StatusWire — Clear Updates for Your U.S. Journey

As JMM hardens stance, Congress names observers for Rajya Sabha polls in Jharkhand

The Hindu – National

4d ago

As JMM hardens stance, Congress names observers for Rajya Sabha polls in Jharkhand

Summary

Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one. Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription Updated - June 16, 2026 03:05 pm IST - New Delhi Congress leaders Bhupesh Baghel (left) and Ajay Sharma (right) were appointed as AICC observers Rajya Sabha polls in Jharkhand. File. | Photo Credit: PTI Hours after JMM legislators demanded that the ruling party contest both the Rajya Sabha seats in Jharkhand , the Congress on Friday (June 5, 2026) named Bhupesh Baghel and Ajay Sharma as AICC observers for the polls in which it has named Pranav Jha as its nominee. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has approved the proposal for the appointment of Mr. The meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Hemant Soren, was held a day after the Congress announced senior party functionary Pranav Jha as its candidate for one of the two Rajya Sabha seats in the State. Jharkhand Congress demands cancellation of BJP-backed Nathwani's RS poll nomination After the meeting, Minorities Welfare and Water Resources Minister Hafizul Hassan told reporters that the JMM would field candidates for both seats. On Thursday (June 4, 2026), the Congress announced the name of Jha, a close associate of party president Mallikarjun Kharge, as its nominee for one of the seats. Indian National Congress / Jharkhand / Rajya Sabha / parliament / Jharkhand Mukti Morcha Terms & conditions | Institutional Subscriber Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences.

From the source

Party legislators said a decision on contesting both seats would be taken soon and authorised JMM president Soren to finalise the candidates’ names

Read the full article

Published by The Hindu – National on thehindu.com

Open on thehindu.com ↗

'PR first, not nation': Congress slams PM for not raising issue of Indian seafarers' killing with Trump

Subscribed with another email? Unlock these with Subscription Published - June 20, 2026 04:43 pm IST - New Delhi Congress leader Pawan Khera addressing the media on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Congress Headquarters, in New Delhi on Saturday. | Photo Credit: Sushil Kumar Verma The Congress on Saturday (June 20, 2026) lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for "not taking up" with U.S. The U.S. killed three Indian sailors, yet Trump did not even express regret because Narendra Modi sat there "meekly", content merely with the praise he was receiving, the Congress leader said. Also Read | Attacks on ships ‘unacceptable’, says India; Trump blames Iran "(External Affairs Minister) S Jaishankar returns after being reprimanded by Marco Rubio. This is not "nation first' but "PR first", the Congress leader asserted. "Trump stated that if anyone attacked India while Modi was the prime minister, the US would come to its aid. This statement made it sound as though we were an American colony... whereas India has won numerous wars on its own strength," the Congress leader said. Modi for not mentioning the killing of three Indian seafarers during his public remarks with U.S. The meeting came days after three Indian seafarers were killed onboard a merchant ship in a U.S. military strike. Lakhs of Indian seafarers operate in the maritime trade sector.

thehindu.com

Green Card19h ago

First pelicans in 360 years hatch in St James’s Park London

Birds have been in the park since the Russian ambassador gave King Charles II two in 1664 – but none ever bred there They arrived in the royal park shortly before the Great Fire of London , when the Russian ambassador presented a pair to King Charles II as a gift. But although pelicans have been living in St James’s Park since 1664, none ever learned the art of courtship – until now, when for the first time in more than 360 years, chicks have been born. The first of four chicks hatched on 17 May and all have now survived their first month, to the delight of the Royal Parks manager, Mark Wasilewski. “This really is a first for us,” he said. “We’re gobsmacked.” There are six adult great white pelicans living in the park: two males, called Sun and Moon, and four females, called Star, Isla, Tiffany and Gargi. “Pelicans normally only breed when they’re in large groups of 10, 12 or more,” said Wasilewski. “We’ve always had between two and six – never a great number – and as the pelicans have passed away, we’ve decided when it’s time to bring in some more … just to keep that tradition going, which we think is a really important tradition for St James’s Park.” Five eggs were laid in three nests, and eight-year-old Star and 30-year-old Gargi, an “elderly female pelican”, shared sitting on one nest. “One of the two males must have impregnated one of them, but unfortunately we don’t know which of the two actually laid the eggs,” he said. “And we don’t know which dad has played around.” Gargi has been a permanent resident of St James’s Park since she was found in a garden in Southend 1996, although she has occasionally been spotted flying to London zoo in Regent’s Park to steal fish. Wasilewski is working with Blackpool zoo, Royal Veterinary College, the Zoological Society of London and the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, to provide expert care for the chicks. He said they had a ferocious appetite – “which is good news” – and were “ever so ugly”. “Someone said they look a little like dinosaurs. They’re completely black, they’re featherless and already they’ve got the little pointed bills.” They are beginning to grow “nice furry chestnut-brown down”, but they will not start getting feathers until they are eight or nine weeks old. The chicks are “just beginning to waddle” around the nest but are vulnerable until they take to the water with their parents when they are about 12 weeks old. Visitors have been urged to give them space and avoid disturbing them. “They’re growing at an enormously fast rate. Week one, they were the size of a pigeon. Week two, they were the size of a very small duck.

theguardian.com Read ↗

As JMM hardens stance, Congress names observers for Rajya Sabha polls in Jharkhand

From the source

More in Green Card

'PR first, not nation': Congress slams PM for not raising issue of Indian seafarers' killing with Trump

First pelicans in 360 years hatch in St James’s Park London

No good news for Indian Green Card applicants in July 2026 US visa bulletin, EB-1 date backslides by 2 months