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9:50 AM

NIA conducts raids at multiple locations in Jammu

9:30 AM

Lalu Prasad says "Modi ko hatana hai" as RJD returns to power in Bihar

Aiming to hit another home run in Bihar, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav has slammed the "dictatorial" government at the Centre and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi must be ousted from power.

"We have to oust the dictatorial government. Hatana hai, Modi ko hatana hai," RJD chief Lalu Prasad said on Wednesday when asked by reporters about the 2024 general elections, which the Modi-led central government is seeking to win for the third time.

Lalu Prasad returned to Patna from Delhi on Wednesday and met Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for the first time since RJD returned to power in the state where Kumar formed a new Mahagathbandhan government after breaking the alliance with Bharatiya Janata Party.

9:14 AM

China-appointed Panchen Lama pushes for Buddhism with Chinese characteristics

China appointed Panchen Lama or more accurately puppet Lama Gyaltsen Norbu recently grabbed headlines for pushing the Chinese claim of Tibetan Buddhism with Chinese characteristics.

This version of Buddhism being presented by Gyaltsen Norbu is the vision that President Xi Jinping wants to enforce in Tibet, according to Tibet Press.

"People are of opinion that Tibetans will never waver from their faith and this is very much true but what we can witness here with the initiatives from Gyaltsen Norbu is, how China knowing this fact wants to shift the narrative of Tibetan Buddhism not only to the Tibetans under its thumb but also the Chinese mainland people, who are frequently invested and follow Tibetan Buddhism since the occupation of Tibet by China," the report adds.

9:11 AM

Gotabaya Rajapaksa set for return to Sri Lanka next week: Report

Sri Lanka's former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is all set to return next week to the island nation that he was forced to flee in July after massive protests against him, local media reported.

Former Sri Lankan Ambassador to Russia, Udayanga Weeratunga, who is also related to Gotabaya, hinted that Rajapaksa will return to the country on August 24, the Daily Mirror said on Wednesday.

Sri Lanka has been facing its worst economic crisis, which led to massive protests in the country that forced Rajapaksa to flee abroad and also hand in his resignation last month.

9:09 AM

Apple set to launch new iPhones, Watch Series 8 in early September

Tech giant Apple is set to hold its iPhone 14 event in early September that will unveil next-generation iPhones, Watch Series 8 and other products and services.

According to reports, the iPhone 14 launch date can be September 7. Apple generally organises its annual mega event around those dates.

The company was yet to officially confirm the launch date.

9:01 AM

Israel, Turkey agree to restore full diplomatic ties

Israel and Turkey want to fully resume diplomatic relations, leaders from both countries said on in a historic step that followed a visit by the Israeli Prime Minister to Turkey.

Both countries have decided to reinstate Ambassadors and Consuls General, dpa news agency quoted the office of Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid as saying on Wednesday.

The step came after Lapid's visit to Ankara in June and talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the official statement said.

9:00 AM

Farmers on 75-hour protest in UP's Lakhimpur Kheri

The Bhartiya Kisan Union-Tikait (BKU-Tikait) and several other constituents of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella organisation of farmers, will hold a 75-hour sit-in at Rajapur Krishi-Utpadan Mandi Samiti in Lakhimpur Kheri from Thursday to press their pending demands.

The Samyukt Kisan Morcha will hold the protest from August 18 to 20 to seek "justice" in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case.

Eight people, including four farmers, were killed in Lakhimpur Kheri during the violence that erupted in the Tikunia area of the district on October 3 last year.

8:59 AM

Yogi seeks list of officials who 'refuse to listen'

In a move that could now lead to a major bureaucratic reshuffle in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has sought a list of officers who allegedly refused to address the complaints of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders and workers on public matters.

This is the first time that the chief minister has openly taken up an issue for the party workers against the bureaucrats.

The chief minister gave the instruction when, after a meeting with the MLAs and other local leaders at the police lines in Saharanpur on Wednesday evening, some BJP leaders complained that some officials of the district refused to listen to them due to which public work was being impeded.