Los Angeles riots: City of Angels turns into downtown of rioters
: MAGA supremo
Donald Trump
deployed 700 US marines to Los Angeles on Monday in addition to 4000 National Guard to quell spluttering protests against immigration raids even as he prepared to take the salute at a military parade in Washington to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the US Army on Saturday, which also happens to be his 79th birthday.
Optics of the twin developments suggested the possible onset of authoritarian rule in America that Trump has long expressed a liking for, particularly since protests against the strong-arm methods employed by heavy-handed immigration authorities were said to be dying down even as disquiet spread across liberal America. Demonstrations -- mostly peaceful -- against the Trump administration's immigration policies have now spread to several cities including San Francisco, Dallas, Austin and New York City.
California officials maintained that much of the violence in LA was centered in downtown area, pointing out that rest of the city and state were peaceful. Calling Trump's action a federal overreach they accusing his administration of provoking the riots. State governor Gavin Newscom, derided by the President as "Newscum," called the deployments "deranged behavior" on part of Trump to put US on the road to authoritarian rule.
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'That's an American president in 2025, threatening a political opponent who happens to be a sitting governor. That's not with precedent in modern times. That's what we see around the globe in authoritarian regimes," Newscom said after Trump said on Monday that he favored the governor's arrest, and Trump aides unloaded on California, calling the Democrat-governed state a haven for illegal immigrants.
"Illegal aliens invaded America.
The government of California aided and abetted that invasion," Trump's immigration policy architect Stephen Miller said on X, accusing political leaders of California and Los Angeles of "siding with the insurrectionist mobs fighting to dissolve America over the heroes of ICE fighting to save America."
MAGA protagonists, backed by stark visuals, seized on stray incidents of violence and looting, including one of an Apple story in downtown LA, to portray a city in flames to justify the federal military intervention.
If his administration had not deployed the army, the city 'would have been completely obliterated,' Trump claimed in a post on Truth Social.
But the heavy-handed response of federal forces was also starkly on display when troops appeared to deliberately aim and shoot a rubber bullet at an Australian reporter covering the unrest on live camera. The incident attracted the ire of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese who called it "horrific" and said his officials had raised the issue with the US.
'We don't find it acceptable that it occurred. And we think that the role of the media is particularly important," he said.
Separately, the Indian government too took up the incident where a young student appeared to be strong-armed into an aircraft for deportation.
The protests in Los Angeles were triggered after the Trump administration, under pressure from its MAGA base, began a crackdown on illegal immigrants, in the process hauling in undocumented workers seeking in regularize their status and in some cases even legal residents.
The action followed instructions from Stephen Miller, Trump's immigration policy czar, who reportedly told ICE officials -- who have been under fire for acting slowly and not producing impressive deportation numbers -- to drop the practice of developing lists of illegal immigrants. Instead, he directed them go out to places like Home Depot (where day Latino laborers hang out looking for work) and 7-Eleven convenience stores ( which is a haven for workers from the sub-continent) and haul in people for deportation.
Several dozens are said to have already been deported without due process triggering panic and alarm in immigrant communities, even among those with documentation.
The crackdown, while bringing joy to the MAGA base, has angered Democrats in California who draw political support from immigrant communities. "There is a real fear in Los Angeles right now. Parents, workers, grandparents, young people scared to go about their daily lives. We are a city of immigrants. Washington is attacking our people, our neighborhoods and our economy," said LA Mayor Karen Bass, urging the Trump administration to stop the raids.
