Morning Digest: Special counsel moves to dismiss election interference case against Trump; President Droupadi Murmu to address special session of Parliament to mark 75 years of Constitution, and more

Here is a select list of stories to start the day.

Special counsel moves to dismiss election interference case against President-elect Donald Trump

Special counsel Jack Smith asked a Federal Judge to dismiss the case accusing President-elect Donald Trump of plotting to overturn the 2020 election, citing longstanding Justice Department policy shielding presidents from prosecution while in office. Justice Department prosecutors, citing longstanding department guidance that a sitting President cannot be prosecuted, said the department’s position is that “the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated”.

President Droupadi Murmu to address special session of Parliament to mark 75 years of Constitution

President Droupadi Murmu will address a special session of Parliament at the Central Hall of the old Parliament building to mark 75 years of the Constitution. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will attend the celebrations.

CAQM directs schools in Delhi-NCR to adopt hybrid mode for classes up to 12th standard

Hours after the Supreme Court called for a review of the restrictions on physical classes due to air pollution, the Centre’s air quality panel directed schools and colleges in Delhi-NCR to shift classes up to the 12th standard to a “hybrid” mode. In a statement, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) noted that most primary schools in Delhi and other National Capital Region (NCR) areas lack the resources to conduct classes entirely online.

Government announces ₹1,435 crore PAN 2.0 Project

The government announced the ₹1,435 crore PAN 2.0 Project to make the permanent account number a ‘common business identifier’ for all digital systems of government agencies. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval for the PAN 2.0 Project of the Income Tax Department with a financial outlay of ₹1,435 crore, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.

₹6,000 crore scheme to help government institution students access journals launched

The Union Cabinet cleared the ‘One Nation One Subscription’ scheme, a new Central-sponsored initiative for providing countrywide access to scholarly research articles and journal publications. The scheme, the Union Cabinet said, will be administered through a simple, user-friendly and fully digital process. Government higher education institutions and research and development laboratories of the Union government will get the benefit of the scheme, which has an allocation of ₹6,000 crore for three years, from 2025-27.

Situation tense outside Udaipur palace after Vishvaraj Singh denied entry over royal family feud

BJP MLA Vishvaraj Singh and his supporters were denied entry into City Palace, Udaipur, hours after he was anointed the titular head of the erstwhile royal family of Mewar. The situation outside the palace was tense with a heavy deployment of police to prevent any untoward incident. Stones were reportedly pelted from inside the palace. However, a cloud of a feud between Mahendra Singh Mewar and his estranged younger brother Arvind Singh Mewar — who are descendants of Rajput king Maharana Pratap — hung over the occasion.

ICSE, ISC exams to be held from February to April next year

The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) has announced that the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) Class 10 exams will be held from February 18 to March 27, 2025, and the Indian School Certificate Class 12 exams will be held from February 13 to April 5 next year. As many as 2,53,384 candidates (1,35,268 boys and 1,18,116 girls) have registered for the Class 10 exams across 2,803 schools in India, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and U.A.E.

Israel to decide on ceasefire as U.S. says deal ‘close’

Israel’s security cabinet was preparing to decide whether to accept a proposed ceasefire in its war with Hezbollah, an official said, as the White House announced it believed a deal to end the fighting in Lebanon was “close”. U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby expressed optimism over the prospects for a truce but said talks were ongoing. “We believe we’ve reached this point where we’re close,” Mr. Kirby told reporters, adding “we’re not there yet”.

U.K. sees ‘generational mission’ in Indo-Pacific, not short-term shift: U.K. Minister Catherine West

More than four months after the U.K.’s Labour government came to power, it has declared that the U.K.’s engagement in the Indo-Pacific is long-term. The U.K.’s Indo-Pacific Minister Catherine West outlined the position of the U.K. government at the second Indo-Pacific Conference organized by the High Commissions of India, Australia and Singapore in London, in collaboration with the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Protests break out after ISKCON leader’s arrest at Dhaka airport

Protests broke out at the Bangladesh capital Dhaka hours after the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) announced that Chinmoy Krishna Das, leader of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in Bangladesh, had been arrested. The protesters had come to the Shahbag neighbourhood of the city, demanding the release of Mr. Das, the leader of ISKCON in Bangladesh.

After climate talks, countries gather for COP to end plastic

The exhaust from the planes that ferried Ministerial delegates to Baku for the climate conference, which concluded, has barely settled. Yet some of them found themselves on the red-eye to this coastal city to lay the foundations of a new United Nations-mediated treaty to end plastic pollution – and potentially the production of plastic. On December 1, representatives from 175 countries would hope that this fifth and anticipated final round of discussions of the Intergovernmental Negotiations Committee (INC), following those in Punte Del Este (Uruguay), Paris (France), Nairobi (Kenya) and Ottawa (Canada), will result in an agreement.

Zomato shares climb nearly 4% on BSE Sensex inclusion; JSW Steel down by 2%

Shares of online food delivery firm Zomato climbed nearly 4% following news that it will become a part of the BSE benchmark Sensex from December 23. The stock jumped 3.58% to settle at ₹273.60 on the BSE. During the day, it soared 7.62% to ₹284.30. Zomato will become a part of the benchmark BSE Sensex, replacing JSW Steel on December 23.

IPL Auction 2025: Pace is the ace on final day of the auction

The pacers’ pack earned the big bucks on the second and final day of the Indian Premier League (IPL) player auction as the franchises struggled to shape up their squads for the 2025 edition. Of the 110 players who were sold on Monday for a combined total of ₹175.20 crore at the Al Johar Abadi Arena, one-fourth of the money was splurged on seven pacers who were called in the fourth set.

U.S. goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher retiring from national team

U.S. women’s national team goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher is retiring from international soccer, the sport’s national governing body said on Monday, months after she helped capture Olympic gold. The steely-nerved 36-year-old is widely considered among the greatest goalkeepers after she recorded 12 clean sheets and allowed only a dozen goals in 22 starts at the World Cup and Olympics.

Published - November 26, 2024 06:47 am IST