Highlights

Following are the top stories at 9.40 pm: NATION DEL73 LDALL PEGASUS Pegasus row: Mamata announces inquiry commission, WB 1st state to order probe; snooping scandal rocks Parliament for 5th day Kolkata/New Delhi: West Bengal on Monday set up a Commission of Inquiry to probe allegations of snooping on politicians, officials and journalists in the first move by a state seen as an attempt by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to put pressure on the Centre over the Pegasus phone-hacking scandal which rocked Parliament for the fifth day.

DEL55 INDOAFGHAN-VISIT Afghan Army Chief cancels visit to India this week due to Taliban offensive New Delhi: A planned visit by Afghan Army Chief Gen Wali Mohammad Ahmadzai to India this week has been cancelled amid increased Taliban offensive in Afghanistan, according to senior Afghan officials on Monday.

DEL79 2NDLD AS-MZ-BORDER TENSION Assam-Mizoram border row: Six Assam Police personnel killed, 50 injured in clashes; Shah speaks to CMs Guwahati/Aizawl: At least six Assam police personnel were killed and 50 others, including an SP, were injured in a sudden escalation of the border dispute between Assam and Mizoram that also saw the two chief ministers engaging in a public spat as they blamed each other's police for the violence and sought the Centre's intervention.

MDS18 KA-LD ALL YEDIYURAPPA Yediyurappa resigns as CM, suspense continues on his successor Bengaluru: Ending months of speculation over his exit, B S Yediyurappa on Monday stepped down as the Chief Minister of Karnataka, coinciding with his government completing two years in office, even as suspense continues on his successor.

DEL18 VIRUS-LD CASES COVID-19: India adds 39,361 fresh cases New Delhi: With 39,361 people testing positive for coronavirus infection in a day, India's total tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 3,14,11,262, while the daily positivity was recorded above three per cent after 35 days, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Monday. DEL71 LD WEATHER Death toll rises to 164 in rain battered Maharashtra; parts of north India receive heavy rainfall New Delhi: The death toll in rain-related incidents in Maharashtra rose to 164 on Monday after the recovery of 11 more bodies, while some places in north India received heavy showers which inundated low-lying areas.

DEL49 LD KARGIL India pays tributes to Kargil War bravehearts Drass (Kargil)/New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday led the nation in paying glowing tributes to the martyrs of 1999 Kargil War saying they have scripted ''exceptional stories'' of indomitable courage, bravery and sacrifice.

PAR31 PAR-FM 3RDLD PULSES Govt scraps basic customs duty on masur dal to bring down retail prices New Delhi: The government on Monday reduced the basic customs duty on imports of masur dal to zero and halved the agriculture infrastructure development cess on the lentil to 10 per cent, with an aim to augment domestic supplies as well as provide ''relief to consumers'' from high prices.

DEL62 INDOUS-BLINKEN-VISIT US Secretary of State Blinken arrives in India on Tuesday; extensive agenda for talks New Delhi: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will arrive in India on a two-day visit on Tuesday with an extensive agenda featuring the rapidly evolving security situation in Afghanistan, boosting Indo-Pacific engagement and ways to enhance COVID-19 response efforts among others.

LEGAL LGD1 SC-ISRO SPY ISRO case: Panel report can’t be basis for prosecution, CBI to probe & proceed as per law, says SC New Delhi: The Supreme Court Monday said the report filed by a committee headed by its former judge Justice (retd) D K Jain regarding role of erring police officials in the 1994 espionage case relating to ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan cannot be the basis for prosecution and the CBI has to probe and collect material in the FIR lodged by it.

LGD12 JK-COURT-PARRA Court frames terror charges against PDP leader Waheed Parra Srinagar: A special court has framed terror charges against Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra, a senior PDP leader and close aide of former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, based on a police charge sheet claiming that he was an asset for Pakistan-based terror groups and that his 13-year journey as a journalist and politician from 2007 was a ''saga of subterfuge, deceit and double-dealing''. By Sumir Kaul FOREIGN FGN26 PAK-POK-POLLS-2NDLD RESULTS Imran Khan's party wins most seats in PoK legislative elections marred by violence: Opposition alleges 'rigging' Islamabad: Prime Minister Imran Khan's party on Monday was poised to form the government in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir for the first time after it won 25 of 45 seats in the legislative assembly elections marred by deadly violence and allegations of irregularities by the Opposition, local media reported.By Sajjad Hussain SPORTS OLY45 SPO-OLY-LDALL IND Olympics: Archers hit Korean wall, TT veteran Sharath advances, fencer Bhavani makes a mark Tokyo: Veteran paddler A Sharath Kamal turned back the clock to make the next round and fencer C A Bhavani Devi showed some spark in her debut but India's Olympic campaign on day 3 of the competitions was littered with disappointments in archery, shooting, boxing and tennis.