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Demonetisation, surgical strikes, GST Bill mark 2016

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Press Trust of India New Delhi
Demonetisation, attack on Indian Air Force Base in Pathankot, imposition of liquor ban in Bihar, fire in Puttingal temple in Kerala, the terrorist attack in Uri and Manipur activist Irom Sharmila ending her 16-year long hunger strike made headlines in the year 2015.

Assembly elections in TamilNadu, Assam, West Bengal and Puducherry brought landslide victories for the AIADMK, BJP, TMC and Congress respectively.

The demise of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, months-long Kashmir turmoil, Supreme Court's order to play the National Anthem in cinemas before films and the sacking of Cyrus Mistry as the Chairman of the Tata Sons were other issues that made news.
 

The landmark Goods and Services Tax Bill was passed in the parliament, and the Government of India accepted the 7th Pay Commission recommendations to increase salaries of employees.

Following is the diary of domestic events:

Jan 2: New Delhi: Veteran Communist Party of India leader A B Bardhan, who steered the party during the turbulent period of coalition politics at national level in 1990s, died here tonight after prolonged illness.

Jan 2: Pathankot (Punjab): Heavily-armed Pakistani terrorists today attempted to storm the Air Force base here, triggering a day-long gunbattle in which three securitymen and four infiltrators were killed, days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surprise stopover in Lahore.

Jan 3:New Delhi: Two Jaish-e-Mohammed militants were suspected to have sneaked into the national capital and were planning high-profile attacks, including taking hostages, following which security was today stepped up in the city, a day after the Pathankot Air Base strike by the same Pakistan-based outfit.

Jan 4: New Delhi: Juveniles of 16 years of age and above can now be tried as adults if they commit heinous offences like rape and murder as President Pranab Mukherjee has given assent to an Act in this regard.

Jan 4: Imphal/Guwahati: At least nine persons were killed and over 100 injured as a strong 6.8 magnitude earthquake epicentred in Manipur today struck the northeastern and eastern regions, damaging buildings and sparking panic that sent people scampering out of their homes.

Jan 5: Pathankot: Bringing the curtains down on Day 4, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar today said all six terrorists at the Pathankot air base have been killed but admitted to "some gaps" in security that led to the terror attack in which some "Pakistan-made material" have been used.

Jan 7: New Delhi: Putting the ball squarely in Pakistan's court, India today linked the Foreign Secretary-level talks to Islamabad's "prompt and decisive" action in the Pathankot terror attack for which it has provided "actionable intelligence".

Jan 7: New Delhi/Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, who crafted an impossible coalition with BJP in the Muslim-majority state, died today and just hours later his party PDP chose his daughter Mehbooba Mufti as his successor.
Jan 8: New Delhi/Chennai: The four-year-old ban on holding

of controversial bull taming sport Jallikattu was lifted today in poll-bound Tamil Nadu with certain restrictions, angering animal rights activists who said it is cruel and abusive and vowed to move the Supreme Court against it.

Jan 9: Pathankot: Accompanied by National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the Pathankot air base and voices satisfaction over the counter offensive mounted by the security forces to eliminate the perpetrators.

Jan 9: Srinagar/New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir is placed under Governor's rule with the process of new government formation following the death of Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed taking some time.

Jan 11: Srinagar: As suspense mounts over government formation in Jammu and Kashmir, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah rules out the party's unilateral support to PDP from outside in any new dispensation with Congress backing.

Jan 13: New Delhi: Syria said it received "positive response" from India to its requests on intelligence sharing and economic aid especially in terms of food grains and medicines as worn-torn country battles terrorism on one side and sanctions imposed by the West on the other.

Jan 13: New Delhi: India says it has received no confirmation of detention of JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar despite widespread reports of his having been apprehended in connection with the Pathankot attack of which he is suspected to be the mastermind.

Jan 15: New Delhi: The sensational case of the death of Sunanda Pushkar, wife of Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, reaches a new stage with the US-based FBI endorsing the AIIMS report of poisoning as the cause and also saying that a "dangerous chemical" was present in her body that may have killed her.

Jan 17: Srinagar: Meeting nine days after Jammu and Kashmir was brought under Governor's rule, the PDP's core group meets and indicates it was veering to the idea of forming a coalition government with BJP, but its president Mehbooba Mufti says she is in no hurry to take over as chief minister.

Jan 18: Gurgaon: Two men, suspected to have links with terror group al-Qaeda have been arrested from Haryana's Mewat district in a joint operation by Delhi Police and Intelligence Bureau, Mewat Police says.

Jan 19: New Delhi: The head of the AIIMS medical board, which gave its opinion last week on the cause of Sunanda Pushkar's death, says that Delhi Police caused "unnecessary delay" in sending Sunanda's viscera sample to the FBI lab on account of which its contents degraded.

Jan 19: Hyderabad/Pune: Protests over the alleged suicide by a Dalit research scholar escalates in Hyderabad and Delhi and also spreads to other cities including Pune, Chennai and Gandhinagar with the incident being described as an "institutional murder".

Jan 20: New Delhi: No difference can be made between good and bad terrorists and all forms of terrorism and manner of support to them need to be completely eradicated, says President Pranab Mukherjee.

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First Published: Dec 30 2016 | 1:28 PM IST

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