India news Highlights 27 September 2026: Barricades installed outside Parvesh Verma’s residence amid slapping row

CPI(M) General Secretary M A Baby met AAP national convenor and former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday (Sep 27), amid the ongoing row over the functioning of the Election Commission and growing Opposition coordination on the issue.

A fire broke out at a godown in Delhi’s Mandoli area on Sunday, prompting the Delhi Fire Service to deploy eight units before the blaze was doused by 12:50 pm.

Apoorva Agashe from Mumbai reports that two men, Prabhakar Dhanivar (24) and Bhavin Desai (18), died in the early hours of Sunday, September 27, after allegedly being exposed to a strong chemical odor inside a public toilet near the Parsi Panchayat Gate in Ram Mandir (East), Mumbai. Authorities were alerted by local residents, and while officials from the BMC, fire brigade, police, and the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board were mobilized to the scene, the exact cause remains under investigation. The Vanrai police have registered an Accidental Death Report, with a primary assessment suggesting the victims may have been exposed to gas emitted from a nearby small-scale industrial unit.

Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) co-convener Ashutosh Ranka and several party volunteers were detained by Assam Police on Sunday morning ahead of the party's first regional volunteers' meet-up near the Assam Secretariat in Dispur.

CJP Chief Abhijeet Dipke said in a post on X, "Assam Police has detained @AshutoshRanka and CJP team and taking them to an unknown location. Ashu and co were going to have a small volunteers meet up in Assam."

Kerala Chief Minister V D Satheesan has demanded the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, terming revelations made against him as "grave" and a "death sentence to Indian democracy."

In a strong statement posted on X, Satheesan said: "The revelations made by former Kerala Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar are extremely serious. No further evidence is required to prove that Gyanesh Kumar acted as an agent of the BJP."

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari cited the September 26 meeting of the Election Commission and its subsequent press statement to argue that SIR decisions were not made by the CEC alone.

DIG Jalandhar Range Naveen Singla visited the spot and spoke to the protesting students. He said that the police had mobilised adequate force as all SSP’s of Jalandhar range Were on the spotand were taking steps to address the students’ concerns.

A large number of students gathered on the National Highway on Sunday morning, demanding registration of an FIR and action over the alleged rape of a female student residing in G-3 hostel. The students claimed that the incident had taken place around three days earlier and alleged that no action had been taken by the university administration.

The protest led to a major disruption of traffic, with the National Highway blocked from both the Jalandhar and Ludhiana sides. Several kilometres-long queues of vehicles were seen on both sides of the highway, leaving commuters stranded and facing considerable difficulty. The blockade caused significant inconvenience to motorists travelling on Delhi Amritsar national Highwaywith traffic movement coming to a standstill at several points.

The protesting students said they would not lift the blockade until a copy of the FIR was handed over to them.

The Kerala Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) seized Rs 14.10 lakh in unaccounted cash and USD 788 during a day-long raid at the Kochi residences and office of State GST Joint Commissioner Prajani Rajan. The searches stem from a preliminary inquiry alleging that Rajan accumulated disproportionate assets worth approximately Rs 2.89 crore between 2014 and 2024. The seized cash and related documents will be presented before the Muvattupuzha Vigilance Court as the investigation continues.

The Election Commission has extended the deadline for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Delhi for the fourth time, now setting the final publication date for December 4. This adjustment, initiated following a request from the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer and feedback from political parties, extends the deadline for filing claims and objections to October 30, with the disposal of notices moving to November 30. To streamline the process for the 33.1 lakh electors who were previously issued notices regarding discrepancies—including several high-profile individuals—the ECI has instructed Booth Level Officers to conduct home visits for document collection rather than requiring voters to visit election offices. These changes follow a period of relatively low enrolment, with only 1.21 lakh Form 6 applications received since August 31, prompting the ECI to also direct officials to expand helpdesks and special outreach camps for vulnerable and homeless populations.