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First Post
9 minutes ago
- First Post
Alaska summit: Putin wins hands down as Trump gifts him time
The Alaska summit proved that neither Trump knows Putin nor can guarantee a ceasefire or peace It was the typical high-voltage Donald Trump pomp and power show at the Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday. A B-2 Spirit Bomber escorted by four F-35 Lightnings conducted a flyover as a desperate Trump tried to persuade Vladimir Putin to reciprocate his unrequited love. They shook hands on the red carpet and later posed on a blue stage emblazoned with 'ALASKA 2025' amid parked F-22 Raptors. However, hours before, Putin, in his subtle yet powerful style, had already delivered his message loud and clear: Make USSR Great Again (MUGA). STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Harking back to the Soviet Union's superpower days of global dominance during the Cold War, Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov arrived at a hotel where Trump and Putin later met sporting an unusual dress breaking the diplomatic protocol. A black jacket over a white sweatshirt emblazoned with 'CCCP'—Union of Soviet Socialist Republics—and light blue denims. Lavrov's dress wasn't merely symbolic; it conveyed two messages. First, Putin's longing for the USSR's lost greatness and anger at its disintegration, which the Russian president had termed 'the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century'. Second, Russia's immense confidence in being back in the diplomatic fold after being declared a pariah by the West since Putin invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The stage was set. The performers were ready. Trump was accompanied by Marco Rubio (secretary of state), John Ratcliffe (CIA director), Steve Witkoff (special envoy to Ukraine and the Middle East). Scott Bessent (treasury secretary) and Howard Lutnick (commerce secretary). Putin's entourage comprised Lavrov, Yuri Ushakov (foreign policy adviser), Andrei Belousov (defence minister), Kirill Dmitriev (Russian Direct Investment Fund chief) and Anton Siluanov (finance minister). The audience expected to be spellbound by a scintillating performance by the brilliant cast. However, the most-anticipated drama was a big flop for the American audience and international media. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Neither Trump nor Putin took questions from a quote-famished media as reporters jostled to get even one comment. Both made their statements and left the media disappointed. Antagonist Putin turns protagonist The Russian president came, he saw and he conquered. Putin was brimming with confidence from the moment he agreed to take a ride on The Beast, Trump's armoured limousine, at the latter's request. He was a virtuoso, an artiste who had crafted and polished his skills in dealing with five American presidents—Bill Clinton, George W Bush, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Trump (six times in his first term).After the summit ended, Putin was the first to address the media as Trump stood silent by his side. Putin got what he eagerly sought—that too on American soil. Despite being shunned by the West, especially the Joe Biden administration, and having an ICC arrest warrant for committing war crimes in Ukraine, his performance was excellent. First, Putin, whose troops occupy around 18 per cent of Ukraine, including Crimea, 70 per cent of Donetsk and almost all of Luhansk (Donbas) and two-thirds of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, came out with the biggest gain. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Putin has time till November-end to capture more Ukrainian territory and to negotiate with both Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky from a more powerful position. By December, Ukraine's harsh winter would set in, making fighting extremely difficult. The Russian advance in eastern Ukraine has been incremental but continues. Putin has around three months to turn these slow gains into strategic wins. Moreover, neither Trump nor Putin announced the venue and date of another meeting. Putin wants to freeze the gains and the conquered areas in Russia's fold and Zelensky to drop his goal of joining NATO. The Ukrainian president rejects both demands. Before and after the summit, Trump said that a tri-lateral meeting between Putin, Zelensky and him would be the best option to reach peace. The Alaska summit was held months after Trump showed a willingness to meet Putin. Convincing Putin and Zelensky to meet face-to-face will require intensive diplomatic efforts and hectic parleys between the three countries. That will allow Putin to buy more time to advance further inside Ukraine. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Zelensky was quick to highlight how Putin will use the opportunity. '… we anticipate that in the coming days the Russian Army may try to increase pressure and strikes against Ukrainian positions in order to create more favourable political circumstances for talks with global actors', he wrote on Telegram. Second, Putin re-established diplomatic ties with the US amid a grand welcome in a country that led Nato against him without the Russian leader taking one step back. 'The past period was very difficult for bilateral relations. And, let's be honest. They have slid to the lowest point since the Cold War. … Obviously, sooner or later, it was necessary to correct the situation—to move from confrontation to dialogue. And in this regard, a personal meeting of the heads of the two states was really overdue,' he said with Trump by his side. Third, the much-touted summit hinged on a territorial swap between Russia and Ukraine—rejected by Zelensky—to reach a peace deal and end Europe's bloodiest war since WWII. That's what Trump had been chiming before the summit to the shock of European allies. However, during a virtual call with European leaders later, he said that any territorial concession should be decided by Ukraine. There was no discussion about a territorial swap at the meeting. