India news LIVE updates: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said West Bengal had “broken free from its shackles” and embarked on a new journey of development, asserting that the change brought about by a single electoral verdict was visible across the state. Addressing a programme to mark the ‘Paschimbanga Divas’ after inaugurating and laying the foundation stones for multiple development projects, Modi said the Congress, Left, TMC had allowed Bengal to become a hub for illegal infiltrators for over decades;
Commuters in Kolkata are likely to face major traffic disruptions on Sunday as the city hosts the national observance of the 12th International Day of Yoga at Red Road, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to lead the celebrations.
Ahead of the re-test, a NEET aspirant from Nagpur has been allotted an exam centre in Abu Dhabi, according to ANI. The father of the aspirant said that NTA acknowledged their concern and assured that they would issue a fresh admit card before the test.
Rejina Bibi, also known as Sarina, the wife of arrested Trinamool Congress leaderJahangir Khan, was arrested by West Bengal Police for allegedly planning to storm the Falta police station. Police said she was picked up from her hideout in Bishnupur in South 24 Parganas and will be produced before a court shortly. Officials said she has been booked under the Arms Act and relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). According to police sources, she allegedly planned an attack on the Falta police station to free her husband, Jahangir Khan, from custody.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) crisis sharpened on the party’s founding day, as Uddhav Thackeray made an emotional appeal to his cadre, even as Eknath Shinde warned that the recent wave of defections from Sena (UBT) was “just the trailer” of what is to come.
Iran has accused Washington of violating the first clause of their newly signed MoU, warning of a “heavy cost” after Israeli strikes continued in Lebanon despite the agreement. Tehran said the US bears responsibility for ending the war on all fronts. Separately, Trump praised PM Modi, saying India no longer “rips off” the US on trade.
An investigation uncovers an elaborate Instagram scam exploiting faith and desperation, offering a window into how digital fraud preys on vulnerable people seeking solutions to personal crises.
Haiti became the first team eliminated from the World Cup after a loss to Brazil, where Matheus Cunha’s dancing feet set an imperfect Brazil side rolling, with Vinicius also among the scorers.
Bengal witnessed partition. It saw its motherland being divided. Yet Bengal did not allow its identity and heritage to be destroyed. As a result, when there were attempts to separate the whole of Bengal from India, those plans were thwarted through the creation of West Bengal. The civilisation and culture that are thousands of years old, along with the region’s core faith and traditions, are not only preserved today in the form of West Bengal but remain vibrant as well. Therefore, when we observe Paschimbang divas, we are not merely remembering a date, but recalling an entire chapter of history, Modi said in Tarakeswar, West Bengal.
He added, “At the time of Partition, the Congress, which wanted to abandon Bengal as an orphan, began playing the game of appeasement even in the remaining Bengal after the Partition. This history of West Bengal has been suppressed. Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee became the founder of the Jana Sangh… so his contributions were denied. Efforts continued to eliminate the very ideology for which he had fought for Bengal. The land that has been connected to such great sons as Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Swami Vivekananda, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, and Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar—foreign ideologies were imposed upon it. First Congress, then Left, then TMC… for decades, instead of preserving and nurturing West Bengal, it was allowed to become a hub for illegal infiltrators.”
Congress left Bengal as orphan during Partition, indulged in appeasement politics after Independence, says PM Modi
Previous govt in Bengal had halted transfer of land for border fencing, that process started under present regime, says PM Modi in Tarakeswar, West Bengal.
Sukrita Baruah in Guwahati reports that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Manipur Police have arrested 10 individuals across several Manipur districts following coordinated search operations targeting six major conflict-related cases. These cases include the 2024 attack on former Chief Minister N. Biren Singh’s convoy, the November 2024 killing of a Hmar woman in Jiribam, a November 2023 bank robbery in Ukhrul involving the NSCN (Isak-Muivah), the February 2024 storming of an IRB camp, and an April 2024 attack on CRPF personnel.
Ahead of the NEET-UG 2026 examination, Vadodara City Police has completed comprehensive security preparations to ensure a safe, fair and transparent examination process. A mock drill was conducted at 17 examination centres with participation from police officials, centre staff and concerned agencies.
Antoreep Das in Kolkata reports that commuters in Kolkata are likely to face major traffic disruptions on Sunday as the city hosts the national observance of the 12th International Day of Yoga at Red Road, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to lead the celebrations. Red Road has remained closed to vehicles since June 14 for preparations and will stay shut until the event concludes on June 21. From 2 am on Sunday, several roads around the Maidan and Red Road area will be closed, including Hospital Road, Lovers Lane, Casuarina Avenue, Kingsway, Queensway, Plassey Gate Road, Dufferin Road, Outram Road and the Esplanade Ramp. Parts of Rani Rashmoni Avenue and Khidderpore Road will also be affected. Guru Nanak Sarani (Mayo Road) will remain closed to all vehicles except those with special permits.
