South Korea: Former first lady accused of colluding with shaman

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Seoul, Aug 8 (IANS) A South Korean special counsel team has accused former first lady Kim Keon Hee of colluding with a shaman over bribery allegations in connection to the Unification Church, according to a warrant for her arrest Friday. Special counsel Min Joong-ki’s team made the accusation in the warrant filed Thursday, detailing that Kim worked with the shaman, named Jeon Seong-bae, to receive luxury gifts, including a diamond necklace, from the church in 2022.The former first lady has denie…

Fast-moving wildfire forces evacuations in Southern California

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Los Angeles, Aug 8 (IANS) Evacuations were ordered for communities near a fast-moving wildfire in a canyon area in Southern California amid a major heat wave.The wildfire, dubbed the Canyon fire, broke out around 1:25 p.m. local time (2025 GMT) near Piru, a small historic town located in eastern Ventura County and around 77 km northwest of Los Angeles. The blaze grew rapidly to over 1,000 acres (around 4.05 square km) in hours with no containment, the California Department of Forestry and Fire P…

Rahul Gandhi runs factory of lies: BJP slams LoP's voter fraud allegations

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New Delhi, Aug 8 (IANS) The BJP on Friday strongly rebutted the allegations made by Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, who, on Thursday accused the Election Commission of colluding with the BJP to create over one lakh fake votes in Karnataka’s Mahadevapura Assembly segment.Several BJP leaders have now come out, questioning the basis and intent of LoP Gandhi’s claims, calling them “vague,” “baseless,” and “politically-motivated.”Speaking to IANS, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Deepak Prakash said, …

Provide electronic voter list & videos of 10-years, or you're hiding a crime: LoP Gandhi to EC

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Bengaluru, Aug 8 (IANS) The Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi on Friday demanded that the Election Commission of India (ECI) provide the electronic voters’ list for the past 10 years along with video recordings. He warned that failure to do so would amount to the ECI concealing electoral fraud and a crime.Addressing a massive gathering during the ‘Our Vote, Our Right, Our Fight’ rally against alleged election fraud, LoP Gandhi said that if the ECI is withholding dat…

Stray dog complaints surge in Ahmedabad, over 3,800 filed in four months

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Ahmedabad, Aug 8 (IANS) As the monsoon rains lash Ahmedabad, the city is witnessing a parallel surge in complaints related to stray dogs, mirroring the seasonal spike in stray cattle sightings on roads. In the last four months, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has received 3,891 complaints about stray dog attacks.July alone accounted for 1,395 cases, marking a steep rise in incidents. Citizens commuting on relatively empty roads at night have reported frequent encounters with aggressive…

Companies invest Rs 7,343 crore under textiles PLI with Rs 4,648 crore turnover: Minister

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New Delhi, Aug 8 (IANS) The total investment made by companies under the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for textiles reached Rs 7,343 crore with total turnover at Rs 4,648 crore, including export of Rs 538 crore (till March 31, 2025), the Parliament was informed on Friday.An incentive worth Rs 54.50 crore has been disbursed under the scheme in FY 2024-25, Minister of State for Textiles Pabitra Margherita said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha.The projected investment …

Dream come true for every Bihari: Leaders thrilled as HM Shah set to lay foundation stone of Maa Sita temple in Sitamarhi

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Patna, Aug 8 (IANS) The spiritual and cultural landscape of Bihar is set to witness a historic moment as Union Home Minister Amit Shah will lay the foundation stone for the Maa Sita Temple at Punaura Dham in Sitamarhi. Political leaders across party lines, including the BJP and JD(U) on Friday hailed the move as the fulfilment of a long-cherished dream of every Bihari and a proud milestone for the state. Located in Punaura Dham, believed to be the mythological birthplace of goddess Sita, the tem…

Three-day Gujarat Assembly Monsoon Session begins from September 8

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Ahmedabad, Aug 8 (IANS) The Gujarat Legislative Assembly will convene for its Monsoon Session on September 8, 9, and 10, as announced on Friday. Governor Acharya Devrat has called for the seventh session of the current Assembly. The official notification regarding the session was issued by the Assembly Secretariat.Speaker Shankar Chaudhary shared details of the upcoming session, stating that MLAs can submit starred questions till August 20.The short, three-day session is expected to cover key le…

Assam Police foil interstate drug peddling attempt, two arrested

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Guwahati, Aug 8 (IANS) Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday said that the Assam Police busted an interstate drug peddling attempt and recovered a significant cache of narcotic substances.The operation was carried out in the Cachar district, and two persons were arrested on the charges of drug peddling.The police recovered 50 bags of cannabis from the possession of the drug peddlers.Taking to X, CM Sarma wrote, “Stride against drugs continues. In an intel backed operation, @cacharpolice i…

SBI clocks 12.5 pc rise in Q1 net profit at Rs 19,160 crore

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Mumbai, Aug 8 (IANS) The country’s largest lender State Bank of India on Friday reported a 12.5 per cent increase in net profit at Rs 19,160 crore for the April-June quarter of the current financial year, compared to the corresponding figure of Rs 17,035 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal.SBI’s operating profit for Q1 FY26 grew by a robust 15.49 per cent year-on-year to Rs 30,544 crore.Net Interest Income (NII), which reflects the difference between the interest earned on loans…