Overview
- Bangladesh’s High Commission in New Delhi suspended all consular and visa services, a day after India halted visas at its Chattogram centre citing security concerns following unrest over student leader Sharif Osman Hadi’s death.
- A Surajpur district court rejected the Uttar Pradesh government’s plea to withdraw the 2015 Bisahada Akhlaq lynching prosecution, calling the application baseless and allowing the trial of 19 accused to proceed.
- Arunachal Pradesh police said two additional suspects from Kupwara, J&K, were arrested on December 18 for allegedly spying while posing as blanket sellers, bringing the total held in the probe to five as a Pakistan link is examined.
- Delhi Police reported major consumer- and cyber-fraud actions, seizing about 14,000 litres of counterfeit or expired cold drinks and other foods with re-dated barcodes and arresting seven, and separately arresting 10 in a fake call-centre ‘insurance settlement’ scheme that allegedly swindled around Rs 1 crore.
- Parliament passed a bill renaming MGNREGA and limiting coverage to centrally notified districts while increasing guaranteed work to 125 days, drawing opposition criticism over funding conditions that could shift more costs to states.