HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top stories at 1700 hours:

NATION:

LGD19 SC-LD NIRBHAYA Nirbhaya case: SC dismisses curative petitions filed by two of four death row convicts

New Delhi: The Supreme Court Tuesday dismissed the curative petitions filed by two of the four death row convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case.

DEL38 BIZ-STOCKS-CLOSE Sensex, Nifty scale fresh lifetime peaks for 2nd straight session

Mumbai: Market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty scaled fresh record levels on Tuesday, led by gains in index-heavyweights HDFC, ITC, Axis Bank and TCS.

DEL20 JK-LD AVALANCHE Eight killed in two avalanches in Kashmir

Srinagar: Three Army soldiers and five civilians were killed in two separate avalanches in Jammu and Kashmir, police and defence sources said on Tuesday.

DEL19 RBI-DY GOV Michael Debabrata Patra is new RBI deputy governor

New Delhi: Michael Debabrata Patra has been appointed deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), according to a Personnel Ministry order.

LGD22 DL-HC-LD JNU JNU violence: Delhi HC asks WhatsApp, Google to provide information sought by police

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court asked WhatsApp and Google on Tuesday to preserve and provide information, as per their internal policies, to the police in relation to the recent violence at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

DEL41 JK-DYSP-POLICE Reports claiming Davinder Singh was awarded gallantry medal not true: J-K Police

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Tuesday said reports claiming that suspended officer Davinder Singh, who was arrested along with two Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists, was awarded a gallantry medal by the Union Home Ministry are not true.

DEL40 GOVT-POLICE-ROAD Police initiates process to clear blocked Kalindi Kunj-Shaheen Bagh stretch

New Delhi: Police has initiated the process of clearing the Kalindi Kunj-Shaheen Bagh stretch in Delhi, which was blocked for a month by people protesting against the amended citizenship law, officials said on Tuesday.

DEL32 AVI-INDIGO-PILOT Passenger tweets about jail threat by IndiGo pilot; aviation minister says he is 'off-rostered'

New Delhi: A woman passenger has claimed that she was threatened by an IndiGo pilot with jail after she asked for a wheelchair for her mother at Bengaluru, with Union Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri saying the airline has "off-rostered" the pilot.

MDS6 TN-DMK CONG TIES Skipped Cong meet since Stalin was accused; time will tell about ties getting normal: DMK

Chennai: The DMK on Tuesday said it skipped a meeting of opposition parties convened by Congress on CAA, NRC and NPR since its party chief M K Stalin was accused of violating coalition dharma over local body polls.

MDS3 KL-SABARIMALA-MAKARAVILAKKU Sabarimala all set for Makaravilakku; Heavy security at Ayyappa shrine

Sabarimala: The famous Lord Ayyappa temple here and its premises have been brought under a heavy security blank as arrangements are in full swing at the hill shrine for the auspicious Makaravilakku on Wednesday, the finale of the over two-month-long annual pilgrim season.

BOM11 GJ-CAA-KITES Pro and anti CAA kites dot Guj skies on Makar Sankranti day

Ahmedabad: While pro and anti CAA camps continue to hold their respective grounds, the ideological battle between the two groups was fought in the sky literally with kites on Tuesday in Gujarat on the occasion of Makar Sankranti.

BUSINESS:

DEL34 BIZ-GOLD-PRICE Gold falls Rs 61 on weak global prices, absence of demand

New Delhi: Gold on Tuesday fell Rs 61 to Rs 40,422 per 10 gram in the national capital on weak global prices and absence of demand, according to HDFC Securities.

DEL42 BIZ-LD INFLATION WPI Wholesale inflation rises to 2.59 pc in Dec on costlier veggies

New Delhi: Wholesale prices based inflation surged to an eight-month high of 2.59 per cent in December, as against 0.58 per cent in November due to sharp rise in prices of food articles like onion and potato.

LEGAL:

LGD21 DL-HC-CAA-PROTEST-LD TRAFFIC Delhi HC directs police to look into traffic restrictions on Kalindi Kunj-Shaheen Bagh stretch

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Tuesday directed the police to look into traffic restrictions on Kalindi Kunj-Shaheen Bagh stretch, which has been closed for a month due to protests against the amended Citizenship Act, while keeping in mind the larger public interest.

FOREIGN:

FGN21 UK-INDIAN-MP Indian-origin MP calls on Labour Party to be brave and elect her as leader

London: An Indian-origin woman MP who comfortably progressed to the second round of the Labour Party's leadership race this week has called on the Opposition party to be "brave" and elect her.

FGN22 PAK-SHARIF Ex-Pak PM Sharif's UK restaurant pic goes viral; Opposition raises questions over his illness

Islamabad: A fresh picture of ailing former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif at a London restaurant along with some family members has gone viral on social media, leading the Opposition to cast aspersions over the "serious nature" of his health.

SPORTS:

SPF12 SPO-2NDLD SANIA Sania makes winning return to WTA circuit, enters women's doubles QFs of Hobart International

Hobart: Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza made a winning return to the WTA circuit by advancing to the women's doubles quarterfinals of the Hobart International Tournament with Ukrainian partner Nadia Kichenok, here on Tuesday.