HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top headlines at 9 PM: NATION DEL104 RS-2NDLD SUSPEND Record 19 MPs suspended for unruly behaviour as Oppn protests rock Rajya Sabha New Delhi: A record 19 MPs from opposition parties were suspended from Rajya Sabha on Tuesday for the rest of the week after they continued to disrupt proceedings to press for an immediate discussion on price rise and levy of GST on essential items. DEL115 ED-LDALL SONIA National Herald case: ED questions Sonia 2nd time in 6 days, asks Cong chief to appear again Wednesday; Rahul, MPs detained during protests New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday questioned Congress President Sonia Gandhi for the second time in six days in the National Herald newspaper linked money laundering case, officials said. DEL94 2NDLD VIJAYDIWAS India remembers Kargil heroes on Vijay Diwas New Delhi/Dras: President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday led the nation in paying tributes to the soldiers who fought valiantly in extreme weather conditions to defend the country's territory during the Kargil conflict. CAL20 MG-BJP LEADER-2ND LD WARRANT Meghalaya BJP leader ‘involved in sex racket’ arrested in UP Shillong: Meghalaya BJP vice-president Bernard N Marak who is accused of operating a sex racket at his farmhouse in the state was arrested in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday, a senior Police officer said. DEL106 VACCINATION-PRECAUTION DOSES Only 11% of 69 cr beneficiaries have taken Covid precaution doses; officials blame complacency New Delhi: Only 11 per cent of the nearly 69 crore eligible beneficiaries aged 18 years and above taking the precaution dose of COVID-19 vaccine till July 25, has become a cause of concern for the Centre, with officials attributing the slow uptake of the third shot to complacency and waning of coronavirus fear.

DEL111 LSQ-ENCOUNTER Police encounters: 9-fold increase in JK, over 4 times rise in Assam in 2021-22 against previous yr New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir has seen nine-fold increase in police encounters in 2021-22 - highest in the country - followed by Assam where such cases rose by over four times against the previous year, Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday. DEL105 DEF-LD PROCUREMENT Defence ministry clears arms procurement proposals worth Rs 28,732 crore New Delhi: The defence ministry on Tuesday approved the procurement of military equipment and weapons worth Rs 28,000 crore, including swarm drones and close-quarter battle carbines, to bolster the overall combat prowess of the armed forces along the northern and western borders.

DEL84 ENV-WETLANDS-LD RAMSAR 5 more Indian sites added to Ramsar list as wetlands of international importance New Delhi: Five more Indian sites -- three from Tamil Nadu and one each from Mizoram and Madhya Pradesh -- have been recognised as wetlands of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, taking the number of such sites in the country to 54, the Union environment ministry said on Tuesday.

DEL113 ED-JH CM-ADVISOR-SUMMON ED summons Jharkhand CM's press advisor for questioning in PMLA case Ranchi: The Enforcement Directorate has summoned Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren's press advisor Abhishek Prasad on August 1 for questioning in a money laundering probe linked to an alleged illegal mining scam in Jharkhand, officials said on Tuesday.

DEL100 ALVA-LD PHONE 'Big Brother' always listening to politicians' phone calls in 'new' India: VP candidate Alva New Delhi: Opposition Vice Presidential candidate Margaret Alva has alleged that politicians' calls are being monitored by the ''Big Brother'', in an apparent reference to the government. DEL81 LSQ-CENSUS No plan to release 2011 caste census data: Govt New Delhi: The government has no plans to release at this stage the caste data collected under the Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) 2011, Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday. BOM27 GJ-COURT-TEESTA Guj: Court defers order on bail pleas of Teesta Setalvad, Sreekumar till July 28 Ahmedabad: A court here in Gujarat on Tuesday deferred till Thursday its order on the bail pleas of activist Teesta Setalvad and former DGP RB Sreekumar in a case of fabricating evidence to frame innocent persons in connection with the 2002 communal riots. BUSINESS DEL114 BIZ-2NDLD-5G-SPECTRUM-AUCTION 5G spectrum auction: Rs 1.45 lakh cr bids by Jio, Airtel, others on Day 1 New Delhi: India's largest ever auction of spectrum used to carry mobile signals saw bids of Rs 1.45 lakh crore for 5G airwaves from groups run by tycoons Mukesh Ambani, Sunil Bharti Mittal and Gautam Adani on the first day on Tuesday.

LEGAL LGD15 SC-FREEBIES-SERIOUS ISSUE SC calls ‘irrational freebies’ by parties during polls ''serious'' issue, questions govt's hesitation on taking stand New Delhi: Terming as ''serious'' the promise of ''irrational freebies'' made by political parties during elections, the Supreme Court on Tuesday wondered why the Centre was hesitant about taking a stand on the issue. FOREIGN FGN63 PAK-RAIN-DEATHS 19 people die in rain-related incidents in Pakistan Karachi: Flash floods triggered by torrential rains have killed nearly 20 people in Pakistan, including at least a dozen in the country’s commercial hub Karachi, officials said on Tuesday. PTI RDT RDT RDT