From the Supreme Court’s remarks on indefinite protests to the high-stakes US midterm elections, several key developments made headlines today. Good evening, readers. Here are the key stories of the day.
The observations came as the court heard a clutch of petitions arising from the police action during the July protests led by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), including allegations of mass detentions, police excesses, internet restrictions and the closure of metro stations. Read more.
The removal of actor Dia Mirza’s video for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)’s eco-friendly Diwali campaign was “very unfortunate” and contrary to the “secular spirit” of the country, the Bombay high court said on Tuesday. The court’s remarks came amid a massive row in the state, after the civic body selectively removed the actor’s clip from social media following objections from a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and mayor Ritu Tawde’s comments labelling her as “anti-Hindu”. Mirza, however, said efforts to reduce air pollution should be welcomed as it is a matter of public health.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday said no individual, group or organisation could claim an indefinite right to occupy a designated protest site, underlining that others too have an equal constitutional right to use the same public space to raise their grievances.
