HIGHLIGHTS AT 1730 HRS

Following are the top PTI stories at 1730 hours:

NATION:

DEL27 KARNATAKA-LD POLL

Kar goes to polls on May 12, BJP eyes last Cong fortress

New Delhi: The Election Commission today announced that the Karnataka Assembly polls will be held on May 12, beginning the countdown to the crucial electoral battle that will decide whether BJP's juggernaut will breach the last major Congress fortress.

DEL22 INDOPAK-IWT-MEET

India, Pakistan to hold Permanent Indus Commission meet from Thursday

New Delhi: India and Pakistan will hold a two-day meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission here from Thursday to discuss various issues under the Indus Waters Treaty, sources said today.

 

DEL25 MEA-SWARAJ-JAPAN

Swaraj to visit Japan for strategic dialogue

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will pay a three-day visit to Japan starting tomorrow during which she will co-chair the strategic dialogue with her Japanese counterpart Taro Kono and review the entire gamut of bilateral ties.

DEL28 LD PARLIAMENT

RS, LS adjourned as noisy protests continue

New Delhi: The second leg of the budget session of Parliament seemed to be heading for a washout as both the Houses failed to transact any business on the 16th straight day today due to adjournments forced by noisy protests by some parties.

DEL31 EC-MALVIYA-BJP

Malviya's poll date tweet based on news channel report: BJP to EC

New Delhi: The BJP today told the Election Commission that its IT cell chief Amit Malviya's tweet on the Karnataka Assembly election dates before the poll panel's announcement was based on a news channel's report and a state Congress office-bearer had also tweeted about it.

CAL3 WB-RANIGANJ-RAM NAVAMI

Ram Navami violence: Heavy police force deployed in Raniganj

Raniganj (WB): Heavy police force was deployed today in the Raniganj area of Bardhaman West district, a day after clashes broke out between two groups over a Ram Navami procession, killing one person and injuring two police officers, a district official said.

BOM1 GJ-GIRL-KIDNAP-BODY

5-yr-old kidnapped from Maha, found dead in a toilet in Guj

Ahmedabad/Palghar: A five-year-old girl was allegedly kidnapped by an unidentified woman from Palghar district in Maharashtra and was later found dead in a toilet at Navsari railway station in Gujarat, the police said today.

MDS2 KA-SHAH

Amit Shah accuses Siddaramaiah govt of 'dividing' Hindus

Davanagere (KTK): BJP president Amit Shah today accused the Siddaramaiah government in Karnataka of trying to divide Hindus and being the "most corrupt" one in the country.

LEGAL

LGD8 SC-LD KHAP

Khap interference in marriage of two adults absolutely illegal: SC

New Delhi: In a relief to inter-faith or inter-caste couples who often face threat to their lives due to their relationship, the Supreme Court today banned any interference by illegal assemblies like 'khap panchayats' into their marriages, terming the intrusions as "absolutely illegal."

LGD11 DL-HC-ARMY

Recruiting married persons into JAG expensive: Centre to HC

New Delhi: Recruitment of married men and women into the Indian Army's legal branch, JAG, will be expensive for the Centre as it will have to incur "heavy expenditure" to find replacements for such recruits when they are absent from training due to their marital obligations, the government has claimed in the Delhi High Court.

LGD13 SC-GIRL SUICIDE

SC agrees to hear plea for CBI probe into Noida girl suicide case

New Delhi: The Supreme Court today agreed to hear a plea seeking a CBI investigation into the reasons behind the suicide by a 16-year-old girl who, according to her father, took the extreme step as she was allegedly "sexually exploited, oppressed and harassed" by certain teachers and officials of her school.

FOREIGN

FGN8 CHINA-KIM-LD VISIT

North Korean leader Kim visits China: Reports

Beijing: Speculation is rife that Kim Jong Un made a surprise visit to China after media reports that a special train believed to be carrying the North Korean dictator arrived here. By K J M Varma

FGN10 US-COMMITTEE-LD ZUCKERBERG

Senate committee summons FB, Google, Twitter CEOs to testify

Washington: A powerful Congressional committee has summoned the CEOs of the top three tech giants - Facebook, Twitter and Google - to testify next month about UK communications firm Cambridge Analytica's misuse of private data from up to 50 million user profiles. By Lalit K Jha.