New Delhi Mar 18 PTI G-23 leader Ghulam Nabi Azad met Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday and said he conveyed suggestions to strengthen the party a day after members of the dissenting group held a flurry of meetings over measures to revamp the organisationSpeaking to reporters after meeting Sonia Gandhi Azad said it was a good meeting with the Congress president with the discussion centred on how to prepare and fight unitedly the forthcoming assembly polls to take on rival partiesPlaying down the meeting he told reporters that it may be news for you but we keep meeting the Congress president at various intervalsMrs Gandhi keeps having discussions with leaders to strengthen the organisation A few days ago the working committee had met and suggestions were asked as to how to strengthen the Congress party and what were the reasons for the defeat in five assembly polls I had also given my suggestions he saidHowever it is not possible to record and remember all suggestions he added Azad said he reiterated suggestions to strengthen the Congress organisation The meeting comes a day after members of the G-23 held a flurry of meetings over measures to revamp the partyAfter the Group of 23 pitched for an inclusive and collective leadership in the Congress Bhupinder Singh Hooda one of its members met Rahul Gandhi on Thursday and the two leaders were learnt to have discussed a revamp of the party organisation a key demand of the dissenters The meetings are being seen as an attempt by the Gandhi family to reach out to the G-23 which has shown signs of increasing aggression on the leadership issue after Congress abject loss in the assembly elections in five states Earlier on Friday Azad also met veteran Congress leader Karan Singh and said he came to greet Singh on HoliRahul Gandhi a former Congress president had called Hooda for a discussion on the political situation in Haryana However the discussion spilled over to the partys abysmal performance in the electionsSonia Gandhi had earlier reached out to Azad on Wednesday ahead of the G-23 dinner meeting at his residenceThe leaders of the grouping have since held a series of meetings at Azads residenceThe party leadership wants to resolve the differences with the G-23 and is reaching out to its leaders It is learnt to have deputed some senior leaders for parleys with the dissenting group to resolve the differences according to sources PTI ASK ANB ANB

New Delhi Mar 18 PTI G-23 leader Ghulam Nabi Azad met Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday a day after members of the dissenting group held a flurry of meetings over measures to revamp the partyAfter the Group of 23 pitched for an inclusive and collective leadership in the Congress Bhupinder Singh Hooda one of its members met Rahul Gandhi on Thursday and the two leaders were learnt to have discussed a revamp of the party organisation a key demand of the dissentersThe meetings are being seen as an attempt by the Gandhi family to reach out to the G-23 which has shown signs of increasing aggression on the leadership issue after Congress abject loss in the assembly elections in five statesEarlier on Friday Azad also met veteran Congress leader Karan Singh and said he come to greet Singh on HoliRahul Gandhi a former Congress president had called Hooda for a discussion on the political situation in Haryana However the discussion spilled over to the partys abysmal performance in the electionsSonia Gandhi had earlier reached out to Azad on Wednesday ahead of the G-23 dinner meeting at his residenceThe leaders of the grouping have since held a series of meetings at Azads residenceThe party leadership wants to resolve the differences with the G-23 and is reaching out to its leaders It is learnt to have deputed some senior leaders for parleys with the dissenting group to resolve the differences according to sources PTI ASK ANB ANB

New Delhi Jan 30 PTI Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday attacked the Centre over the issue of employment saying statistics show why students are compelled to undertaking satyagraha but one arrogant person is still sitting with his eyes closedHis attack on the government came over a media report which claimed that there are 303 crore youth do not have work in the countryTagging the media report Gandhi tweeted These statistics show why students are compelled to undertake satyagrahaOne arrogant person is still sitting with his eyes closed he saidGandhi has been criticising the government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the handling of the economy and in reining in unemployment PTI ASK ANB ANB

