
RJD MP Pappu Yadav gets life in jail
A CBI court on Thursday sentenced controversial RJD MP from Bihar Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav and two others to life imprisonment after it found them guilty in the 1998 murder of a rival politician, CPM legislator Ajit Sarkar.
The 40-year-old Yadav, who was brought to Patna from the high-security Tihar Jail on Thursday morning, broke down after special CBI judge Birendra Mohan Srivastava pronounced the sentence.
“I have been advised to undergo surgery at AIIMS for obesity. I have been in prison for more than seven years and have not met my family members,” the Madhepura MP, who was produced in the court in a wheelchair, told the judge. “I have been passing through severe mental and physical torture in jail and even had to spend time in a mental asylum. Please show leniency.” The judge told him that he had the option of appealing to a superior court.
Yadav’s counsel Rajesh Ranjan later told reporters that they would challenge the verdict in the Patna High Court.
The two others found guilty in the case were former Independent MLA Rajan Tiwari and Anil Yadav. Sarkar, a firebrand leader who had opposed Yadav over issues relating to farm labourers, was gunned down along with his driver and a party worker in Purnea on June 14, 1998.

Toolkit case: Shantanu Muluk’s bail plea hearing today

CBI names TMC youth leader in charge-sheet of cattle smuggling case
- Earlier this month, CBI in the first charge-sheet in the case had named BSF Commandant Satish Kumar and Murshidabad-based businessman Enamul Haque along with five others for their alleged involvement in cattle smuggling across the India-Bangladesh border.

Top court proposes cadre of magistrates to fill gaps in police investigation
- The bench, also comprising Justices L Nageswara Rao and S Ravindra Bhat apart from Chief Justice of India (CJI) SA Bobde were of the view that magistrates should play a more “intrusive” role in investigation.

College student in Andhra Pradesh killed for rejecting marriage proposal
- Police said the accused and the victim were in a relationship for a year, but of late she had been avoiding him.

Higher fares for short distance trains to discourage needless travel: Railways
- The national carrier at present is operating only special passenger trains since the curbs on lockdown were eased. Regular passenger trains have been suspended since March 25, 2020.

New strains not more infectious, need to aggressively monitor situation: Guleria

2 security personnel killed in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur in Maoist attacks
- Both the casualties took place due to IED blasts.

Govt clarifies on controversy over Motera stadium being named after PM

India plans new social media controls after Twitter face-off

Differences in Meghalaya BJP intensifies, coalition govt comes under strain
- The BJP unit has also been at loggerheads with the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) dispensation with its chief Earnest Mawrie accusing it of anomalies in governance.

UP cops hunt for clues into case of college girl found with burn injuries
- Shahjahanpur’s superintendent of police S Anand, SP, denied reports that the girl was burnt after a failed rape attempt

Expert team widens mouth of lake formed upstream Rishiganga for faster drainage
- An expert team is trying to drain out the lake to prevent another tragedy like the Chamoli flash flood.

Amid Covid-19 fears, thousands throng Telangana’s Sammakka-Saralamma festival
- The tribal fair draws devotees not only from Telangana, but also from other states like Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.

West Bengal makes RT-PCR tests mandatory for arrivals from Maha, 3 other states
- The notice released by the state government stated “All passengers coming to West Bengal from the aforementioned 4 states shall mandatorily carry a covid negative RT-PCR report for such test conducted within 72 hours of flight departure.”

2 terrorists killed in encounter in Jammu and Kashmir’ Anantnag
- The police said they were ascertaining the identities and affiliation of the two terrorists.