Afternoon briefing: Kharge’s attack on Manipur violence, Union MoS’s relief in defamation case, and all the latest news
A selection of the most important headlines, recommended stories, and a special collection of news items to read.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge chastised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP government for the state of Manipur, which he described as a “battlefield.” Manipur’s people have been suffering for 147 days without a visit from Prime Minister Modi, according to Kharge. He was shocked to see images of students being targeted in the violence, implying that violence against women and children was being used as a weapon in the conflict. Kharge blamed the saffron party for the violence and called Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh “incompetent,” urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to remove him as a first step toward calming the situation. Following the disappearance and subsequent killing of two Meitei students, tensions in Manipur erupted.
The Supreme Court has stayed criminal defamation proceedings against Union Minister of State L Murugan, which were brought by the DMK-affiliated Murasoli Trust in response to comments he made about land in the trust’s possession in Chennai. The court also served a notice on the Murasoli Trust and scheduled a hearing in six weeks. Murugan’s lawyer contended that the defamation proceedings were unconstitutional and politically motivated. The Union Minister claimed that he had the right under Article 19 (freedom of expression) to express his honest opinion, and that his remarks were made during a press conference. Former MP and DMK leader RS Bharathi initially filed the defamation case in 2021 in response to Murugan’s reported disparaging remarks about the trust.