New Delhi Jan 25 PTI Following are the top stories at 120 pm NATION DEL16 RDAY-POLICE-MEDALS 939 police medals including 189 for gallantry awarded on Republic Day eve New Delhi A total of 939 service medals including 189 for gallantry was announced by the Union government on Tuesday for personnel of various central and state police forces on the eve of Republic Day DEL5 VIRUS-LD CASES India logs 255874 fresh COVID-19 cases New Delhi After being over three lakh for five consecutive days the single day rise in COVID-19 infections was recorded at 255874 taking Indias total tally of cases to 39799202 according to Union health ministry data updated on Tuesday ELX2 POLLS-UP-AYOHDYA-MUSLIMS Muslims in Ayodhya pine for development employment Ayodhya As election fever grips the temple town Muslims in this renamed district are focusing on development and employment matters and feel the Ram temple issue is dead and political parties should move on and concentrate on people-centric issues DEL14 DL-DAY-KEJRIWAL Dont want peoples livelihood to be affected Covid curbs to be eased as soon as possible Kejriwal New Delhi Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said that his government does not want livelihood of people to be affected and Covid restrictions will be eased as soon as possible BOM2 MH-CAR-LD ACCIDENT Seven MBBS students including Maha MLAs son killed as car falls off bridge Wardha Seven MBBS students including the son of an MLA were killed in Wardha district of Maharashtra in the wee hours of Tuesday when the car they were travelling in fell off a bridge police said BOM3 MH-HINDUTVA-RAUT Shiv Sena first party in country which had fought poll on Hindutva plank Sanjay Raut Mumbai Firing a fresh salvo at the BJP which had accused the Shiv Sena of paying only lip service to the cause of Hindutva party MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday claimed that the Sena was the first party in the country to contest an election on the Hindutva plank LEGAL LGD2 SC-FREEBIES SC issues notices to Centre election panel on PIL against poll freebies New Delhi The Supreme Court on Tuesday sought responses from the Centre and the Election Commission on a PIL seeking a direction to seize the election symbol or de-register a political party that promises or distributes irrational freebies from public funds before elections BUSINESS DEL15 BIZ-PANAGARIYA-ECONOMY Indian economy has recovered handsomely from pandemic-induced disruptions Panagariya New Delhi The Indian economy has recovered handsomely from the pandemic-induced disruptions former Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya said on Tuesday while expressing hope that the recovery will be sustained and the growth rate of 7 to 8 per cent will be restored DCM9 BIZ-JOBS-TOURISM-REPORT Job postings in Travel Tourism sector sees 4 pc rise in Dec Report Mumbai The travel and tourism industry one of the hardest hit by the pandemic in the country is on the path of recovery and registered a 4 per cent year-on-year growth in job postings during December 2021 according to a report FOREIGN FGN9 UN-INDIA-TERRORISM UN yet to agree on common definition of terrorism craft coherent policy India United Nations UN member states have failed themselves by continuing to procrastinate on concluding a comprehensive convention against international terrorism India has said voicing concern that the global body has neither agreed on a common definition of terrorism nor crafted a well-coordinated policy to tackle the global scourge and dismantle its enabling networks FGN13 US-USIBC-LD TODD Todd Skinner of TransUnion credit reporting agency appointed to USIBC global board Washington American consumer credit reporting agency TransUnions international business president Todd Skinner has been appointed to the global board of business advocacy group US-India Business Council according to a statement PTI ANB ANB

New Delhi Oct 26 PTI The Congress on Tuesday said it will undertake a massive nationwide membership drive from November 1 and will also fight an ideological battle against the subjugation of democracy through training programmes The party made the assertions after a special meeting of general secretaries in-charges and Pradesh Congress presidents which was presided over by party president Sonia Gandhi Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi was also present at the meeting and participated in the deliberations Addressing a press conference after the meeting Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said it has been resolved by the party to undertake a massive membership drive from November 1 2021 till March 31 2022 He said that it was unanimously agreed that the Congress would reach out to every nook and corner every ward and village across the country and offer Indians in the remotest parts a platform for their aspirations Special emphasis was laid on enrolling first time voters as members of the Indian National Congress he said Surjewala said that the party will also undertake an ideological training programme to counter the systematic attack unleashed by the BJPRSS not only on the Congress ideology but on the core fundamentals of justice equality and affirmative action enshrined in the Constitution The meeting expressed concern over the systematic subjugation of democracy by unconstitutional means and virtually holding every institution captive to the whims and caprices of the ruling elite Surjewala said He said the party has decided to fight an ideological battle against the subjugation of democracy through training programmes The Congress will hold a massive agitation on inflation called Jan Jagran Abhiyan from November 14-29 Surjewala said adding that this will be the first phase and an announcement about the next phase will be made later PTI SKCASK ANB ANB