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Fourth, Putin didn't even agree to a ceasefire—forget a peace deal. Earlier too, he never agreed to a ceasefire and continued with the onslaught despite several attempts by Trump and Witkoff, who had met Putin four times in over two months. Despite praising Trump and his administration for facilitating 'the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict', Putin didn't indicate ending the conflict. Fifth, he again blamed Ukraine, as did Trump during Zelensky's White House visit in February, for starting the war and repeated how Russia's security is under threat. 'I have said more than once that for Russia, the events in Ukraine are associated with fundamental threats to our national security.' On the other hand, Putin, using his trademark tactics, terming Ukrainians 'brotherly no matter how strange that may sound in today's conditions'. 'We have the same roots and everything that is happening for us is a tragedy and a great pain.' Putin put the ball in Trump's court while conflating Russia's 'legitimate concerns' and the 'root causes of the crisis' with a ceasefire and Ukraine's security. 'Therefore, our country is sincerely interested in putting an end to this. But at the same time, we are convinced that for the Ukrainian settlement to be sustainable and long-term, all the root causes of the crisis must be eliminated.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Putin was referring to Nato's eastward expansion and Ukraine's ambition to be part of the military bloc. Though Ukraine's security 'must, without a doubt, be ensured' and 'I would like to hope that the understanding we have reached will allow us to get closer to that goal and open the way to peace in Ukraine', Russia's 'legitimate concerns must be taken into account, and a fair balance in the security sphere in Europe and the world as a whole must be restored'. Putin said. Sixth, he massaged Trump's ego without conceding anything. 'Overall, we have established a very good business-like and trusting contact with President Trump,' he said knowing well how Trump gloats in self-praise and all the more when patted on the back by an adversary like him. 'And I have every reason to believe that by moving along this path, we can—the quicker the better—reach an end to the conflict in Ukraine,' Putin said without mentioning a timeline to end the war or even a ceasefire. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Putin's best shot was slamming Joe Biden and praising Trump for saying that the war would have never happened if he were the US president. 'And in the end, I would like to add one more thing. I'd like to remind you that in 2022, during the last contact with the previous administration, I tried to convince my previous American colleague that the situation should not be brought to the point of no return when it would come to hostilities and accept it quite directly back then—that is a big mistake,' he said of Biden without naming him. In the biggest boost to the US president's ego, he said that if Trump were the president in 2022, the war wouldn't have started, as claimed by him during the 2024 US election campaign. 'Today, when President Trump is saying that if he were the president back then, there would be no war, and I'm quite sure that it would indeed be so. I can confirm that,' Putin said. He even invited Trump to Moscow for another meeting—if it is held at all—in a rare public use of English. 'Next time in Moscow?' he said as the joint presser ended triggering an expected reaction from Trump, who said, 'Ooh! That's an interesting one. I don't know. I'll get a little heat on that one, but I could see it possibly happening. Thank you very much, Vladimir.' Trump was never in control of the plot Trump looked visibly exhausted. The American president expected to mesmerise the audience—but his performance was below average. There was no ceasefire or peace deal, contrary to his boastful claims of one in the offing, as Russia continued to attack Ukraine during the around-three-hour meeting. Inviting Putin to the US was Trump's first mistake. The cringeworthy display of military power play and posing with Putin, flanked by Raptors, was the second mistake. The big, hollow claims and threats made by Trump in the months and days leading up to the summit were his third and biggest blundTrump is all bluster and no bite whenever he confronts an equally dominating and powerful adversary like Putin or Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump wrote the Alaska summit script, but Putin controlled the plot. The Russian leader pulled the strings and his American counterpart danced all along—even in the months before the summit. Trump, like his predecessors, has failed miserably to read the former KGB agent, despite meeting him five times and talking to him over the phone nine times in his first presidency, seven calls after office and another six calls in his second term. Russian leaders have always outsmarted their American counterparts. Two months after America's failed Bay of Pigs invasion in Cuba, John F Kennedy met Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev at a summit in Vienna in 1961. In 1962, Khrushchev deployed nuclear missiles in Cuba, jolting Kennedy and bringing the world to the precipice of Armageddon. 'Kennedy allowed himself to be bullied by Khrushchev [in Vienna] and he regretted it,' according to award-winning journalist Evan Thomas, who authored the book Being Nixon: A Man Divided. 'Some scholars think that Khrushchev felt like he could push Kennedy around. And that made him, perhaps, more likely to put the missiles into Cuba.' Trump failed like Kennedy. From his campaign trail's hollow claim to end the war in 24 hours if he returned to power to cajoling and coercing Putin, Trump's blustering narrative of how he could influence the Russian leader to sign a peace deal fell flat and exposed his flaws. When Putin rejected his ceasefire offers, Trump threatened sanctions. The Russian president was unrelenting. Soon, Trump's frustration with him was public. He was visibly 'very angry' and 'pissed off' at the 'bullshit' thrown by 'crazy' Putin. Finally, he gave Putin a 50-day deadline to end the war or face more sanctions and secondary sanctions on top buyers of Russian crude oil (China and India). He failed. Then Trump reduced the deadline to 10-12 days. He failed again. Trump had also boasted that he would know exactly in 'the first two minutes' of the meeting whether a deal could be made', and also vowed to 'walk' away from the table if the talks remained inconclusive. In the end, it boiled down to a no-show with Trump's blow-hot-and-cold attitude resulting in a mockery. Trump's 'two-minute' boast fizzled out as the meeting lasted for more than two-and-a-half hours—neither did he walk away from the unproductive talks as pledged earlier. In his statement, shorter than that of Putin's, Trump's usual strategy of fake claims regarding the war and his one-sided bromance with Putin were on display. '…I believe we had a very productive meeting. There were many, many points that we agreed on, most of them, I would say,' he said despite Putin not agreeing to even a ceasefire. 