Morning Digest | Left leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake is Sri Lanka’s President; PM Modi celebrates his return to power at U.S. diaspora event, and more

Here is a select list of stories to start the day

Left leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake is Sri Lanka’s President

Leftist leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake emerged winner in Sri Lanka’s presidential race, obtaining a mandate that signals a clean break from the island nation’s political establishment and ushers in unprecedented change. Mr. Dissanayake was officially declared President-elect by the Election Commission of Sri Lanka after it completed a second count of votes to add preference votes, an exercise undertaken for the first time in the country’s election history.

Modi celebrates his return to power at U.S. diaspora event

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he has set very ambitious goals in his third term to make the country a developed nation and asserted that India today is a land of opportunities. “After going through this tough election process, this long election system, something unprecedented happened in India (this year). What happened… “Abkibaar Modi Sarkaar,” Mr. Modi said in his address to thousands of Indian Americans in New York.

PM Modi attends tech CEOs roundtable in New York

Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in a roundtable with the CEOs of leading American companies, including Google CEO Sundar Pichai, to enhance cooperation between India and the US in cutting-edge technologies such as AI, quantum computing and semiconductors.

Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh push Pak. to centre stage of BJP’s poll campaign in J&K

Pushing Pakistan to the centre stage of the BJP’s campaign in Kashmir, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Union Home Minister Amit Shah railed against the neighbouring country and used it to attack the National Conference (NC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Congress ahead of the second phase of elections in Jammu and Kashmir. 

NSA Ajit Doval stayed back from PM Modi’s U.S. visit for J&K election, say officials 

National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval stayed back in India to deal with the security situation arising from the ongoing Jammu and Kashmir election and other “domestic issues”, officials said. The officials dismissed speculation that Mr. Doval dropped out of the visit due to a summons issued by a New York court, even as the Khalistan issue and allegations from Sikh groups against the government appeared to loom over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s three-day U.S. visit.

U.P., Rajasthan, M.P. top in cases of atrocities on Dalits: report

Nearly 97.7% of all cases of atrocities against Scheduled Castes in 2022 were reported from 13 States, with Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh recording the highest number of such crimes, according to a new government report. According to the latest government report under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the majority of atrocities against Scheduled Tribes (STs) were also concentrated in 13 states, which reported 98.91% of all cases in 2022.

Parliament panel on Waqf Bill receives over 1.2 crore responses

A parliamentary panel examining the Waqf (Amendment) Bill has received a staggering 1.2 crore email responses amid campaigns launched by rival groups to ratchet up support for their respective viewpoints regarding the draft law.

Nitish Kumar wants Vande Bharat between Ayodhya and Sitamarhi, writes to PM Modi

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting him to start a Vande Bharat between Ayodhya and Sitamarhi for the benefit of pilgrims. Mr. Kumar urged the Prime Minister to direct the Ministry concerned to complete the Ram-Janaki Marg from Ayodhya to Sitamarhi district soon so that devotees can travel from Ayodhya to Punaura Dham, believed to be the birthplace of Sita. He also requested the Prime Minister to direct the Ministry of Railways to operate a Vande Bharat train between Ayodhya and Sitamarhi.

Joe Biden hails PM Modi’s Ukraine trip, lauds India’s global role

U.S. President Joe Biden has conveyed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the U.S. supports initiatives to reform global institutions to reflect India’s important voice, including permanent membership in the U.N. Security Council, said a joint factsheet on the wide-ranging talks the two leaders had

India reaches out to Bangladesh opposition BNP, envoy meets party leader

In a significant act of political outreach, the High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh, Pranay Verma, and his colleagues met Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, general secretary of the principal Opposition, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) in Dhaka. This is the first meeting between the BNP leadership and the Indian diplomats stationed in Bangladesh after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government on August 5, 2024.

India probing Netflix for visa violations, racial discrimination, email shows

India is investigating the business practices of U.S. streaming giant Netflix’s local operations, including allegations of visa violations and racial discrimination, according to a government email sent to a former executive. The details of India’s investigation were included in a July 20 email, reviewed by Reuters, which was written by a Union Home Ministry official to Netflix’s former director of business and legal affairs for India, Nandini Mehta, who left the company in 2020.

Israeli Army says Al Jazeera TV office in West Bank ‘used to incite terror’

Armed and masked Israeli forces raided the office of global news channel Al Jazeera in the occupied West Bank on and issued a 45-day closure order. It was the latest salvo in a long-running feud between the Arab broadcaster and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which has worsened during the war in Gaza. Since the war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas Palestinian militants attacked Israel, Al Jazeera has aired continuous on-the-ground reporting on the effects of Israel’s military campaign.

Chess Olympiad 2024: Indian teams make history, bag gold in both categories

India recorded one of the greatest moments in its sporting history in Budapest, winning the gold medals both in the Open and women’s sections of the 45th Chess Olympiad. The Indian men had been so dominant in the competition that they were almost assured of the gold with a round to spare.

Published - September 23, 2024 06:40 am IST