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Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring formally submitted his resignation on Friday, ending a four-and-a-half-year tenure that has been dogged by factional infighting in recent months. Warring, the Ludhiana MP, handed his resignation to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi, saying he had been appointed by Gandhi himself and therefore owed the resignation to him. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Warring made no secret of what he believes forced him out. He said he got the impression that Sachin Pilot, recently made the AICC general secretary in charge of Punjab, wanted him removed as state president. "I think that the new general secretary thought it best to remove me," Warring said, adding that he had met...

Title: Time Report: Trump Quizzed Grok for Hours About Maduro Before Ordering Venezuela Raid US President Donald Trump spent hours questioning Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok about Venezuela — including how Venezuelans would react if the United States captured Nicolas Maduro — weeks before ordering the military operation that seized the Venezuelan leader, according to a new investigative report by Time magazine. The account, attributed by Time to a Trump insider who witnessed the exchange, describes a clandestine December 2025 Oval Office meeting between Trump and Musk. During the visit, Trump reportedly fired question after question at Grok about his presidency, the legacy he would leave behind, and then a specific scenario: what would...

Title: Paris Probe Clears BAPS of Asking Eiffel Tower to Remove Women Staff During Visit An official Paris investigation has cleared the Hindu socio-spiritual organisation BAPS of allegations that it asked the Eiffel Tower to remove female employees during a private visit by its delegation, finding that a limited request was distorted as it passed through the landmark's management. The probe by the General Inspectorate of the City of Paris, whose findings were reported by Le Parisien and AFP, found no written instruction, email or explicit request from BAPS seeking the exclusion of women. "There is not a single written document, not a single email expressing this opinion," the report stated, according to Firstpost. How the...

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that his administration was considering establishing a military base in Poland, predicted the Ukraine conflict would be resolved, and described Brazil's election as "very important," as he addressed a wide range of foreign and domestic issues before leaving for Texas. Asked whether the United States could establish a base in Poland, Trump expressed strong support for the country. "Well, we're looking at that and we have great respect for the president of Poland. So we're looking at that and it could happen," he told reporters. Pressed later on why he had not made a final decision on a US Army base in Poland, he suggested a decision may already have been taken: "Well, you don't know if I made...

Bihar's flood situation turned significantly worse on Friday, with the Central Water Commission issuing an 'Orange' bulletin signalling a severe flood emergency at 28 locations across several districts, as the swollen Gandak river pushed into new areas of Saran district through breached embankments. The CWC's bulletin said floodwater had passed through damaged embankments in the Panapur and Maker blocks and entered new localities including Karchhaulia, Amnour, Jagdishpur, Maker and Parsa. The Gandak, Ganga, Kosi, Bagmati and Ghagra rivers are all flowing above the danger mark at several locations following heavy rainfall in Nepal and Uttar Pradesh, officials said. The Ganga continued to flow above the danger level at Danapur, Gandhi...

Title: Supreme Court Rules Out October 6 Meeting With One Nation, One Election Parliamentary Panel The Supreme Court has cancelled a proposed October 6 meeting between the Chief Justice of India, other senior judges and the parliamentary committee examining the "One Nation, One Election" legislation. The court said discussing the proposed constitutional amendment could be inappropriate since it may later face judicial review. In an official communication sent on October 1, the court's Secretary General's office told the panel that senior judges had discussed the proposal and concluded it may not be "expedient or desirable" to discuss the issue administratively. "The proposed meeting is accordingly cancelled. Inconvenience is...

The Group of Seven nations on Friday agreed to coordinate the release of 100 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves through the International Energy Agency over the next four months, as surging fuel prices and unprecedented oil-market volatility threaten economic stability, CNBC TV18 and multiple outlets reported. The agreement was reached during a virtual meeting of G7 leaders on October 2. The release will begin immediately and include a substantial, frontloaded release of diesel within the first 20 days by G7 members and partners. An IEA follow-up report is expected within 20 days, with recommendations on future responses, including replenishment of stocks. Coordinated refineries, no export bans The joint leaders'...

The family of Renee Good, the 37-year-old US citizen shot dead by an immigration agent in Minneapolis this January, has filed two federal lawsuits alleging her killing was the result of a deliberately discriminatory immigration operation run by senior Trump administration officials. The suits, filed on October 1 — nearly nine months after the shooting — open what lawyers describe as a new legal front in the long-running fight over Good's death, which became a flashpoint in the administration's push for mass deportations. Good's partner Becca Good and her brother Brent Ganger are the plaintiffs. A 149-page complaint names ICE officer Jonathan Ross, who fired the shots, alongside some of the officials who oversaw the immigration...

Captain Smit Machchhar, the Indian pilot who fought off an alleged hijacking attempt aboard a Flydubai flight last week, has spoken publicly about the attack for the first time, telling Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he refused to let the aircraft go down with more than 170 people on board. In a video call on Friday, October 2, reported by the BBC, Machchhar recounted the struggle inside the cockpit of flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv on September 30. An emergency signal issued around 9 a.m. local time was followed by a hijacking signal, and the aircraft plunged some 17,000 feet as the captain fought his Omani co-pilot, who allegedly attacked him and tried to take control of the plane. "In that moment, I was fighting for my...

Mumbai became a second front of Friday's electoral-roll protests as hundreds of demonstrators gathered outside Shivaji Park in Dadar for the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) 'Jail Bharo' agitation, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists. The protest went ahead even though the Mumbai police had refused permission for the gathering. By early afternoon, security forces were deployed in large numbers around the park, with emergency response and mobile surveillance vans stationed outside. CJP spokesperson Saurav Das reached the venue and addressed the media, while founder Abhijeet Dipke, who had announced the protest a day...