'There are just a very few that are left. Some are not that significant. One is probably the most significant, but we have a very good chance of getting there. We didn't get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there,' he added. Aware that he had achieved nothing but zilch, Trump admitted that there were 'a couple of big ones [points] that we haven't quite gotten there, but we've made some headway. So, there's no deal until there's a deal'. Sensing that he would be pilloried by the media for failing to squeeze even one ounce of concession from Putin, Trump conveniently put the onus on NATO and Zelensky. 'It's ultimately up to them. They're going to have to agree with what Marco and Steve.' Finally, he was back to his admiration for Putin, who has always manipulated him. Claiming that Putin and he 'really made some great progress today', Trump said, 'I've always had a fantastic relationship with President Putin—with Vladimir. We had many, many tough meetings, good meetings.'To please Putin further, Trump reiterated that the Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election was a 'hoax'. 'We were interfered with by the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax. It made it a little bit tougher to deal with, but he [Putin] understood it. I think he's probably seen things like that during the course of his career. He's seen—he's seen it all. But we had to put up with the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax. He knew it was a hoax, and I knew it was a hoax.' Trump's statement was a redux of his meeting with Putin in Helsinki in July 2108 when he sided with Russia against US intelligence agencies and denied any election interference. In another feat of imagination, Trump concluded by saying that both were on the same page about stopping the killing of Ukrainians. 'We had some good meetings over the years, right? … Let's do the most productive one right now. We're going to stop, really, 5, 6, 7 thousand, 1000s of people a week from being killed, and President Putin wants to see that as much as I do.' Post-summit comments show who's winner A few days before the summit, the White House was careful not to portray it as a Trump show that could guarantee a ceasefire or a peace deal. However, Trump was back to his boisterous ways claiming that Putin wants a peace deal, not to occupy the whole of Ukraine, because of their rapport. 'I think he [Putin] has wanted the whole thing,' he told Fox News host Brian Kilmeade's radio show. 'But because of a certain relationship that he has with me running this country, I believe now he's convinced that he's going to make a deal. He's going to make a deal. I think he's going to.' Later, he doubled down on his claim at the White House. 'I think President Putin will make peace.' Trump's claim sounded very stale. In February, he made the same claim. 'I mean, I know him very well. Yeah, I think he wants peace. I think he would tell me if he didn't.' The Alaska summit proved that neither Trump knows Putin nor can guarantee a ceasefire or peace. Putin didn't concede anything while Trump gave away everything. The post-summit comments proved how Putin had outmanoeuvred Trump. In his first comments after the summit, all Putin had to say was a few words of praise for Trump and how they 'talked about a possible resolution of the Ukrainian crisis on a fair basis'. 'The visit was timely and very useful. We discussed practically all areas of our cooperation,' he said without providing any details about the points of cooperation, a ceasefire or peace. 'We naturally respect the position of the US administration, which sees the need for an immediate end to hostilities, and we would also like to see this happen. We would like to move towards resolving all issues by peaceful means. No indication of a ceasefire, an end to the conflict or even a trilateral meeting with Trump and Zelensky. On the other hand, Trump granted Putin's wish. 'I wouldn't be thrilled if I didn't get it [a deal],' he told Fox News on the way to Alaska. 'Everyone says, 'You're not going to get a ceasefire. It'll take place in the second meeting.' But I'm not going to be happy with that.' Several hours later, Trump made a predictable U-turn realising that he had returned empty-handed—no ceasefire but only a peace deal. In the event, there was no agreement on a ceasefire, and Trump downplayed its importance in a post on Truth Social as he returned to Washington. 'It was determined by all that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement, which often do not hold up,' he posted on Truth Social after returning to Washington. It's obvious that Putin didn't agree to a ceasefire and called for a peace deal so that he could buy more time to continue his assault and seize more Ukrainian territory. That's the reason both presidents refused to interact with the media at Anchorage. If Trump had revealed what transpired at the meeting and how he agreed to Putin's insistence on a peace deal, not a ceasefire, he would have faced a barrage of questions. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia and a former president, summed it up precisely how Putin got what he wished for without preconditions. 'Important fact. The meeting has demonstrated that negotiations are possible without preconditions while the Special Military Operation continues,' he wrote. The writer is a freelance journalist with more than two decades of experience and comments primarily on foreign affairs. He tweets as @FightTheBigots. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views.