New Delhi Oct 24 PTI The Supreme Court has agreed to examine an appeal filed by an insurance firm challenging an order of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission NCDRC that directed it to pay Rs 1348 lakh to a woman whose husband died by suicideReliance Life Insurance Company Limited had refused the claim relying on the exclusion clause of the policyStaying the NCDRC order a bench of justices D Y Chandrachud and B V Nagarathna issued a notice to the woman on the appeal filed by a branch manager of the insurance firmIssue notice returnable in eight weeks Pending further orders there shall be a stay of the operation of the impugned judgment and order of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission the bench said in its October 20 orderThe counsel for the insurance company submitted before the bench that in view of the specific exclusion in Clause 9 and Clause 12 -- general conditions -- of the insurance policy suicide by an insured having taken place within 12 months from the date of the reinstatement of the policy has no amount as payableHe said the policy was issued on September 28 2012 and lapsed on 28 September 2013 due to the failure to pay the renewal premiumThe insurance policy was reinstated on February 25 2014 and the death due to suicide took place on June 30 2014 that is within 12 months of reinstatement of the policy the lawyer saidThe womans husband was the holder of the insurance policy and had paid a premium of Rs 1 lakh which was issued to him on September 28 2012 according to the case In June 2014 the man jumped into the Indravati River in Chitrakoot and died When the insurance company refused to pay the insurance amount she approached the district forum which directed the company to pay Rs 1348 lakh to herThe insurance firm approached the NCDRC which dismissed its plea and imposed a cost of Rs 15 lakh on itThe NCDRC said that in its appeal the insurance firm was unable to prove from evidence on record that the case of the insured was covered under exclusion clause yet challenged the findings in this revision petition without having any valid ground of challenge Every conduct of the petitioner reflects on their callous attitude towards their customers The facts on record show that the petitioner had collected all the relevant documents from the complainant and got the relevant forms for the claim filled in proceedings before ombudsman courtBefore that vourt the Petitioner gave assurance that they would soon decide the claim of the claimant the NCDRC had saidSuch conduct of the service providers needs to be dealt with in such a manner that it serves as a deterrent to other service providers and they deter doing it it had said The facts and circumstances of this case calls for imposing exemplary cost on the petitioners the NCDRC had said PTI PKS ANB ANB

New Delhi Oct 18 PTI Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday attacked the Yogi Adityanath government over the death of a lawyer who died of a gunshot wound to the head at the Shahjahanpur district court and said the incident was another chilling reminder that no one is safe in todays Uttar Pradesh The lawyer died on Monday afternoon and police are trying to ascertain if it is a case of suicide or murder The legal and judicial fraternity is an integral pillar of our democracy The brutal murder of an advocate in broad daylight in court premises in Shahjahanpur is another chilling reminder that no one is safe in todays Uttar Pradesh - not women not farmers and now not advocates Priyanka Gandhi tweeted In a Facebook post in Hindi she attacked Adityanath saying the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh used to claim that goons and miscreants have fled the state and here they are entering a court and killing a lawyer The Shahjahanpur incident once again established that no common man is safe under the BJP rule and the government is busy propagating lies instead of improving law and order the Congress general secretary said Superintendent of Police SP S Anand said advocate Bhupendra Singh 38 of Jalalabad tehsil had gone to the third-floor office of ACJM-I of the district court to meet a clerk in connection with some case when a gunshot was heard and he was found dead Quoting the clerk Singh had gone to meet the SP said an illegal 315 bore pistol was also found lying near the body Since no one else was present at the spot it is not immediately known if it was a murder or suicide the SP said adding that the matter is being probed Advocates in the district meanwhile launched an indefinite strike demanding the killers immediate arrest PTI ASK ANB ANB

