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CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Thursday said that entire revenue from petroleum cess and surcharge goes to the central government and if the government needs more revenue, taxes should be collected from the rich people in the country.

Yechury was speaking at a press conference at the 23rd CPI (M) Party Congress in Kannur, Kerala.

The CPM Party Congress passed a resolution demanding the central government to withdraw cess, surcharges and additional taxes on petroleum products.

Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov on Thursday accused Ukrainian negotiators of departing from the demands Kyiv had put forth during talks in Turkey last month. Stating that Ukraine is not interested in ending the fighting, he said Russia would nonetheless continue talks and press to secure their requirements.

Lavrov said Ukraine on Wednesday presented a draft peace deal to Russia that contained “unacceptable” elements. "Such inability to agree once again highlights Kyiv's true intentions, its position of drawing out and even undermining the talks by moving away from the understandings reached," the Russian foreign minister said.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Thursday urged External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to help the Sri Lankan Tamils who are affected by the current economic crisis. In a phone conversation, Stalin said Sri Lanka is facing one of the worst economic situations and the state government was prepared to send rice, dal and other essential medicines to Sri Lanka from Tuticorin, and asked for the required permit.

Stalin requested the help of the Indian embassy in Sri Lanka to supply essential items to the Sri Lankan Tamils.

The family does not need the Al Qaeda chief's support, announced the father of Muskaan, the Karnataka student who shouted "Allahu Akbar" at a mob chanting "Jai Shree Ram" to protest against the hijab in educational institutions. This comes after the girl found a mention in the terror group's poster and a poem was dedicated to her by the chief of the group.

"I don't know who they are. We saw this (Al Qaeda's reactions) through the media. They were speaking in Arabic. What they are doing is wrong. They welcomed my daughter. They are trying to create fights among us. All this is not needed," he told reporters on Wednesday.

One of the most wanted terrorists, the elusive chief of Al Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri, in a new video, spoke about the Hijab row that erupted in Karnataka earlier this year, calling Muskaan "India's noble lady" and reading a poem in her praise.

The 193-member UN General Assembly will vote on Thursday on a U.S. push to suspend Russia from the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council, diplomats said.

A two-thirds majority of voting General Assembly members in New York can suspend a country for committing gross and systematic violations of human rights. Russia is in the second year of a three-year term on the 47-member Human Rights Council.

As per reports, the vote is "confirmed for 10:00 am," Paulina Kubiak, a spokeswoman for the presidency said Wednesday.