GS-II

The Supreme Court has declined a request for an urgent hearing of a plea for contempt of court action against the Sabarimala priest, who closed the sanctum sanctorum to conduct “purification rites” immediately after two women entered the temple on Wednesday. Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi rejected the plea …

A Bench of Justices A.K. Sikri and S. Abdul Nazeer said the rescue efforts seemed uncoordinated and yielding no results. The court asked the Centre what it had done so far. “You had wanted to send high-powered pumps to Thailand [to rescue Thai boys and their teacher trapped in a …

Mr. Trump had referred to his conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging that Indian contribution to Kabul be increased and diversified as humanitarian contribution was not enough. “I could give you an example where I get along very well with India and Prime Minister Modi. But he is constantly …

President Donald Trump is looking forward to another summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, he said on Tuesday. “I look forward to meeting with Chairman Kim who realizes so well that North Korea possesses great economic potential!” Mr. Trump said in a brief tweet. The development comes after Mr. …

The Russian government said on Wednesday it has allowed an American citizen held on espionage charges to have access to U.S. officials seeking answers about his arrest. U.S. consular officials were granted access to Michigan resident Paul Whelan for the first time since his arrest during a visit to the …

China is building the first of four “most advanced” naval warships for Pakistan as part of a major bilateral arms deal to ensure among other things “balance of power” in the strategic Indian Ocean, the state media reported. Equipped with modern detection and weapon systems, it will be capable of …

Incoming Senator Mitt Romney has written a scathing op-ed targeting U.S. President Donald Trump, saying he “has not risen to the mantle of the office”. The barbed remarks from the 2012 Republican presidential candidate came as he and other lawmakers prepare to take up their seats in the new Congress. …

Taiwan’s unification with the mainland is “inevitable”, President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday, warning against any efforts to promote the island’s independence and saying China would not renounce the option of using military force to bring it into the fold. Mr. Xi’s comments provoked a swift rebuke from Taipei, where …

The Uttarakhand Law Commission has recommended changes in the State’s Protection of Cow Progeny Act to declare the animal “mother of the nation”. “The cow should be declared Rashtra Mata in the interest of the nation and justice,” the state’s Law Commission said in its fifth report to the State …

The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear on January 3 a writ petition for urgent measures to rescue 15 miners trapped in a rat-hole mine in Meghalaya. Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi said the petition, which was orally mentioned by senior advocate Anand Grover for petitioner Aditya N. …