The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen accused the Houthis on Thursday of carrying out a drone attack on a power-distribution station in the holy city of Medina — a charge the Houthi movement denied, calling it a "lie" — even as the coalition said it intercepted more Houthi missiles and drones the same day. What the coalition claims The coalition said the Houthis carried out the drone attack on the Taiba power-distribution station on Tuesday, putting one transformer out of service without affecting the wider electricity network. It said the station supplies electricity to Masjid an-Nabawi, the Prophet's Mosque in Medina, and that examination of drone wreckage confirmed Houthi involvement in planning and carrying out the attack...

The United Nations' food agency said on Friday that world food prices climbed to their highest level in nearly four years in September, pushed up by logistics disruptions and weather worries — and warned that the pressure will feed through to consumers, especially in countries that depend on imported food and energy. The Food and Agriculture Organization said its Food Price Index averaged 136.0 points in September, up from a revised 134.0 in August, the highest reading since November 2022, according to Reuters. What drove the increase FAO benchmarks for cereal, sugar and vegetable-oil prices rose during the month, while meat and dairy quotations fell, Reuters reported. International sugar prices hit an 18-month high on fears of a...

Saudi Arabia has handed the Omani co-pilot accused of attacking the captain of flydubai flight FZ1073 to the custody of the United Arab Emirates, after completing its initial investigation into the mid-air cockpit assault that forced the Dubai-to-Tel Aviv flight into an emergency landing in Tabuk. Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry said its preliminary probe — carried out with the participation of a UAE security team — indicated that the co-pilot had assaulted Captain Smit Machchhar during the flight. Saudi authorities detained and questioned the suspect after the aircraft landed safely on Wednesday, and both pilots were treated in hospital and medically cleared before leaving for Abu Dhabi on Thursday morning. UAE takes over the...

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Friday launched the expanded 'Vetri Payanam' free bus travel scheme for women in Chennai, rolling out the flagship welfare programme on Gandhi Jayanti with zero-fare tickets issued to women passengers at the Koyambedu bus terminus. The expansion widens a facility that previously covered only ordinary city and town buses. Women can now travel free on Express, Limited Stop Service (LSS) and Deluxe buses in metropolitan and urban areas, on ordinary mofussil buses operating between districts, and on hill-route ordinary buses beyond 40 km. Transgender persons are also covered on the designated services. Scale of the rollout A total of 12,692 buses operated by seven state transport corporations...

Internet users across parts of the Philippines experienced slow or intermittent connectivity on Friday after outages hit the submarine cable segments linking the country to Singapore and Hong Kong. The Pampanga Digital Evolution Company, Converge and the UP Diliman Network Help Desk all issued advisories warning subscribers that the submarine cable segment between the Philippines and Singapore was down, with the segment to Hong Kong also affected. Telecommunications companies cautioned that the disruptions could affect internet speeds and overall connectivity nationwide. The Department of Information and Communications Technology said it is investigating the cause of the disruptions. DICT Secretary Henry Aguda said authorities are...

The United States has suspended consular services at its embassy and consulates across Brazil, citing unspecified security concerns just two days before Brazilians vote in a presidential election. The State Department made the announcement in a statement on Thursday. "Consular Services in the US Embassy and Consulates in Brazil will be suspended starting Friday, October 2 due to security concerns," it said, adding that US citizens seeking emergency assistance during this period should not come to the embassy, the consulates, or other US diplomatic facilities. No information was provided on when the services would resume. The department did not elaborate on the nature of the security concerns, nor did it draw any link between the...

The Delhi Metro closed entry and exit at stations across central Delhi on Friday as a security clampdown accompanied the proposed opposition protests at Jantar Mantar against the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. According to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, which announced the closures in a post on X, entry and exit were shut at Janpath, Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat, Rajiv Chowk, Seva Teerth, Mandi House, Lok Kalyan Marg, INA, Chawri Bazar, Ramakrishna Ashram Marg and New Delhi stations, and would remain closed until further notice. Interchange facilities remained available at Rajiv Chowk, Mandi House, New Delhi and Central Secretariat. Some outlets reported 12 stations closed, including...

The United States has widened its economic campaign against Iran, imposing sanctions on the country's rail and auto sectors and their foreign suppliers, the Treasury Department said on Thursday. The sanctions fall under the department's "Operation Economic Outcast", announced on August 24, which aims to cut Tehran's funding for the war effort, missile construction, cyberattacks and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The move extends American economic pressure on Iran from sea to land. Washington's naval blockade has cut off Iranian oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, forcing Tehran to lean more heavily on autos and rail to move petroleum, fertiliser, chemicals and other goods — and Thursday's sanctions target...

Switzerland's President Guy Parmelin will pay a State visit to India from October 5 to 7 at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with bilateral trade, investment and the India-EFTA economic partnership expected to figure prominently. What is on the agenda According to the Ministry of External Affairs, Parmelin will hold bilateral discussions with PM Modi on October 5, reviewing progress across trade and investment, science, technology and innovation, mobility, culture and people-to-people contact. The two leaders will also exchange views on regional and global developments, including cooperation in multilateral fora. Parmelin will meet President Droupadi Murmu, who will host an official banquet in his honour. External...

New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs has issued a fresh advisory cautioning Indian nationals against accepting offers to join the Russian armed forces, warning of grave risks to life and urging people not to be lured by unverified job offers abroad. What the advisory says The ministry said on Wednesday that it continues to receive reports of Indian nationals being recruited into the Russian armed forces. It noted that the government has repeatedly highlighted the risks over the past two years and has advised citizens from time to time to be cautious while pursuing job opportunities abroad. The MEA said it has come across several instances where individuals have willingly sought offers to join the Russian armed forces, believing...