News Dabba for 12 July 2024: Five stories for a balanced news diet

Indie Journal brings you the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites. Here's a glance through some of the National and International news updates, from Supreme Court's relief to Kejriwal, Maharashtra MLC polls voting, to Nepal landslide.

NDTV on Supreme Court relief for Kejriwal in Delhi liquor policy case

NDTV reports that the Supreme Court has granted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal bail in a money-laundering case by the Enforcement Directorate linked to the Delhi liquor policy. But Kejriwal will remain in jail as he is currently being questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a separate case. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta delivered the judgment. The report mentions that Kejriwal has suffered incarceration for over 90 days. Read the full report here.

Indian Express Live on Maharashtra MLC polls voting

Amid fears of cross-voting during the ongoing biennial Maharashtra Legislative Council elections, Maharashtra Chief Minister Ekanth Shinde exuded confidence in the ruling coalition, The Indian Express reports. As per the report, he said, “All independent MLAs from our side have voted as they were told. We are confident of winning all nine seats of Mahayuti.” The elections to the vacant seats is likely to spring surprise amid fears of cross-voting and with both Maha Vikas Agadi and Mahayuti leaders meeting their MLAs yesterday. The report adds that the Congress on Friday denied speculation that nine of its MLAs would cross-vote in favour of the BJP-led Mahayuti candidates. Read the full report here.

China hits back at Nato over Russia accusations, BBC reports

China's foreign minister Wang Yi has hit back at Nato's "groundless accusations" that Beijing is helping Russia in its war on Ukraine. As per the BBC report, he has also warned the Western alliance against stirring up confrontation. Wang's comments, made in a call with his Dutch counterpart, came hours after leaders of Nato member states gathered in Washington DC and issued a declaration that mentioned the war. They accused China of being a "decisive enabler" of Russia through its "large-scale support for Russia's defence industrial base", in some of their harshest remarks yet about Beijing, the report adds. Read the full report here.

NGT issues notices to Centre, three State Govts over loss of millions of farmland trees: The Wire

The National Green Tribunal – India’s apex green court – has taken suo motu cognisance of the loss of nearly 6 million trees across India’s farmland tracts, The Wire reports, citing that this is a violation of two important environmental legislations in the country – the Environment Protection Act, 1986 and the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980. The NGT took up the issue based on a news report on the study, which noted that this loss occurred in just a span of around three years. The report says that there were also ‘hotspots’ of farmland tree loss: huge hotspots across the states of Maharashtra and Telangana and smaller ones such as in Indore in Madhya Pradesh. The NGT on July 4 therefore issued notices to the union environment ministry, and the forest departments of the states of Maharashtra, Telangana and Madhya Pradesh. Read the full report here.

More than 60 people missing after two buses swept into river in Nepal

Two buses carrying more than 60 people were swept by a landslide into a rain-swollen river in Nepal, with three survivors rescued after swimming to safety, Al Jazeera reports. The vehicles, carrying at least 65 people between them, were swept off the Narayanghat-Mugling highway near Simaltar, about 120km west of the capital, Kathmandu, early on Friday. Authorities mobilised the military and police to search for the missing passengers, the report adds, but the continuous rain was making rescue efforts difficult with landslides blocking the route leading to the area in several places. Read the full report here.