Italian-Swiss Shipping group MSC said on April 13 that there were 25 crew members on board a container ship seized by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in the Gulf, as tensions soar in the region. “We regret to confirm that MSC Aries... has been boarded by Iranian authorities via helicopter as she passed the Strait of Hormuz at approximately 0243 UTC this morning,” the group said in a statement. “She has 25 crew onboard, and we are working closely with the relevant authorities to ensure their wellbeing, and safe return of the vessel.” There are 17 Indians (including the Master) among the 25 crew onboard the Portuguese flagged and Israel affiliated cargo vessel MSC Aries that was seized by Iran in the Gulf of Hormuz. Other crew members include, four Filipinos, 2 Pakistanis, one Russian and one Estonian.
The Enforcement Directorate which conducted searches at multiple locations across Tamil Nadu early this week in the ongoing probe against alleged drugs smugglers A.R. Jaffer Sadiq and his associates has found evidence suggesting that cash was routed through specific financiers before it was invested in movie production, the hospitality industry etc. ED searches revealed that proceeds of cash on the illegal drug business was routed through specific financiers before being invested into various sectors, notably movie production, hospitality industry and acquiring immovable properties.
Arvind Kejriwal arrest | Supreme Court to hear Delhi CM’s plea against arrest on April 15
A two-judge Bench of the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on April 15 a petition filed by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to quash his arrest in in a Delhi Excise policy-linked money laundering case. The case is listed before the Bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta. The petition is listed at the very end of the board at item number 57. Meanwhile, AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh claimed Mr. Kejriwal was not being allowed to meet his family. “There is an attempt to break the morale of CM Kejriwal. His family has not been allowed in-person meetings with him. They are only allowed to meet him through the jangla. This is inhuman. Even hardcore criminals are allowed in-person meetings,” he said.
Farm loans will be waived after Congress comes to power, says Rahul
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on April 13 said loans of farmers will be waived if his party comes to power at the Centre. Addressing a rally in Sakoli in Maharashtra’s Bhandara district, he said the main issues plaguing the people of the country were unemployment and inflation, though these were ignored by the media. “Loans of farmers will be waived if the Congress comes to power. People are distressed due to unemployment and inflation. The situation is such that people earning just thousands and those making crores are paying the same GST,” he said while attacking the NDA government at the Centre. Addressing another poll rally in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar in the day, Mr. Gandhi accused the BJP and the RSS of attacking the markers of tribal identity and giving away forests to billionaires.
BJP-led Centre under-utilises budget for northeast: Congress
The Congress on April 13 accused the Centre of under-utilising the budget for the northeast and said it is the only political party that can deliver justice to the States in the region. “The Modi government’s ‘Bluff and Rule’ policy continues to unravel. The Modi government has a history of allocating big budgets to the North East and then chronically underutilising these budgets in the last 10 years,” Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
Jaishankar’s remark on China akin to giving it clean chit, says Congress
The Congress on April 13 hit out at the Narendra Modi government on the issue of Chinese transgressions and said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s reported remark that “China has not occupied any of our land” is akin to giving another free pass to the neighbouring country. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the External Affairs Minister’s statement is a “copy-paste” of Mr. Modi’s clean chit to China after the Galwan skirmish in 2020, when 20 Indian soldiers were killed.
SAD announces first list of 7 candidates for Punjab, fields Chandumajra from Anandpur Sahib
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on April 13 announced its first list of seven candidates, fielding senior party leaders Prem Singh Chandumajra from Anandpur Sahib and Daljit Singh Cheema from Gurdaspur. Besides, the SAD also named former MLA N K Sharma from Patiala, former minister Anil Joshi from Amritsar, Bikramjit Singh Khalsa from Fatehgarh Sahib, Rajwinder Singh from Faridkot and Iqbal Singh Jhoonda from Sangrur seat.
The Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA) has stated that Malayalam movies will not be screened on screens under PVR INOX until the multiplex player compensates for the loss suffered for not screening new releases following the rift between the Kerala Film Producers’ Association (KFPA) over content sharing. A meeting of the federation held in Kochhi on April 13 decided to step up the protest against the company after it refused to screen the new releases including Fahadh Faasil’s Aavesham, Vineeth Sreenivasan directorial Varshangalkku Shesham and Unni Mukundan’s Jai Ganesh. It had also stopped screening the previously released Malayalam films Premalu, Manjummal Boys, and Aadujeevitham.
U.S. think tank hit by cyberattack
A U.S. think tank The Heritage Foundation said it experienced a cyberattack earlier this week. A person with knowledge of the attack said that while efforts to remediate the cyberattack were underway, it is not clear if any data was taken. The organisation has reportedly shut down its network to prevent any further malicious activity, while the incident was being investigated.
6 stabbed to death in Sydney shopping centre and a suspect is fatally shot
A man stabbed six people to death at a busy Sydney shopping centre on April 13 before he was fatally shot, police said. Eight people, including a 9-month-old, were injured in the attack. The 40-year-old suspect began stabbing people at the Westfield Shopping Centre in Bondi Junction, which is in the city’s eastern suburbs, before a police inspector shot him after he turned and raised a knife, New South Wales Assistant Police Commissioner Anthony Cooke told reporters. Six of the victims — five women and a man — and the suspect died. Commissioner Karen Webb said the eight injured people were being treated at hospitals. The baby was in surgery, but it was too early to know the condition, she said.
A local official says at least 10 people have died in shelling in Russian-occupied Ukraine
At least 10 people, including children, died after shelling late on April 12 struck a Russian-occupied town in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region, a local Kremlin-installed official said, blaming Ukraine for the attack. Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials reported at least three civilian deaths elsewhere in the country that they said resulted from Russian attacks. Russian emergency services on April 13 were working in the rubble in hopes of saving civilians trapped underneath the debris of their homes in Tokmak, in a part of southern Ukraine that Moscow has illegally annexed from Kyiv, according to the Kremlin-installed regional head Yevhen Balitsky.
With 25% inflation, Pakistan has the highest cost of living in Asia: ADB
Pakistan has the highest living cost in all of Asia with a 25% inflation rate and its economy may grow at the fourth lowest pace of 1.9% in the region, according to a new Asian Development Bank report. The Express Tribune reported that the Asian Development Outlook also painted a gloomy picture for the next fiscal year as well, projecting 15% inflation rate for the next fiscal year, this is the highest among 46 countries. The country’s projected growth rate is at 2.8% — the fifth lowest for FY 2024-25.
The legendary Mahendra Singh Dhoni will be in the spotlight in what could be his final game at the iconic Wankhede Stadium when defending champions Chennai Super Kings take on Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League in Mumbai on April 14. Dhoni returns to the hallowed turf of Wankhede for the first time ever as a non-captain of the CSK, potentially in his last IPL season. It will also be his first appearance as just a player for any team since November 2005.