India.com
9 minutes ago
- India.com
Massive layoffs: 3 lakh people to lose jobs in India due to Trump tariffs? Experts warn jobs at risk in Textiles, Gems and…
Company- Representative image The sharp US tariffs on Indian exports have split expert opinion while some warn of an imminent jobs crisis, others argue that strong domestic demand and diversified trade ties could soften the blow. 'The recent imposition of additional US tariffs is expected to have a direct and substantial impact on India's employment landscape. This will especially impact those industries relying heavily on the US market for business continuity and growth,' workforce solutions and HR services provider Genius HRTech founder, chairman and managing director R P Yadav told PTI. Trump Tariffs: 2 To 3 Lakhs Jobs At Risk? Sectors like textiles, auto components, agriculture, and gems and jewellery are the most vulnerable, with MSMEs bearing the brunt, said Yadav. He estimates that 2,00,000 to 3,00,000 jobs are at immediate risk, with textiles alone, which is labour-intensive, potentially losing 1,00,000 jobs, if the tariff regime continues beyond the next six months. 'Similarly, in the gem and jewellery sector, including units in Surat and SEEPZ in Mumbai, thousands of jobs are at risk due to reduced demand and cost escalation in the US market,' he added. However, TeamLease Services Senior Vice President Balasubramanian Anantha Narayanan does not see the possibility of job losses, saying India is largely a domestic consumption-driven economy, unlike China. Trump Tariffs Risks Jobs At Pharma, Electronics, Textiles, Gems And Jewellery? 'At this point in time, we aren't seeing any signs of a slowdown or loss of jobs. This also by extension means that our jobs are largely in service of domestic demand too, with the exception of some sectors like ITeS among others. Our exports to the USA are USD 87 billion, which is roughly about 2.2 per cent of our overall GDP. Largely pharma, electronics etc. won't be affected for now, which will further limit the export exposure to industries such as textiles, gems and jewellery among others,' he said. Moreover, these tariffs come into effect later this month, and some negotiations are likely to happen before that, he added. The slowdown in jobs growth is much more due to the overall slowdown in global demand and consumption, uncertainty around tariffs, and geopolitical conflicts in various parts of the globe, he added. Meanwhile, CIEL HR MD and CEO Aditya Mishra said the US tariff scenario is unsettling for Indian exporters, especially in sectors that are heavily dependent on the American market, such as electronics, textiles, gems and jewellery, auto components, leather, footwear, shrimp, and engineering goods. 'Even industries outside the direct tariff ambit, like pharmaceuticals, are feeling the ripple effect through costlier upstream chemicals and materials,' he noted. 'While widespread layoffs appear unlikely at this stage, companies are already in cost-containment mode, reducing discretionary spending, streamlining production, and freezing hiring.,' he added. (With Inputs From PTI)
The Hindu
9 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Here are this past week's main stories in charts
(1) Plea for SC/ST 'creamy layer' in Supreme Court The Supreme Court sent a notice to the Centre after it received a plea calling for the establishment of a creamy layer system in SC/ST reservations, similar to that seen within the OBC. Currently, a creamy layer is recognised for SCs and STs only in promotions within government jobs. This comes from a 2006 verdict that said the creamy layer will be taken into account for such promotions. Here is a brief timeline of key judgments regarding the issue, noting the considerations before the Court. These key judgments have shown that a majority of judges in Supreme Court Benches have supported the creation of a 'creamy layer' of SCs and STs based on individual conditions, while recognising the inherent backwardness of these communities as a whole. When it comes to reservation at other levels, what is to be decided by States is the criteria to decide what constitutes the creamy layer - whether it is economic conditions, vocations or something else. (2) Trump-Putin Alaska summit yields no deal on war U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday (August 16. 