Subasree Modak in Kolkata reports that the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast active monsoon conditions across West Bengal over the next two weeks, with North Bengal expected to receive widespread rainfall, including heavy to very heavy showers. From June 19 to June 25, North Bengal is likely to witness widespread light to moderate rain and thundershowers. Isolated places may receive heavy to very heavy rainfall of 7 cm to 20 cm, while one or two locations could get extremely heavy rain exceeding 20 cm. South Bengal is also expected to receive frequent light to moderate rain and thundershowers during the period, with isolated heavy rainfall in some districts.
Express Photo by Sankhadeep Banerjee
Sadaf Modak in Mumbai reports that a special Mumbai court acquitted eight people in the 2006 murder case of Congress leader Pavanraje Nimbalkar and his driver. The acquitted accused include former NCP minister Padamsinh Patil, who is the brother of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar.
Kamaldeep Singh Brar in Amritsar reports that Sri Akal Takht Sahib released a video recording of a January meeting between acting Akal Takht Jathedar Kuldeep Singh Gargajj and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, held in the presence of the Chief Minister’s personal assistant Rajbir Singh Ghuman. The video was released five days after the Akal Takht declared Mann a “Panth Dokhi” and “Khalsa Panth Virodhi”. The recording relates to Mann’s appearance before the Akal Takht on January 5 over a complaint linked to a viral video. In the clip, Gargajj is heard saying that he could not verify whether the video was genuine or doctored and supported a forensic examination to determine its authenticity. “I don’t know if this video is true or false. This is a subject for investigation,” Gargajj said in the recording, adding that no person’s reputation should be damaged if the video is eventually found to be fake.
Vallabh Ozarkar in Mumbai reports that the Shiv Sena (UBT) issued show-cause notices against the party’s six rebel Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs amid the “Operation Tiger” asking them to reply within 24 hours.The party warned that if the MPs failed to respond, it would treat their silence as voluntarily giving up party membership and could seek action under the anti-defection law. The move came after only three of the party’s nine Lok Sabha MPs — Arvind Sawant, Anil Desai and Rajabhau Waje — attended a parliamentary meeting in Delhi. The remaining six skipped the meeting amid reports that they are trying to form a separate group in the Lok Sabha and may eventually join the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reacted to the controversy of NTA issuing a NEET aspirant from Nagpur getting an exam centre in Abu Dhabi. In a post on X, he said that a system that can’t provide a center in a child’s own city but can send them abroad instead has no right to conduct exams.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of having a “blind devotion” to Israel and said this is hurting India’s interests. In a post on X, he said that Israelâs National Security Minister has just called for all Lebanon to burn. But as usual the Modi government has kept totally quiet.â
These remarks come a day after far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir on Friday said that “all of Lebanon must burn” after Israel’s military announced the deaths of four soldiers.
Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group on Friday agreed to halt the heavy fighting in southern Lebanon that had threatened to unravel an interim agreement between the United States and Iran to end their war, officials said. However, neither Israel nor Hezbollah immediately confirmed the truce.
Ravik Bhattacharya in Kolkata reports that Rejina Bibi, also known as Sarina, the wife of arrested Trinamool Congress leaderJahangir Khan, was arrested by West Bengal Police for allegedly planning to storm the Falta police station. Police said she was picked up from her hideout in Bishnupur in South 24 Parganas and will be produced before a court shortly. Officials said she has been booked under the Arms Act and relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). According to police sources, she allegedly planned an attack on the Falta police station to free her husband, Jahangir Khan, from custody.
Ahead of the NEET retest, a nationwide mock drill was conducted on Saturday to ensure smooth conduct of the examination, officials said. Security has also been tightened at the National Testing Agency (NTA) office in New Delhi.
The re-examination will be held on June 21 from 2 pm to 5.15 pm in pen-and-paper mode across 551 cities in India and 14 overseas centres for more than 22.79 lakh candidates.
Former Maharashtra minister Padamsinh Patil, 86, the main accused in the 2006 murder case of Congress leader Pavanraje Nimbalkar, arrived at the Mumbai City Civil and Sessions Court in an ambulance on Friday for the pronouncement of the judgment in the case.
Dharashiv MP Omraje Nimbalkar, the son of Pavanraje Nimbalkar and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader was also present in the courtroom. Omraje is among the six rebel Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs who are speculated to be considering a switch to the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, reports Sadaf Modak in Mumbai.
Express Photo by Ganesh Shirshekar
In yet another goof up, a NEET aspirant from Nagpur was allotted an examination centre in Abu Dhabi ahead of the upcoming retest. The student claimed that he had chosen Nagpur as one of the three preferred test cities. The father of the aspirant said that they were not in a position to send their child abroad for the exam. The family had lodged a complaint with the NTA helpline which acknowledged the mistake and assured that a revised centre would be allotted, says ANI.
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