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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has alleged in its supplementary chargesheet filed in connection with the Delhi Excise Policy Scam that former Delhi`s Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, "destroyed" a draft Cabinet Note which was prepared by the Excise Department and put up before the Council of Ministers in the meeting which was held on January 28, 2021.

In the draft Cabinet Note, the legal opinions of Ranjan Gogoi and K.G. Balakrishnan, both former Chief Justice of India (CJI), Mukul Rohtagi, senior advocate and former attorney general of India (AGI), and others were obtained.

The Andhra Pradesh government has issued two separate orders, authorising police to attach former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s sprawling bungalow on banks of the Krishna river in Vijayawada and plots bought by former TDP minister P Narayana purportedly through benami transactions. The government order, issued on May 12, also sought moving court for swift action.

Home secretary Harish Kumar Gupta claimed investigations “revealed the duo amassed ill-gotten wealth, their properties were illegally acquired and liable to be attached”. Naidu and Narayana were named Accused No. 1 and Accused No. 2 and charged with criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, cheating and booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The order followed a case lodged by the CID based on a complaint by YSRC MLA Alla Ramakrishna Reddy, alleging irregularities in Amaravati capital city master plan and alignment of Amaravati Inner Ring Road.

The suspense over the new Karnataka chief minister intensified on Monday as state Congress president D K Shivakumar cancelled his visit to the national capital citing health issues after he and Siddaramaiah, both frontrunners for the top post, were called by the central leadership for discussions.

The three central observers, who interacted with party MLAs on their choice for the CM's post after the Congress Legislature Party meeting on Sunday, briefed party chief Mallikarjun Kharge and submitted their report, sources said.

Former chief minister Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar were called by the party high command for further discussion on government formation. Siddaramaiah arrived this afternoon in the national capital, but Shivakumar cancelled his visit, hours after confirming he would be flying to Delhi, fuelling speculation that the factional fighting in Karnataka Congress had reared its head again.

Former Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot ended his Jan Sangharsh Yatra in Jaipur on Monday by asking to fulfill three of his demands by the end of the month. 

He also warned that if those demands are not met, then he will kickstart a statewide agitation against the government. 

The public meeting that marked the end of Pilot’s yatra in Jaipur also turned into a show of strength with the presence of thousands of youths, 15 MLAs and two ministers.

The Taliban has for the first time appointed a chargé d'affaires to head the Afghanistan embassy here, a top Taliban leader has confirmed. According to the Taliban, this diplomatic representative, Qadir Shah, was not being sent from Kabul as he’s been working with the embassy.

Confirming the development, the chief of Taliban’s political office in Doha and ambassador-designate to the United Nations, Suhail Shaheen, told ToI this was a rational move. ``It will build trust and pave the way for better relations with India,’’ said Shaheen.

The Indian government, which hasn’t recognised the dispensation in Kabul even though it reopened its embassy in Kabul in June last year, sees the development as an internal issue of the Taliban. It’s not clear yet if the decision has been officially communicated to the Indian government.