Following are the top stories at 1 pm

NATION

DEL2 PM-BJP-FOUNDATION DAY

BJP India’s preferred party, people will elect it again: PM Modi on its foundation day

New Delhi: On the 44th foundation day of the BJP, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said it has become India’s preferred party and expressed confidence that people will elect it for another term at the Centre, allowing it to build on the “ground covered in the last decade”.

CAL2 WB-NIA-ATTACK

NIA vehicle attacked in Bengal: Police

Kolkata: A vehicle carrying NIA officials was on Saturday attacked by villagers in Bhupatinagar area of West Bengal’s Purba Medinipur district, where they had gone to investigative a 2022 bomb blast case, police said.

BOM5 MH-FADNAVIS-BJP

BJP wasn’t formed to make anyone PM or CM, hence never faced a split: Fadnavis

Nagpur: The Bharatiya Janata Party was not established to make anyone the prime minister or the chief minister and hence never faced an internal division, said Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday.

BOM4 ELECTIONS-MP-CANDIDATES

Lok Sabha polls: Nominations of 16 candidates found invalid for second phase in MP

Bhopal: The nomination forms of 93 candidates were found to be valid, while 16 were rejected during the scrutiny of papers for the second phase of Lok Sabha elections in Madhya Pradesh, poll officials said on Saturday.

DEL3 CONG-PM-UP

Double engine govt in UP ‘running dangerously low’ on fuel: Congress

New Delhi: Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress on Saturday claimed that the double-engine government in Uttar Pradesh is running “dangerously low” on fuel and that the PM must answer key issues of the state before the engine comes to a “sputtering halt on June 4”.

BOM3 CG-NAXALS-ENCOUNTER

Three Naxalites killed in encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh along Telangana border

Raipur: Three Naxalites were gunned down in an exchange of fire with security forces in a dense forest in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district bordering Telangana on Saturday, a senior police official here said.

MDS4 KL-MIGRANT WORKER-LYNCHING

Migrant worker killed in alleged mob lynching in Kerala; 10 held

Kochi: Ten people were arrested in a case of suspected mob lynching in Kerala’s Muvattupuzha where a migrant worker was allegedly beaten to death two days ago.

CAL3 ELECTIONS-WB-SHANTANU THAKUR-INTERVIEW

CAA ensures Matuas’ legal citizenship, protects against future NRC: Union Minister Shantanu Thakur

Kolkata: Union Minister and Matua leader Shantanu Thakur believes that the CAA will safeguard those belonging to the community by granting them “legal citizenship”, thus preventing them from being labelled as foreigners in the event of “a potential NRC exercise in the next 100 years”.

LEGAL

LGD2 DL-COURT-KAVITHA

Excise policy case: BRS leader K Kavitha moves court opposing CBI plea to quiz her in Tihar

New Delhi: BRS leader K Kavitha, arrested in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case, moved a court here on Saturday opposing a CBI plea that sought her interrogation in Tihar jail in a corruption case related to the alleged scam.

LGD1 DL-COURT-EXCISE POLICY-SISODIA

Excise policy scam case: Manish Sisodia’s judicial custody extended till April 18

New Delhi: A court here on Saturday extended the judicial custody of Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia till April 18 in a money laundering case related to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam.

FOREIGN

FGN22 MICROSOFT-CHINA-AI-ELECTIONS

China may misuse AI to target elections in countries like India and US to boost its geopolitical interests: Microsoft

New York: China is likely to deploy Artificial Intelligence-generated content via social media to sway public opinion to boost its geopolitical interests during elections in countries like India, South Korea and the US, tech giant Microsoft has warned.

FGN17 PAK-LAWYERS-JUDICIARY

Pakistan Bar Council demands formation of judicial commission of SC judges on meddling in judicial affairs

Islamabad: Pakistan’s top lawyer’s watchdog has demanded a judicial commission comprising sitting Supreme Court judges to look into complaints about the alleged meddling by the powerful intelligence agencies in judicial affairs.