This is the Catchup on 3 Things by The Indian Express and I’m Ichha Sharma.
Today is the 24th of January and here are this week’s headlines.
A Sealdah court on Monday sentenced Sanjay Roy to life imprisonment for raping and murdering a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College in August. Roy was convicted on Saturday, nearly six months after his arrest. The court imposed a Rs 50,000 fine and ordered the West Bengal government to pay Rs 1.7 million in compensation to the victim’s family. Junior doctors at RG Kar expressed dissatisfaction with the verdict.
Chalapati, a 62-year-old Maoist leader, was killed in an encounter on Tuesday with security forces near the Chhattisgarh-Odisha border. Known for his rapid rise through the ranks, Chalapati orchestrated several high-profile attacks, including the 2018 killing of TDP MLA Kidari Sarveswara Rao. Hailing from Andhra Pradesh, he was believed to be the mastermind behind the deadly attack in Araku Valley, which also targeted former MLA Siveri Soma. His wife, Aruna, allegedly led the Maoist group involved in the murders.
At least 12 passengers were killed and 10 injured on Wednesday after they jumped off the Pushpak Express in panic following rumors of a fire onboard. The passengers were run over by the Karnataka Express traveling on an adjacent track in Jalgaon, Maharashtra. Around 30-35 people are suspected to have jumped. Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis expressed deep grief, paying tribute to the victims. Rescue operations were launched with ambulances and railway vans deployed at the scene.
Ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) released its manifesto on Wednesday with a focus on middle-class welfare. Party chief Arvind Kejriwal highlighted seven demands to be included in the Union Budget, urging transformative reforms in education, healthcare, and senior citizen welfare. Kejriwal emphasized the need to prioritize the middle class, proposing changes to taxation and policies that would improve quality of life for Delhi’s working families and address their pressing concerns.
On his first day after swearing in as the US President, Donald Trump signed an executive order limiting immigration laws, including birthright citizenship on Tuesday. The new policy restricts automatic U.S. citizenship to children born on American soil, requiring at least one parent to be a U.S. citizen, green card holder, or military member. This change may impact millions of Indian-Americans, complicating their pursuit of permanent residency, as birthright citizenship was a crucial pathway to citizenship for many foreign-born children.
Meanwhile, at least nine Palestinians were killed and 40 others were left wounded after Israel launched a major military operation in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin on Tuesday. The operation came as Israel’s ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza entered its third day, bringing the 15-month conflict to a halt. On Monday, the top general in Israel resigned, citing security failures that led to Hamas’ attack on October 7, 2023. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said he is considering going to the Middle East, but not immediately amid the return of hostages, while reiterating that the attack on Israel by Hamas should not have happened
This was the Catch Up on 3 Things by the Indian Express
