LIVE updates: G20 leaders endorse global minimum corporate tax deal

PM Narendra Modi arrived in the Vatican City on Saturday to meet Pope Francis ahead of the highly anticipated G20 Summit

3:46 PM

MP: 45.67% turnout in bypolls to three Assembly segments and of 39.08% in Khandwa LS seat till 1 PM

A voter turnout of 45.67 per cent was recorded till 1 PM on Saturday in the bypolls to three Assembly seats and of 39.08 per cent in the byelection to the Khandwa Lok Sabha constituency in Madhya Pradesh where ruling BJP and opposition Congress are locked in a straight contest.

Jobat, Prithvipur and Raigaon Assembly constituencies recorded turnouts of 40.61%, 53.90% and 44.52% per cent, respectively, in the first six hours of voting till 1 PM, officials said.

A total of 48 candidates are in the fray in these four constituencies where polling will be held till 6 PM, the officials said.

These byelections were necessitated due to the death of sitting MLAs and an MP.

Of the four seats for which the bypollls are underway, two constituencies namely Khandwa (Lok Sabha) and Raigaon (SC) were held by the BJP while Jobat and Prithvipur were with the Congress.

3:45 PM

Assam bypolls: 51.65% turnout recorded till 1 pm

Voting has largely been peaceful for bypolls to five assembly constituencies in Assam with 51.65 per cent turnout recorded till 1 pm on Saturday, an official said.

Polling is underway in Gossaigaon, Bhabanipur, Tamulpur, Mariani and Thowra assembly segments, with strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols, he said.

An estimated 51.65 per cent of the total 7.96 lakh electors exercised their franchise in the first six hours of voting with the highest turnout recorded in Bhabanipur at 62 per cent, followed by Gossaigaon (57.94 per cent), Thowra (54.52 per cent), Tamulpur (47 per cent) and Mariani (35.13 per cent).

Voting, which began at 7 am, will continue till 5 pm.

3:43 PM

Coalition govt with Congress as major party will come to power at Centre in 2024: Sanjay Raut

Taking potshots at the ruling BJP, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Saturday said a coalition government with Congress as a major party will come to power in 2024, when general elections are due, which will end the reign of the incumbent one-party government.

Speaking to reporters in Pune city of Maharashtra after addressing JS Karandikar memorial lecture organised by the Pune press club, Raut said, "No government can be formed without Congress, which is a major and deeply-rooted party in the country. Congress is the main opposition party too. Others are regional parties."

Queried about political strategist Prashant Kishor's reported statement that BJP will remain in power for many decades, Raut said the BJP will stay in Indian politics but as an opposition party.

"BJP claims that it is the world's biggest party. If the world's biggest party loses elections they will become an opposition party. For example, in Maharashtra, the BJP is the main opposition party with 105 MLAs", he said.

3:25 PM

Karnataka's guidelines for Diwali

In new guidelines for Diwali, Karnataka Govt says only sellers having permission can sell green crackers at designated places outside residential areas between Nov 1 & Nov 10; 6-meter distance between shops a must

 

2:30 PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Pope Francis at the Vatican today

2:21 PM

West Bengal Assembly bypolls

Voter turnout till 1 pm in West Bengal Assembly bypolls | Dinhata- 47.83%, Santipur- 48.02%, Khardaha- 36.70% and Gosaba (SC)-52.19%: Election Commission

 

2:14 PM

PM Modi arrives for G20 Summit

1:36 PM

Six suspended BSP MLAs join SP

Six suspended BSP MLAs -- Hargovind Bhargav, Mujtaba Siddiqui, Hakim Lal Bind, Aslam Raini, Sushma Patel, and Aslam Chaudhary and BJP MLA from Sitapur Sadar Rakesh Rathore today joined Samajwadi Party in presence of party president Akhilesh Yadav.