2025) that Ukraine should make a deal to end the war with Russia because 'Russia is a very big power, and they're not', after a summit where Vladimir Putin was reported to have demanded more Ukrainian land. After the two leaders met in Alaska on Friday, Trump told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that Putin had offered to freeze most front lines if Kyiv ceded all of Donetsk, the industrial region that is one of Moscow's main targets, a source familiar with the matter said. Zelenskiy rejected the demand, the source said. Russia already controls a fifth of Ukraine, including about three-quarters of Donetsk province, which it first entered in 2014. The meeting between US and Russian presidents, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, was billed as a vital step towards peace in Ukraine. But with no ceasefire and an invitation to Moscow, the meeting has yielded more questions than answers. Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has been gradually advancing for months. The war - the deadliest in Europe for 80 years - has killed or wounded well over a million people from both sides, including thousands of mostly Ukrainian civilians, according to analysts. (3) Retail inflation eases to 8-year low of 1.55% in July Retail inflation in India slipped to 1.55% in July 2025, the lowest since June 2017, and below the Reserve Bank of India's comfort band of 2-6%, primarily led by a contraction in food prices. The Consumer Price Index (CPI), released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on Tuesday (August 12, 2025), showed inflation in India has been easing for nine consecutive months. The rate of inflation in the food and beverages category came in at -0.8% in July 2025, lower than -0.2% in June and 5.1% in July 2024. Vegetable and pulses prices contracted 21% and 14% respectively, driven by a high base and falling prices. Core inflation, which excludes the impact of food and fuel prices, also eased to 4.1% in July 2025 from 4.4% in the previous month, nearly at the RBI's target of 4%. The other broad categories in the CPI saw inflation remaining nearly the same in July as in June. The pan, tobacco and intoxicants category saw inflation remain flat at 2.4% in July. Similarly, the clothing and footwear category saw inflation ease marginally to 2.5% in July from 2.5% in June. Inflation in the housing segment remained at 3.2% in July, while that in the fuel and light category quickened to 2.7% in July from 2.5% in June. (4) Three-member panel to probe Justice Yashwant Varma case Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday (August 12, 2025) set in motion the process of removing Justice Yashwant Varma of Allahabad High Court by admitting a motion, signed by 146 members, and constituting a three member inquiry committee to probe the charges against Justice Varma. The inquiry committee comprises Supreme Court judge Justice Aravind Kumar, Madras High Court Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and senior Karnataka High Court advocate B.V. Acharya. Justice Varma was repatriated from the Delhi High Court to the Allahabad High Court after burnt wads of currency notes were found at his official residence on March 14. Subsequently, an in-house inquiry of the Supreme Court had indicted Justice Varma. Earlier, then Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna had initiated an in-house probe into the allegations and set up the three-member committee in March to conduct the inquiry. After receiving the report, the CJI asked Justice Varma to resign or face impeachment proceedings. However, since Justice Varma declined to quit, CJI Khanna then forwarded the report and the Judge's response on it to the President of India and the Prime Minister for removal of the judge. Though Justice Varma had moved the Supreme Court against CJI Khanna's recommendation for his removal, the top court rejected his plea. (5) Afghanistan begins its fifth year of Taliban rule On August 15, 2021, the Taliban marched into Kabul, returning to power after two decades, as internationally backed President Ashraf Ghani fled the country. Since then, the former insurgents have consolidated their grip on power, excluded women and girls from public life, stamped out internal dissent and external challengers, and gained debut recognition as the country's official government from Russia, a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council. The Taliban govern through decrees, but Afghans have aspirations and needs that cannot be fulfilled through edicts and ideology. Here is a look at key dates since the Taliban returned to power four years ago:
