1.Rajasthan: Curfew in Banswara after communal tension :-
Indefinite curfew was imposed in Banswara town of Rajasthan late on
Thursday night after two groups clashed over a religious site during the
Shab-e- baraat festival. The clash broke out when a group of young men got
into an altercation with another group while going to the old dargah in
Khantwara area of Banswara, over 500 km from here.
According to the police, the situation got out of hand as both groups started
throwing stones. They also pelted the police with stones. To bring the
situation under control, the police then resorted to lathicharge and fired tear
gas shells
2.After Comey removal, Trump launches commission on ‘election
integrity’ :-
United States President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to
establish a commission to review alleged voter fraud and voter suppression
in the American election system.
Vice President Mike Pence has been named the chairman of the commission
and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach as the vice-chair.
3.Sindhu rested for Thailand Open, Saina to play all three :-
Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu has been rested from the Thailand Open
Grand Prix Gold event while senior pro Saina Nehwal will be vying for top
honours in all three upcoming tournaments.
Saina Nehwal has pulled out of the upcoming Sudirman Cup team badminton
tournament to be held from May 21 at Gold Coast (Australia). Saina
explained that her father recently underwent a surgery and that she would
like to be with him while he recovers.
4.Days before Kulbhushan Jadhav death sentence, Pakistan laid
ground at ICJ :-
TWELVE DAYS before Pakistan’s military court sentenced Kulbhushan
Jadhav to death for “espionage and subversive activities”, Islamabad quietly
gave a declaration to the International Court of Justice at The Hague stating
that matters related to Pakistan’s “national security” would not be part of the
ICJ’s jurisdiction.
Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York,
Maleeha Lodhi, submitted the declaration to UN Secretary General Antonio
Guterres on March 29, which superseded Pakistan’s earlier declaration to the
ICJ on September 12, 1960.
5.Batshuayi late winner delivers Premier League title for Chelsea :-
Substitute Michy Batshuayi's late goal clinched the Premier League title for
Chelsea as they beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0 on Friday but they were
made to fight all the way for the victory they craved at The Hawthorns.
Chelsea were suffering late nerves as a dogged West Brom threatened to
prolong the title race but Belgian international Batshuayi prodded home the
winner after 82 minutes to spark manic celebrations from triumphant
manager Antonio Conte.
6.EVM tampering: Paper trail voting in all future polls, says Election
Commission :-
The Election Commission (EC) on Friday committed to hold all future polls to
state assemblies and Lok Sabha with voter verified paper audit trail (VVPAT)
and also agreed to mandatorily tally paper trail slips with the EVM results of
a fixed percentage of polling booths in every election. The decisions were
announced at the end of a day-long meeting of the poll panel with 42
political parties on matters related to electronic voting machines (EVMs).
7.Vinesh Phogat goes down fighting :-
Vinesh Phogat made a remarkable return to the international arena by
claiming a silver in the 55-kg class in the Asian Wrestling Championship at
the KD Jadhav arena at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium Complex here on
Friday.
India won three silver and a bronze on Friday, taking its tally to three silver
and four bronze. Sakshi Malik and surprise-package Divya Kakran accounted
for other silver medals.
8.Nepal too joins OBOR, China experts say India must reconsider
stance :-
Nepal formally signed the One Belt One Road framework agreement Friday,
leaving India the only country in South Asia not involved in China’s
ambitious economic strategy. Following the announcement on Nepal’s entry,
foreign policy experts in China said this will force India to follow suit in the
near future or face isolation.
The framework agreement was signed in Kathmandu, 48 hours before the
two-day Belt and Road Forum in Beijing.
9.GST to herald a new era in federalism: RBI :-
The Goods and Services Tax (GST), which is likely to be introduced from July
2017, is set to usher in a new era of cooperative federalism, the Reserve
Bank of India (RBI) observed in its report on State finances.
“GST is likely to set a new course for cooperative federalism in India by
strengthening Centre-State partnership,” the RBI said its report.
10.Govt. exempts Assam, J&K, Meghalaya from mandatory quoting
of Aadhaar for ITR filing :-
The Union government on Friday exempted citizens residing in Assam,
Jammu and Kashmir and Meghalaya from mandatory quoting of Aadhaar for
a PAN application or for filing income tax returns.
It also said Aadhaar quoting is not mandatory for non-resident Indians,
citizens of 80 years of age or more, and non-citizens.
The Finance Act 2017 had introduced Section 139AA in the Income Tax Act,
making it mandatory from July 1, 2017, to provide the Aadhaar number
while applying for a PAN or submitting income tax returns.
