News Dabba for 23 September 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 big order on child porn, Atishi taking charge as Delhi CM, to Anura Kumara Dissanayake swearing-in as Sri Lanka President.

Indian Express: Atishi takes charge as CM, leaves empty chair for Kejriwal

Aam Aadmi Party leader (AAP) Atishi took charge as Delhi’s eighth Chief Minister, Indian Express reports, becoming the youngest leader to do so. While assuming her post, she said that she will work as a caretaker CM, like “Bharat did for Ram in Ramayana”. As per the report, pointing towards an empty chair placed beside her, she added: “this is the Chief Minister’s seat and it will remain empty till Kejriwal becomes CM again.” The BJP decried the move, asking Kejriwal if he will “run the government with a remote control”. Read the full report here.

NDTV on the big Supreme Court order on child porn

Downloading and watching child pornography is an offence under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the Supreme Court ruled today in a landmark judgment on the stringent law to prevent child abuse. NDTV reports that the bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justice JB Pardiwala set aside the Madras High Court order that had ruled that merely downloading and watching child pornography was not an offence under the POCSO Act. The report says that the Supreme Court noted that the high court had committed an "egregious error" in passing the judgment. Read the full report here.

Sri Lanka swears in new left-leaning president, BBC reports

Sri Lanka's new president Anura Kumara Dissanayake has been sworn into office, promising "clean" politics as the country recovers from its worst economic crisis, BBC reports. The left-leaning Dissanayake has cast himself as a disruptor of the status quo and analysts see his victory as a rejection of corruption and cronyism that has long plagued the country. The report mentions that Saturday's election was the first since 2022, when discontent over the economy fuelled mass protests and chased former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa from power.  "We need to establish a new clean political culture," he said. Read the full report here.

Laapataa Ladies picked as India's entry for Oscars: Hindustan Times

Kiran Rao's Laapataa Ladies has been picked as India's official entry for Oscars 2025, Hindustan Times reports as per the announcement by the Film Federation of India on Monday. The Hindi film, a light-hearted satire on patriarchy, was chosen from a list of 29 films. The 13-member select committee headed by Assamese director Jahnu Barua unanimously decided on Laapataa Ladies, produced by Aamir Khan and Rao, for reckoning in the best international film category at the Academy Awards, the report adds. Read the full report here.

World leaders urge Israel and Hezbollah to step back from the abyss, The Straits Times

Israel and Hezbollah on Sunday threatened to escalate their cross-border attacks, The Straits Times reports, despite a chorus of international calls for both sides to step back from the brink of all-out war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after intense rocket fire from Lebanon that Israel has dealt “a series of blows on Hezbollah that it could have never imagined”. The report adds that a defiant Hezbollah deputy chief Naim Qassem said the group was in a “new phase” in its battle against Israel. Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said military actions “will continue until we reach a point where we may ensure the safe return of Israel’s northern communities to their homes”. Read the full report here.