Lakshmi Mittal’s brother arrested in Bosnia, faces up to 45 yrs jail
Indian businessman Pramod Mittal, younger brother of steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, was arrested in Bosnia on suspicion of organised crime and abuse of office. Mittal heads the supervisory board at Bosnian coke producer GIKIL. Prosecutors said he could get a jail sentence of up to 45 years if found guilty of the alleged crimes, which reportedly include embezzling $2.8 million.
Man crashes van with ₹965 cr drugs into police car in Aus, arrested
A 26-year-old man was arrested by the New South Wales Police Force on Monday after he accidentally crashed a van with drugs worth over ₹965 crore into a patrol car outside a police station in Sydney. The driver sped off after the patrol car’s bonnet was crushed. The police tracked him within an hour through CCTV footage and recovered drugs.
11 years since Messi got no. 10 from Ronaldinho at Barcelona
Forward Lionel Messi wore the number 10 jersey for the first time for Barcelona on July 24, 2008, in a preseason friendly against Scottish side Hibernian. Barcelona legend Ronaldinho Gaúcho had departed Barcelona a week earlier, freeing up the number 10 shirt. Messi donned the number 19 jersey for Barcelona before switching to the number 10 jersey.
11 arrested, 500 kg of cannabis worth ₹50 L seized in Vizag
Police along with Prohibition and Excise Department officials on Tuesday arrested 11 people and seized 500 kg of cannabis worth ₹50 lakh in Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam. A jeep used in the transportation of the drug was also seized by the team. On Sunday, one person was arrested and cannabis worth ₹25 lakh was seized from his car in the district.
3 Hizbul Mujahideen militants arrested in Srinagar: Police
Three newly-recruited Hizbul Mujahideen militants were arrested from Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar, police said on Tuesday. The overground workers were allegedly involved in lobbing a grenade at a Jammu bus stand in December 2018 and shooting a Special Police Officer in Srinagar’s Barzulla. One grenade, 15 rounds of AK-47 rifle, two pistol rounds and a flag were recovered, police said.
Fintech startup Zeta gets funding from Sodexo at $300M valuation
Bengaluru-based fintech startup Zeta has raised reportedly about $60 million in a Series C funding round at a valuation of around $300 million from French food services and facilities management company Sodexo. This marked the startup’s first-ever external funding. Zeta has been funded by Co-founders Bhavin Turakhia and Ramki Gaddipati, who have collectively invested $40 million to date.
NRI voting very much a focus for us: Election Commissioner
Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra on Tuesday said that Non-Resident Indians’ (NRI) voting is “very much a focus” for the commission because their voice must be heard. He added that it’s their constitutional right to participate in the elections. His comment came ahead of provisions being put in place for either proxy voting or voting through embassies and missions for NRIs.
Banks, authorities colluded with Amrapali to divert funds: SC
The Supreme Court on Tuesday said banks and local authorities colluded with Amrapali Group in the misappropriation of loans and homebuyers’ funds meant for housing projects. “Banks failed to monitor utilisation of the borrowed funds and they acted as mute spectators to the diversion of funds,” it said. A forensic audit revealed that Amrapali diverted ₹3,500 crore of homebuyers’ money.
RBI names Kanungo to run monetary policy after Viral Acharya quits
The RBI has assigned Deputy Governor BP Kanungo to run the monetary policy portfolio after the resignation of fellow Deputy Governor Viral Acharya. Kanungo, who will retain his currency management portfolio, would become the sixth member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). Acharya, who is also a professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, left RBI on Tuesday.
Dude! We are going to energise the country: New UK PM Boris Johnson
Addressing Conservative Party members following his election as their new leader and the UK’s next Prime Minister, Boris Johnson said, “Dude, we are going to energise the country.” He further vowed to deliver Brexit, unite the country and defeat Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn. “(W)e are once again going to believe in ourselves and what we can achieve,” he added.
President doesn’t make things up: Trump’s advisor on Kashmir remark
On being asked by reporters about US President Donald Trump’s remark on Kashmir mediation, Trump’s Chief Economic Advisor Larry Kudlow said, “The President does not make things up.” He further called the question “rude”, adding, “I’m going to stay out of that…It’s for Mr (National Security Advisor John) Bolton…and President, so I’m not going to comment on that.”
Amitabh Bachchan donates ₹51 lakh for Assam flood victims
Amitabh Bachchan has donated ₹51 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for Assam flood victims. CM Sarbananda Sonowal took to Twitter to thank the actor for the donation and wrote, “This is a great gesture & show of care for the people.” Earlier, Akshay Kumar had donated ₹1 crore each for the flood-affected people and for Kaziranga Park rescue.
Previous Pak govts lied to US, we had 40 militant groups: Imran Khan
Pakistan PM Imran Khan has said his country was fighting the US’ war on terror and had “nothing to do with 9/11” but things went wrong as previous Pakistani governments didn’t tell the truth to US. “There were 40 different militant groups operating within Pakistan.” Khan earlier admitted his country knew about al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden’s presence in Pakistan.
Mark Esper sworn in as US Defence Secretary
Army veteran Mark Esper was sworn in as the US’ Defence Secretary on Tuesday following confirmation by the Senate. Esper succeeds James Mattis, who resigned in December last year following differences with US President Donald Trump over the withdrawal of American troops from Syria. Esper has also worked as a lobbyist for the military contractor firm Raytheon.
Heavy rains in Mumbai, bus and train services hit
Mumbai and its suburbs experienced heavy rainfall in the last 12 hours with the IMD forecasting more rains in the region for the next two days. Bus and train services were hit due to a heavy downpour that flooded roads and railway tracks. Earlier today, eight people were injured after three cars collided due to low visibility in Andheri.
Biswabhusan Harichandan takes oath as Andhra Pradesh Guv
Biswabhusan Harichandan took oath as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh at a function held at the temporary Raj Bhavan, Vijayawada. Acting Chief Justice of the state High Court C Praveen Kumar administered the oath of office to Harichandan. The swearing-in ceremony took place in the presence of CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and other dignitaries.
Apple hires engineer who led design of Tesla’s car interiors
Apple has hired Steve MacManus, former Vice President of Engineering at Tesla who had led the interior designing for the electric carmaker from 2015, as a Senior Director. Prior to working for Tesla, MacManus had worked for Aston Martin, Bentley Motors and Jaguar & Land Rover. Apple is reportedly working on its own self-driving electric car under its ‘Project Titan’.
WhatsApp head to visit India; may meet IT Ministry, RBI officials
WhatsApp’s global head Will Cathcart will visit India this week and is reportedly expected to meet officials from the IT Ministry and Reserve Bank of India (RBI). This comes amid regulatory challenges Facebook is facing over the rollout of WhatsApp’s payments service WhatsApp Pay. Facebook had also announced it won’t launch its cryptocurrency Libra in India over local restrictions.
29-yr-old postpones $4.5 mn lunch with Buffett due to kidney stones Chinese cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun postponed his $4.57 million charity lunch with Warren Buffett after falling ill with kidney stones. The 29-year-old, who founded Tron cryptocurrency, denied reports that he was involved in illegal fundraising and money laundering. Sun added a report by a Chinese publication stating he had been barred from leaving the country was “completely false”.
