Expresso Top National and International Headlines of the Week on 29 July 2023

In top national news: The Opposition Thursday objected to the government clearing Bills dealing with policy changes at a time when the Lok Sabha is in the process of taking up a no-confidence motion against the Union government, calling it a “travesty” and against “probity and propriety”. Parliament has not been able to function since the start of the Monsoon Session on July 20, with the Opposition demanding a statement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the House on the Manipur situation first. Congress MP Manish Tewari termed the government’s move to pass key legislation while a no-confidence motion was pending as “unfortunate”.

Hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised the issue of the “red diary” allegedly containing incriminating material against the Ashok Gehlot-led government, the Rajasthan Chief Minister on Thursday accused the BJP of creating politics over an “imaginary” diary and wondered why central agencies like Enforcement Directorate, Central Bureau of Investigation can’t get information about this purported diary. “I heard the PM’s speech in Sikar about a red diary. The post of PM has dignity. They have I-T, ED, CBI — which they are misusing in the whole country. Can they not get information about this diary?" he said.

After hearing a plea filed by the Gyanvapi mosque committee against the Varanasi district court order for the survey, the Allahabad High Court reserved its judgment and said that it will pronounce its verdict on August 3. The stay on the ASI-led survey has been extended till then. This comes days after the Supreme Court stopped a survey of the Gyanvapi mosque premises in Varanasi by the Archaeological Survey of India to grant time for a challenge. The Anjuman Intezamia Masajid Committee approached the High Court which heard the matter.

Meanwhile, The Supreme Court allowed Sanjay Kumar Mishra to continue as the director of the Enforcement Directorate till September 15, instead of the earlier July 31 deadline. A bench of Justices B R Gavai, Vikram Nath and Sanjay Karol said it was granting the extension in “larger public and national interest” but that Mishra will cease to remain ED chief from the midnight of September 15. During the hearing, the top court questioned the Centre for seeking an extension and asked if the entire department is “full of incompetent people” except the incumbent chief.

Hours after the Opposition moved a no-confidence motion against his government in Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday invoked a “third term” in office saying that India would be among the world’s top three economies then. He said: "this is Modi’s guarantee.” Modi was speaking at the inauguration of the International Exhibition-cum-Convention Centre (IECC), part of the 123-acre Pragati Maidan complex, developed as a national project at a cost of about Rs 2,700 crore. It will host the G20 summit in September.

Moving on to top international news: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to discuss military issues and the regional security environment, state media said Thursday, illustrating North Korea’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine. The North Korean festivities were to be highlighted by a military parade Thursday evening in the capital, Pyongyang, where Kim – possibly in the presence of Shoigu and a visiting Chinese ruling party official – could showcase his most powerful, nuclear-capable missiles designed to threaten neighbouring rivals and the United States. North Korea’s state media had not confirmed plans for a military parade.

Meanwhile, fierce fighting raged on Thursday in southeastern Ukraine, where a Western official said Kyiv has launched a major push and Russian President Vladimir Putin said “hostilities have intensified significantly.” Battles in recent weeks have taken place on multiple points along the 1,500-kilometer (930-mile) front line as Ukraine wages a counteroffensive with Western-supplied weapons and Western-trained troops against Russian forces who invaded 17 months ago. Putin praised the “heroism” with which Russian soldiers were repelling attacks in the Zaporizhzhia region of the southeast, claiming Moscow’s troops not only destroyed Ukraine’s military equipment but also inflicted heavy losses to Kyiv’s forces.

In news from the US: The US is concealing a longstanding program that retrieves and reverse engineers unidentified flying objects, a former Air Force intelligence officer testified Wednesday to Congress. The Pentagon has denied his claims. Retired Maj. David Grusch’s highly anticipated testimony before a House Oversight subcommittee was Congress’ latest foray into the world of UAPs — or “unidentified aerial phenomena,” which is the official term the US government uses instead of UFOs.

U.S. actor Kevin Spacey was found not guilty on Wednesday by a jury at a London court of committing historical sex offences against four men. The 64-year-old Oscar-winner was acquitted of nine charges, including sexual assault, causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, and causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity. Spacey began to cry in the dock when the not-guilty verdicts were returned by the jury.

Lastly, in news from China: Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang was removed from his post after just seven months on the job on Tuesday, bringing an end to weeks of confusion after the 57-year-old once seen as close to President Xi Jinping disappeared from public view. Qin, 57, became one of the country’s youngest foreign ministers on his appointment in December 2022 after a brief stint as U.S. ambassador, enjoying a meteoric rise to the top that analysts partly attributed to his closeness to Xi. He was replaced by his predecessor, Wang Yi, 69.