New Delhi Sep 18 PTI The Supreme Court has quashed criminal proceedings against a man accused of forcible conversion noting that the person who was stated to have been forced to convert to Christianity has denied the allegation A bench comprising justices U U Lalit S Ravindra Bhat and C T Ravikumar set aside the order passed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court which refused to grant any relief to the accused George Mangalapilly Apart from the testimony of the witness there is nothing else on record which could potentially be relied upon against the accused the apex court noted In the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case and especially when the entire fulcrum of the prosecution rests upon the version of the man who was stated to be forcibly converted in our view the testimony of said person assumes great significance the bench said According to his own version neither was he forcibly converted nor had the appellant contacted him at any juncture it observed In view of these peculiar circumstances in our view the appellant is entitled to the relief prayed for We therefore allow this appeal set aside the order passed by the High Court and quash the proceedings against the appellant in respect of offence punishable under Section 3 and 4 of the MP Freedom of Religion Act 1968 Act the bench said The accused was booked under offences punishable under Sections 153B1 assertion prejudicial to national integration and 295A deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs of the Indian Penal Code and sections 3 and 4 of the MP Freedom of Religion Act 1968 According to the prosecution the accused had converted Dharmendar Dohar to Christianity in violation of Section 3 of the Act and thereby committed the aforesaid offences In the trial Dohar in his examination-in chief denied that he was converted by the accused He stated that his signatures were obtained on a piece of paper by certain persons on the basis of which the prosecution was launched against the accused PTI PKS ANB ANB

New Delhi Aug 25 PTI Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday claimed that Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has dismissed the need to form a panel to probe oxygen shortage-related deaths in the national capital as the Supreme Court-appointed task force is there to look into the matter He also said that the Centre was running away from investigation because the public will clearly see their negligence and fraud if the deaths are investigated Sisodia had written a letter to Mandaviya reiterating that an investigation committee would be necessary to correctly present the number of deaths due to oxygen shortage In the letter received from the Union health minister on Wednesday he has claimed that a National Task Force was set up on May 6 after the directives of the Supreme Court Sisodia said in an online briefing The National Task Force has 12 pertinent Terms of Reference out of which five are for oxygen and due to this reason setting up an investigation committee by the Delhi government is not required he said quoting the letter from the Union minister The Union health minister claims that the mandate given by the Supreme Court for the National Task Force is related to deaths occurring due to lack of oxygen but the 12-point agenda as directed by the top court for the task force is related to supply of oxygen to hospitals and recommendations and management for the future Sisodia said When it has not been mentioned anywhere in the mandate of the task force to investigate the deaths occurred due to oxygen shortage the Union health minister is claiming that there is no need to set up an investigation committee to assess deaths due to oxygen shortage he said This is a huge fraud by the central government The second reason given by the Union health minister is that since the Supreme Court in this order has directed that a sub-group be made for Delhi under the task force and that an interim report has already been released hence forming an investigation committee is not important the deputy chief minister said Under the National Task Force of the Supreme Court it is mentioned that the purpose of conducting audits is to ensure a measure of accountability for the proper distribution of oxygen supplies made available by the Centre for states and Union Territories he said I want to ask the Union minister that if the Supreme Court only had to investigate the deaths that occurred due to oxygen shortage then why did the central government in the first place ask states to declare the number of deaths What sort of drama is the central government doingSisodia asked The reason behind so many deaths is the gross mismanagement of oxygen by the Centre he alleged The reason behind such gross mismanagement is Prime Minister Narendra Modis irresponsibility and his attention towards West Bengal elections not our nations people the deputy chief minister said PTI SLBGJS ANB ANB