Highlights of the day: Rahul Gandhi to keep Rae Bareli LS seat, vacate Wayanad seat, says Kharge

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Power outage was reported at Delhi Airport from the past 20-25 minutes following which the boarding and check-in services were impacted. Officials said that no flights were affected by the incident. The unexpected outage caused inconvenience to passengers and airline staff, prompting a scramble to restore service.

At least fifteen passengers were left dead and several others injured after the Sealdah-bound Kanchanjungha Express from Agartala slammed into a goods train on Monday morning near New Jalpaiguri, a railway official said. There are unconfirmed reports of injury to a few persons in the accident that took place around 9 am, the divisional railway manager of NFR's Katihar Division said.

Indian national Nikhil Gupta, who is accused of being involved in murder plot against a Khalistani extremist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil, has been extradited from Czech Republic to the US, according to a report by news agency Reuters. Gupta  is expected to be produced before a federal court in New York on Monday. He is currently lodged at the federal Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn, where he is listed as an inmate. He was taken in custody the Czech Republic last year at the request of the US government on charges of being involved in a plot to assassinate Pannun.

The Election Commission of India acknowledged that  a mobile phone of an "authorised person" was employed by the subordinate of a candidate "unauthorisedly" while votes were being counted in Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat. In a statement to the media, the poll body stated that the returning officer has already filed a police case over the matter.  Earlier, a Mumbai police official said that  the report about the kin of a newly-elected MP using a mobile phone to “unlock” an EVM on Lok Sabha vote counting day was fake. The Shiv Sena's Ravindra Waikar had bagged the win from this constituency.

During an annual celebration to mark the end of slavery in the US,  a shooter killed two people and injured a dozen others at a Texas park concert on late Saturday night (local time). Round Rock Police Chief Allen Banks stated that an altercation started between two groups during a concert at the event and someone started shooting. The shooting took place during a Juneteenth celebration at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock.

9:17 PM

Union Agriculture Minister Chouhan resigns as MLA from Budhni after being elected to LS

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan resigns as MLA from Budhni in MP after being elected to Lok Sabha.

9:16 PM

5 Maoists killed in encounter with security forces in Jharkhand

Following the recovery of another Maoist's body, the death toll from Monday's encounter with security forces in Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district has now risen to five. The encounter took place around 5 am near Lipunga, within Gua police station limits, approximately 200 km from Jharkhand's capital, Ranchi.

7:40 PM

Won't let people of Wayanad feel Rahul's absence: Priyanka on her contesting Wayanad LS seat

''I won't let people of Wayanad feel Rahul Gandhi's absence,'' said Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on her contesting Wayanad Lok Sabah seat.

 

7:33 PM

Priyanka to contest from Wayanad LS seat vacated by Rahul: Kharge

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to contest from Wayanad Lok Sabha seat vacated by Rahul Gandhi: Mallikarjun Kharge.

7:31 PM

Rahul to keep Rae Bareli LS seat, vacate Wayanad seat: Cong chief Kharge

Rahul Gandhi will keep Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat, vacate Wayanad seat, said Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge.

 

7:09 PM

'Cong top brass hold discussions to decide on Rahul's Lok Sabha seat'

The top leadership of Congress gathered at party chief Mallikarjun Kharge's residence to deliberate on whether Rahul Gandhi should vacate his Wayanad or Rae Bareli seat. The meeting also addressed the possibility of Rahul Gandhi assuming the role of Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, according to sources.

6:25 PM

Assembly by-polls: Congress announces candidates for Hamirpur, Nalagarh

The Congress announced its candidates for the by-polls in Himachal Pradesh's Hamirpur and Nalagarh assembly constituencies, while the candidate for the Dehra seat has yet to be named. Congress general secretary K C Venugopal released the list after receiving approval from party chief Mallikarjun Kharge. The Congress nominated Pushpinder Verma for Hamirpur and Hardeep Singh Baba for Nalagarh. Verma and Baba will face their previous rivals Krishan Lal Thakur and Ashish Sharma, who defeated them as independents in the 2022 assembly elections.

5:43 PM

NSA Doval, Jake Sullivan hold India-US iCET meeting in Delhi

National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and his US counterpart Jake Sullivan participated in the annual meeting of the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) on Monday. The delegation-level discussions took place in the national capital. This marks the second iCET meeting between the two nations, spanning two days on June 17 and 18. The inaugural meeting occurred in the United States in January of the previous year.

5:25 PM

Newly elected MP Bidhuri requests BJP chief Nadda to relieve him of LoP post in Delhi Assembly

BJP MLA Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, who has been elected to the Lok Sabha, has asked party president JP Nadda to release him from his role as the leader of the opposition in the Delhi assembly. Bidhuri recently ran for office in the South Delhi parliamentary constituency during the general elections.

4:56 PM

Russian President Putin to visit North Korea on June 18-19

News Agency AP reported that Russian President Putin will visit North Korea on June 18-19.

4:51 PM

Fire at hospital in south Delhi, no one injured

A fire broke out a private cancer hospital in south Delhi's Kotla Mubarakpur area today afternoon. No one was injured in the fire, officials said. Eight fire tenders were pressed into service to control the fire, they added.

4:17 PM

'Full of arrogance, prejudice and lies': China criticizes G7 statement on Russia-Ukraine war

China retorted today after G7 leaders warned Beijing to stop sending weapons components to Russia, saying their end-of-summit statement was "full of arrogance, prejudice and lies".

4:03 PM

IMD weather update: Heatwave likely to continue in North India

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast that the heatwave would continue on Monday in Delhi-NCR. The IMD said: “Heatwave to severe heatwave conditions very likely in many/most parts of Uttar Pradesh during 16th-18th and Punjab, Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi on 16th & 17th; in isolated/some parts of Bihar & Jharkhand on June 16 & June 17 and decrease in intensity thereafter over above regions.” 

 

3:35 PM

NCERT has no aversion to using either 'Bharat' or 'India' in textbooks: NCERT Director Dinesh Saklani

NCERT Director Dinesh Saklani has stated that 'Bharat' and 'India' will be used interchangeably in school textbooks, and a debate over the issue will be 'useless'.

3:32 PM

'Teary' PM Modi said NDA could not bag a single Lok Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu: DMK

DMK's Tamil mouthpiece 'Murasoli' on today claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the recent meeting of MPs of the National Democratic Alliance had said with 'teary eyes' that they could not bag even a single Lok Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu. "He did not say why they could not win. He does not seem to have realised the reason for that. He will not spell out the reason even if he has realised and he cannot disclose that reason," Murasoli stated in its editorial.