Today's news LIVE! Jan 31 | India rejects reference to PM Modi in Epstein files

Sunetra Pawar stepped into active politics later than many in her family. In 2024, she contested the Baramati Lok Sabha seat, long a Pawar stronghold, but lost to her sister-in-law Supriya Sule of the rival NCP (SP). Despite the defeat, the campaign established her as a prominent political figure.

Soon after, she was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha, replacing Praful Patel and consolidating her presence in both state and national politics. According to data from the Rajya Sabha website and PRS Legislative Research, her parliamentary record offers an insight into her engagement. She has so far raised 126 questions, well above the national average of 92, largely centred on practical concerns such as agriculture, conservation of the Western Ghats, railway projects, and preparations for the 2027 Nashik Kumbh Mela.

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Sunetra Pawar (62), the wife of late NCP chief Ajit Pawar, has been sworn in as Maharashtra’s first woman deputy Chief Minister at a ceremony in Mumbai.

Following Ajit Pawar’s death in an air crash in Baramati on January 28, the Nationalist Congress Party, a constituent of the Mahayuti government, elected her as the leader of its legislature wing.

A letter to that effect was submitted to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who forwarded it to Governor Acharya Devvrat.

Emails threatening bomb blasts at the Dera Sachkhand Ballan and five schools in Jalandhar were received on Saturday (January 31), a day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's scheduled visit to the headquarters of the sect.

Nothing suspicious was found during extensive security checks at the schools, which were closed on account of a holiday related to Guru Ravidas Jayanti, officials said, adding that Dera premises are already under tight security due to PM Modi's visit.

The emails were sent to the schools, threatening to blow them up and Dera Ballan. The messages also said that PM Modi was "an enemy of Khalistanis", according to officials.

Modi will visit Dera Ballan on the occasion of the 649th Guru Ravidas Jayanti on Sunday. He will inaugurate the civil terminal of the Halwara airport in Punjab. He will visit Adampur airport, where he will unveil its new name -- Sri Guru Ravidas Ji Airport.

Hospitals in Gaza said Israeli strikes killed at least 23 Palestinians Saturday (January 31), one of the highest tolls since the October ceasefire aimed at stopping the fighting.

A day after Israel accused Hamas of new ceasefire violations, strikes hit locations throughout Gaza, including lethal ones on an apartment building in Gaza City and a tent camp in Khan Younis, officials at hospitals that received the bodies said. The casualties included two women and six children from two different families. An airstrike also hit a police station in Gaza City, killing at least 11 and wounding others, Shifa Hospital director Mohamed Abu Selmiya said.

The series of strikes also came a day before the Rafah crossing along the border with Egypt is set to open in Gaza's southernmost city. All of the territory's border crossings have been closed throughout almost the entire war. Palestinians see Rafah as a lifeline for the tens of thousands in need of treatment outside the territory, where the majority of medical infrastructure has been destroyed.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday (January 31) mounted an all-out attack on the TMC government, accusing it of shielding infiltrators, institutionalising corruption and deliberately undermining border security for electoral gains.

Shah said the formation of a BJP government in the state was no longer just a political objective, but a “national security necessity”.

Addressing a massive BJP workers’ meeting at Barrackpore in North 24 Parganas, the home minister asserted that the 2026 assembly elections would mark the TMC’s ouster from power.

“The way infiltration is taking place in West Bengal, it has become a security issue for the entire country. Even after court orders, the TMC government is not giving land to the BSF for border fencing because infiltrators are its vote bank,” Shah alleged.

He claimed that the administration and police in the state were not stopping illegal migrants, who were being sent across the country using fake documents.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Sunday (January 31) inaugurate the civil terminal of the Halwara airport in Punjab and rename the Adampur airport after Sant Ravidas.

PM will visit Adampur airport on Sunday where he will unveil its new name -- Sri Guru Ravidas Ji Airport.

"On the auspicious occasion of the 649th birth anniversary of Sant Guru Ravidas ji, the renaming of Adampur Airport honours the revered saint and social reformer whose teachings of equality, compassion, and human dignity continue to inspire India's social ethos," a statement from the PMO said.

Located in Ludhiana district, Halwara is also home to a strategically important Indian Air Force station. The previous airport at Ludhiana had a relatively small runway, suitable for small-size aircrafts.

Billionaire Gautam Adani and his nephew, Sagar Adani, have agreed to receive a legal notice from the US Securities and Exchange Commission in a civil fraud lawsuit alleging they misled investors about a bribery scheme, according to a court filing.

The stipulation is subject to court approval.

In a filing in a federal court in Brooklyn, New York, seen by PTI, the SEC and US-based lawyers for Gautam and Sagar Adani said the lawyers had agreed to accept service of the regulator's legal papers, removing the need for a judge to rule on how the defendants should be served.

The joint application (or stipulation) has been submitted for approval from the concerned Court. This is a standard procedural step in US legal proceedings that allows for the orderly resolution of cases.

If agreed by the judge, the joint application will allow the SEC matter to progress while giving time to the Adanis to either file their motion to dismiss or their defence within 90 days. The SEC thereafter can file their opposition within a further period of 60 days. The Defendants can file their replies to such opposition within 45 days.

The SEC had filed a lawsuit in November 2024 alleging that the two violated US securities laws by making false and misleading representations about Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL).

In addition to the SEC's civil complaint, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, New York, have charged the Adanis and others with allegedly helping to drive a USD 265 million bribery scheme in India to secure solar power contracts. The Adani Group has repeatedly denied all accusations made against it or the founder family.

Congress leader VD Satheesan said on Saturday (January 31) that the party and the UDF were not against high-speed rail, if the project was environmentally-sustainable and financially-viable for the state.

"We are not against any high-speed rail project, and it should come. But there should be proper environmental studies, and it should be financially viable for Kerala," the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly told reporters.

Commenting on the ongoing debate between the state government-backed Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS), and "Metro Man" E Sreedharan’s high-speed rail project, Satheesan said Kerala required faster mobility solutions, and that infrastructure development should proceed.

He said his party would not object to such a project whether it was brought by the Centre or the state government.

"The RRTS project was announced towards the end of the government’s tenure, just before it is going to leave the office. It was announced without even a preliminary study. However, we will support any good project," he said.

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Rajya Sabha MP Sunetra Pawar will be sworn-in as Maharashtra’s deputy Chief Minister on Saturday (January 31) at 5 pm in Mumbai. She will become the first woman deputy CM of Maharashtra, replacing her late husband Ajit Pawar.

Ajit Pawar who was deputy chief minister and finance minister in the Devendra Fadnavis-led Mahayuti government, was killed in a plane crash in Baramati was killed in a plane crash, along with 4 others, on January 28.

NCP leaders Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare met Sunetra Pawar at the official residence ahead of the legislature party meeting. 

The legislature party meeting will be held at 2 pm in the Vidhan Bhavan office, following which Sunetra Pawar is expected to take oath as the deputy chief minister.

Earlier, addressing a press conference in Baramati, NCP (SP) leader Sharad Pawar said that he had found out about the swearing-in through media reports.