LIVE: Russia says first phase of Ukraine operation mostly complete

Russia said that it would focus on completely 'liberating' eastern Ukraine's Donbass region

12:03 PM

SC allows ex-Unitech promoter's wife to attend grandmother's funeral

The Supreme Court on Friday allowed ex-Unitech promoter Sanjay Chandra's wife Preeti Chandra, lodged in Tihar Jail in a money laundering case, to attend her maternal grandmother's funeral ceremony for a day between 10 am and 3 pm. The court asked Preeti Chandra to submit her passport that she has to the investigating officer before being allowed out of prison.

11:37 AM

CBI taking over probe in interest of justice: Calcutta HC

The High Court said it ordering the CBI to take up the investigation in the interest of justice. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Prakash Shrivastava and Justice R Bharadwaj directed the CBI to file a progress report by April 7, the next date of hearing of the matter.

10:57 AM

CBI to give Kolkata HC status report on Rampurhat violence probe

The Central Bureau of Investigation will probe the murder of eight women and children near Bengal’s Rampurhat city, said the Kolkata High Court on Friday. The federal agency will give the court a report on April 7.

9:55 AM

Western sanctions won't sway Kremlin: Russia's ex-president Medvedev

It is "foolish" to believe that Western sanctions against Russian businesses could have any effect on the Moscow government, Russian ex-president and deputy head of security council Dmitry Medvedev was quoted as saying on Friday. The sanctions will only consolidate the Russian society and not cause popular discontent with the authorities, Medvedev told Russia's RIA news agency in an interview.

9:43 AM

Airtel prepays govt Rs 8,815 cr as deferred liabilities

Bharti Airtel on Friday said it has paid Rs 8,815 crore to the government towards part prepayment of deferred liabilities pertaining to spectrum acquired in the 2015 auction. The prepayment is for instalments due in FY2027 and FY2028, said the company in a statement.

9:36 AM

China may send tech hardware to Putin, says EU

European Union officials suspect that China may be ready to supply semiconductors and other tech hardware to Russia as part of an effort to soften the impact of sanctions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine, Bloomberg reported. 

9:29 AM

Xinhua says second black box of China Eastern jet not found

China's official Xinhua News Agency said on Friday that the second black box of crashed China Eastern jet has yet to be found. Earlier, CAAC News, a publication managed by the aviation regulator, said China had found the second black box, but it later deleted the news post from its official social media platforms, Reueters reported.

9:16 AM

Gurgaon hospital complains to police about hoax bomb call

The police in Gurgaon found no bomb at Medanta Hospital after a phone call said the place would be bombed in a terrorist attack. The call triggered panic at the hospital, according to a police complaint. The police have put the phone number on surveillance, PTI reported.

8:05 AM

Chinese Foreign Minister to meet Jaishankar in Delhi

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will meet his Indian counterpart in New Delhi on Friday, India's foreign ministry said, after he arrived in the city unannounced in the first such visit since deadly border clashes in 2020 soured ties. Wang will meet Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar before noon, a ministry spokesperson told Reuters, without giving further details. Wang is set to fly to Nepal later in the day.

7:59 AM

Ashok Gehlot to meet Bhupesh Baghel for coal supply

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot will meet his Chhattisgarh counterpart Bhupesh Baghel in Raipur on Friday to discuss coal supply to the western state, PTI reported. The Congress leaders will look for a solution to get running the second phase of Parsa coal block, which which Chhattisgarh's forest department is yet to give its clearance.

7:02 AM

Sebi fines Sebi Rs 5 lakh

Markets regulator Sebi on Thursday imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on Axis Bank for violation of merchant banker regulations. Axis Bank is registered as a merchant banker with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The regulator had conducted an examination of the debt capital market operations of Axis Bank during the August 2016 to August 2019 period.

6:36 AM

Pakistan minister predicts early polls in country

Pakistan's Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid said on Thursday that early elections can be held in the country to end the current political uncertainty due to a no-trust motion against embattled Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is struggling to save his government. Rashid warned party dissidents that switching sides would not do them any good, PTI reported.

6:11 AM

Top industrialists to attend Adityanath swearing-in

Top Indian industrialists have also invited for the swearing-in ceremony in Lucknow. N Chandrasekaran (Tata Group), Mukesh Ambani (Reliance Group), Kumar Mangalam Birla (Aditya Birla Group), Gautam Adani (Adani Group) and Anand Mahindra are among those invited, News18.com reported.

 

6:10 AM

Adityanath swearing-in at 4pm

Yogi Adityanath is scheduled to take oath for a second term as Uttar Chief Minister on Friday at 4:00pm at Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. Some of his cabinet Ministers will also take oath of office.