Digvijaya Singh tells a Pakistani journalist that the decision to revoke Article 370 was an 'extremely sad decision,' and that when the Congress comes to power, they will 'certainly have to relook on this issue.'

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Rakesh Tikait breaks silence on alleged Tikri rape case, says 'we are not hiding anything'

Bhartiya Kishan Union (BKU) BKU leader Rakesh Tikait on Saturday broke his silence on the alleged Tikri rape case admitting to the charges levelled against the farmer leaders. Speaking to Republic TV, Tikait stated that the farmer unions had not attempted to hide the incident, adding that action should be taken as per the law. 

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COVID-19 origin: US Secy Blinken urges transparency, China labels lab-leak theory 'absurd'

With the ongoing coronavirus pandemic continuing to wreak havoc across the world, the United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged cooperation and transparency over the origins of COVID-19 while having a conversation with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi over a call on Friday. However, Yang responded to Blinken by stating that some in the US were spreading the “absurd story” about the coronavirus escaping from a Wuhan laboratory, as per a Chinese state media report. 

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NCP details Sharad Pawar-Prashant Kishor's 3 hour meet; says 'PK not appointed as advisor'

Explaining the sudden Prashant Kishor-Sharad Pawar meeting, NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik on Saturday, said that the meeting lasted for three hours. Refuting claims that Pawar has appointed Kishor as an NCP strategist, Malik said that Pawar wants to unite all Opposition parties and efforts will be made for this objective. Kishor - who has advised Mamata Banerjee, Arvind Kejriwal, Priyanka Gandhi, Capt. Amarinder Singh, MK Stalin. Jagan Mohan Reddy, Nitish Kumar and Narendra Modi himself - recently quit as a poll strategist after trumping BJP in Bengal.

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India reports 84,332 new cases in last 24 hours, lowest in 70 days; active cases below 11L

Continuing the downward trend, India saw its lowest single-day rise in the recent 70 days on Saturday, June 12, with over 84,000 new COVID-19 infections registered in the country in the previous 24 hours. According to the Union Health Ministry data on Saturday morning, India recorded 84,332 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to 2,93,59,155, while the death toll rose to 3,67,081 after 4,002 fatalities were reported in the same time period.

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