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CBI questions OSD to Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot in alleged suicide case of Rajasthan Police officer Vishnudutt Vishnoi amid Rajasthan political crisis. Stay tuned for the latest news of the day

7:17 PM

Rajasthan Speaker reaches Assembly to meet counsels in disqualification notices case

Rajasthan Speaker CP Joshi reached the state Assembly here Tuesday evening to meet the counsels who appeared in the high court for arguments on writ petitions filed by Sachin Pilot and 18 other dissident Congress MLAs against disqualification notices issued by him, according to a PTI report.

 

The High Court has asked the Speaker to defer action on the notices from 5.30 pm Tuesday to July 24, when the court is scheduled to pass its order on the writ petition.

 

The Speaker has reached the Assembly and is meeting with the advocates, an assembly source said.

7:02 PM

We worked to provide capital to MSMEs without impacting the banks: FM Sitharaman at USIBC

6:43 PM

Those betraying party won't be able to face public: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot

Lashing out again at dissident Congress leader Sachin Pilot, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot here on Tuesday said those betraying the party will not be able to face the public. Gehlot also reiterated that a conspiracy to topple his government was being hatched but said he was confident that they will complete their tenure.

 

The state government is fighting with coronavirus crisis and at the same time, a leader who was a state Congress president and a few other MLAs in collusion with the BJP were hatching a conspiracy to topple it, he alleged without taking the name of Pilot or any other party leader.

 

"This is intolerable and condemnable. Those betraying the party will not be able to show their faces in public," Gehlot said addressing a Congress Legislature Party meeting at a hotel here.

 

According to a statement issued by Congress chief whip Mahesh Joshi, Gehlot said efforts are being made to weaken democracy in the country but Congress legislators are fighting firmly to save it.

6:37 PM

Those betraying the party will not be able to show their faces in public: Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot at Congress legislature party meet

6:10 PM

Do something that can work with honour: Salman Khurshid to Congress on Rajasthan crisis

Senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid on Tuesday favoured working out an honourable formula to deal with the political crisis in Rajasthan and appeared to back a rapprochement with Sachin Pilot, who has raised a banner of revolt against Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.

 

As a party man and as someone who knew the son of his very dear friend late Congress leader Rajesh Pilot, since his childhood, the former union minister said he is very sad at the turn of events in the state. Efforts should be made to bring into the party fold anyone from any state who is willing to come, Khurshid said when asked if the party should reach out to Pilot.

 

But he also added: I think the Congress must not dissipate, must not scatter. There is a limit to which any leadership can accommodate diversity, ambition etc but its a two-way thing, right? If people consider themselvesI think we should try to keep the party together.

 

Anyone who feels an urge to leave, if we can persuade them not to; that may be a sensible thing but then there are no formulas for this; its only on a case-to-case basis, that you can do something," the senior leader told PTI in an interview.

 

6:04 PM

Latest News LIVE update: Gold rises by Rs 192, silver zooms Rs 1,832

Gold prices rose by Rs 192 to Rs 50,214 per 10 gram in the national capital on Tuesday following rally in international prices, according to HDFC Securities.

 

In the previous trade, the precious metal had closed at Rs 50,022 per 10 gram. Silver prices also jumped Rs 1,832 to Rs 56,441 per kg from Rs 54,609 per kg in the previous trade. In the international market, gold was quoting with gains at USD 1,822 per ounce, while silver traded at USD 20.36 per ounce, news agency PTI reported.

 

"Gold prices traded higher on another stimulus hope from the US and European Union (EU)," HDFC Securities Senior Analyst (Commodities) Tapan Patel said.

5:54 PM

Latest News LIVE update: Waterlogging in several parts of Delhi following rainfall today

5:15 PM

Police officer's suicide in Rajasthan's Churu: CBI quizzes Cong MLA, CM Gehlot's OSD

The CBI on Tuesday questioned Congress MLA Krishna Poonia and Deva Ram Saini, the OSD to Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, in connection with the alleged suicide by a police officer in Churu district on May 23, according to a PTI report.

 

A team of the CBI's special crime unit in Delhi is in Jaipur to record statements in connection with the death of Rajgarh Station House Officer (SHO) Vishnudutt Vishnoi, whose body was found hanging from the ceiling of his official residence.

 

The team questioned Saini, the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to the Rajasthan chief minister, for nearly two hours, while Poonia was quizzed for about two-and-a-half hours at her residence, the officials said.

 

This was the second time Poonia, an Olympian, was questioned in connection with the matter. The agency had quizzed her for nearly three hours at her Jaipur residence on Monday evening, the officials said.

 

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) have alleged that Poonia was putting pressure on Vishnoi, which triggered his drastic move, a charge denied by the Sadulpur MLA.

5:10 PM

Haryana Board 12th Result press conference to begin shortly

5:04 PM

Locals took a pregnant woman, mother on a makeshift boat from a flooded village in Bihar to Primary Health Centre

4:50 PM

Congress losing leaders one after another; will become party of tweets: BJP

In a swipe at Rahul Gandhi over his regular tweets attacking the central government, the BJP said on Tuesday that the Congress will become a "party of tweets" as it is doing no work among people and "losing" one leader after another.

 

Hitting back at the Congress leader, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said the anti-CAA Shaheen Bagh protests and Delhi riots were the Congress's "achievements" in February followed by desertion of Jyotiraditya Scindia and loss of power in Madhya Pradesh in March, and "incitement" of migrants in April.

 

Javadekar said May marked the sixth anniversary of the Congress's loss of power at the Centre while the party "advocated" for China in June and then it was "finished" in Rajasthan in July. READ MORE...

4:31 PM

Rajasthan HC to pass order on Sachin Pilot camp's writ plea on Friday, requests Speaker to defer action

The Rajasthan High Court on Tuesday requested the Legislative Assembly Speaker to defer action on disqualification notices till Friday as it will pass appropriate orders on the writ petition filed by Sachin Pilot and 18 dissident legislators on that day, the speaker's counsel said. Arguments were heard and completed on Tuesday. All the parties have been asked to file their written arguments by Friday.

 

"The court will now pass appropriate orders on July 24. The speaker was also requested to defer action on the notices till Friday," the counsel for the Speaker said.

 

The also court allowed the application of two other parties to be included as respondents as heard them on Tuesday. "It will become clear on July 24 whether the court pronounces the final order or interim order," the counsel said. Earlier, counsels had told reporters that the order has been reserved, according to a PTI report.

4:24 PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi to deliver keynote address at India Ideas Summit tomorrow

4:01 PM

Several parts of Sitamarhi affected due to floods in Bihar

3:58 PM

Congress Legislature Party meeting ends; Rajasthan Cabinet to meet at CM's residence shortly

Amid the ongoing political crisis in Rajasthan, a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party ended with Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot asking the state Cabinet to meet at his residence at 4 pm. The Cabinet meeting has been called to discuss the coronavirus situation, states's financial condition and social welfare schemes, officials said.

 

According to party sources, the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting lasted for about an hour and a half. The CLP meeting had started with a delay of two hours at a hotel on the outskirts of Jaipur where party legislators supporting the Ashok Gehlot government are camping.

 

Senior party leaders, including AICC general secretary in-charge for the Rajasthan Congress Avinash Pande; K C Venugopal; Ajay Maken; Randeep Surjewala; Vivek Bansal and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot attended the meeting. This was the third meeting of the CLP in the past one week.