 

1:32 PM

Cong's poll assurances not just commitment, but guarantee, says Rahul in poll-bound Goa

Kickstarting the Congress's poll campaign in Goa, where Assembly elections are due early next year, party leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday asserted that the assurances that his party gives in its election manifesto is not just a commitment but a "guarantee".

Addressing the members of the fishermen community in South Goa following his arrival in the state for his day-long visit, he also alleged that while the BJP indulges in hatred and divides people, the Congress spreads love and affection as it believes in uniting people and taking them forward.

"I want to make very clear what is the difference between the BJP and the Congress is. The Congress believes in uniting India's people and taking them forward. For us, every single Indian has the right to be given the space that he requires," he said addressing the gathering.

12:58 PM

Telangana by-polls: 33.27% voter turnout in Huzurabad till 11 AM

Telangana reported a voter turnout of 33.27 per cent by 11 AM for the by-poll in the Huzurabad constituency, as per the Election Commission of India (ECI).

Voting began at 7 am and will continue till 6:30 pm today.

The result of the by-poll will be announced on November 2.

Huzurabad seat fell vacant after former health minister Eatala Rajender resigned from ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and joined the BJP.

12:56 PM

Bihar by-polls: 21.79% voter turnout recorded till 11 am

Bihar recorded a voter turnout of 21.79 per cent till 11 am in the two Assembly constituencies during the by-elections on Saturday.

 

According to the election commission, the Kusheshwar Asthan assembly seat in Darbhanga recorded 20.25 per cent voter turnout while the Tarapur Assembly seat in Munger recorded 23 per cent voter turnout.

 

The by-polls in the two assembly seats have become a battle of prestige for the ruling Janata Dal (United) and the main opposition party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).

 

12:25 PM

PM Modi arrives in Vatican City to meet Pope Francis ahead of G20 Summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the Vatican City on Saturday to meet Pope Francis ahead of the highly anticipated Group of 20 (G20) Summit.

PM Modi is accompanied by National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister (EAM) Dr S Jaishankar.

The Vatican is a city-state surrounded by Rome and is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church. While briefing about the Prime Minister's engagements in Italy, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla on Friday said that there is no set agenda for the meeting between PM Modi and Pope.

12:24 PM

Jitendra Singh launches India's unique manned ocean mission Samudrayan

Union Minister of State Dr Jitendra Singh on Friday launched India's first manned ocean mission Samudrayan at Chennai.

At the launch event, he said, "With the launch of this Unique Ocean Mission, India joins the elite club of nations such as the USA, Russia, Japan, France and China to have such underwater vehicles for carrying out subsea activities."

Dr Jitendra Singh said that this niche technology shall facilitate the Ministry of Earth Sciences, MoES in carrying out deep ocean exploration of the non-living resources such as polymetallic manganese nodules, gas hydrates, hydro-thermal sulphides and cobalt crusts, located at a depth between 1000 and 5500 meters.

11:51 AM

Kannada superstar Puneeth Rajkumar to be cremated with full state honours on Saturday

Famous Kannada actor Puneeth Rajkumar, who passed away at the age of 46, will be cremated on Saturday evening here with full state honour.

According to BJP MLA S.R. Vishwanath, Puneeth's elder daughter Dhruthi, who lives the US, will be reaching New Delhi by noon and arrangements are being made to bring her to Bengaluru.

Once she reaches, the mortal remains draped in Tricolour, will be taken to the Kanteerava Stadium in a procession for the last rites.

11:39 AM

Thousands of fish die as river suddenly turns black in Arunachal

Thousands of fish were found floating dead in Kameng river in Arunachal Pradesh's East Kameng district after the water of the river suddenly turned black, triggering panic, officials said on Saturday.

The water of the river turned black due to high content of total dissolved substances (TDS), a district fisheries official said.

Thousands of fish were found dead in the river on Friday at Seppa, the district headquarters, District Fisheries Development Officer (DFDO) Hali Tajo said.