Arabian Post Staff -Dubai The United States and Iran have halted attacks for a second consecutive night, creating a fragile opening for diplomacy after nearly two weeks of escalating strikes around the Strait of Hormuz. US forces carried out no reported air strikes against Iran during the weekend after 13 straight nights of operations aimed at missile sites, coastal positions and other capabilities used to threaten commercial […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai A viral Instagram post attributed to Archita Sachin Rahar, daughter of BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi, has triggered anger within the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Odisha unit after appearing to celebrate Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation as Union Education Minister. Screenshots circulating across social media show an Instagram story featuring Pradhan against the national flag and carrying the words: “Dharmendra Pradhan resigns amid massive student protests over […]
Supporters of the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party danced, raised slogans and waved national flags at their protest site at Jantar Mantar after Pradhan announced his departure. The group declared that “democracy wins” and called off its agitation after the government accepted key demands, including reforms to examination administration.
Pradhan’s resignation marked the first major concession by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government during weeks of demonstrations, sit-ins and hunger strikes. The protests began over allegations that papers for highly competitive entrance examinations had been leaked, affecting the prospects of millions of students seeking admission to colleges and professional courses.
The movement had insisted that administrative reforms alone would not be sufficient without ministerial responsibility. Protest organisers said Pradhan had to step down because the repeated breaches had damaged public trust and imposed financial and emotional costs on candidates and their families.
Modi announced on Sunday that a high-powered task force headed by technology entrepreneur Nandan Nilekani would overhaul the examination system. The panel will examine the use of technology, security procedures, logistics and administrative safeguards to make tests more transparent and resistant to manipulation.
The government also plans to introduce legislation in Parliament to strengthen penalties for those involved in leaking examination papers. The proposed measures are expected to target organised networks that obtain, distribute or sell question papers before examinations.
Nilekani, a co-founder of Infosys who played a central role in developing the Aadhaar digital identity programme, will lead a six-member group that includes specialists in technology, intelligence, space research, education and public administration. The selection signals an effort to combine digital safeguards with tighter physical security at printing centres, storage facilities and examination venues.
The concessions offered to protest leaders include the withdrawal of police cases filed against demonstrators and compensation for families of students who died by suicide following examination-related distress. Authorities also agreed to consider mechanisms for faster investigation and prosecution of paper-leak cases.
The agitation intensified after tens of thousands of young people marched towards Parliament in New Delhi. Police used batons and tear gas to stop protesters, leading to injuries and widespread criticism of the handling of the demonstration.
Security restrictions affected central parts of the capital, with several metro stations temporarily closed. Demonstrations spread to Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Goa, Guwahati, Thiruvananthapuram, Jammu and Ahmedabad, turning a dispute over examination integrity into a national political challenge.
Opposition lawmakers joined the protesters’ demand for Pradhan’s resignation and repeatedly disrupted proceedings in Parliament. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and several other opposition figures were detained during a demonstration near the prime minister’s residence and released later.
Pradhan, 57, had served in the Union government since Modi took office in 2014 and held several senior portfolios. His political standing within the Bharatiya Janata Party initially encouraged expectations that the government would defend him, even as pressure mounted from students, parents, activists and opposition parties.
The Cockroach Janta Party began as an online satire before developing into an organised protest platform. Its irreverent slogans, artwork and social-media campaigns attracted students, young professionals and families who felt established organisations had failed to articulate their concerns.
Environmental activist Sonam Wangchuk strengthened the campaign by beginning a hunger strike on June 28. He was later moved to hospital after his health deteriorated and demanded guarantees that participants would not face retaliatory legal action.
The examination controversy expanded into a wider debate over unemployment, limited economic opportunities and the intense competition surrounding public-sector recruitment and professional education. Young candidates often spend several years and substantial family savings preparing for entrance tests, making cancellations or leaks especially damaging.
About two million candidates were affected by the medical entrance examination at the centre of the latest dispute. Protesters argued that recurring allegations of compromised papers showed that existing safeguards had failed to keep pace with organised criminal groups and digital methods of distribution.
Houthi forces launched missiles and drones at Saudi oil facilities on the Red Sea coast as the United States halted its bombing of Iran after 13 consecutive nights, opening a narrow diplomatic pause while the regional conflict spread towards a second vital shipping corridor. The Yemen-based group said Saturday’s coordinated operation targeted Saudi Aramco installations in Jizan, close to the Yemeni border, and Yanbu, the kingdom’s principal […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai President Donald Trump halted planned US strikes on Iran on Friday after 13 consecutive nights of attacks, opening a narrow diplomatic window as Oman pressed talks over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The order marked the first night without a new American bombing operation in almost two weeks, but it did not amount to a ceasefire. US forces remained deployed across the […]
Matein Khalid As Centcom continues its nightly blitz on Iran, the so-called 60-day ceasefire has effectively ended. In truth, the fire never ceased. If Count Tolstoy lived in 2026, his magnum opus might well be renamed… War or Peace? Again. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) generals will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz while sanctions relief on Kharg Island oil sales remains a big ask. They know US […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Bahrain and Kuwait carried out covert airstrikes against military facilities inside Iran in early July, marking their first known direct offensive action against Tehran during the widening regional war. The operation targeted storage sites holding missiles and attack drones, along with other military installations linked to Iran’s capacity to strike Gulf countries. The United Arab Emirates supplied intelligence on potential targets and provided […]
President Donald Trump is considering a major expansion of United States attacks on Iran, warning that Tehran has not suffered enough pressure to accept a peace agreement as escalating hostilities drive oil prices above $100 a barrel. Trump said he was close to deciding whether to authorise an assault that would be larger than previous operations against Iran. He described the potential action as a “massive attack” […]
By Asad Mirza Washington and Riyadh have signed a civilian nuclear cooperation pact that could let Saudi Arabia enrich uranium on its own soil. Announced this week and now headed to Congress, the deal marks a historic shift in US nonproliferation policy, alarms Israel and threatens to reshape the regional balance of power just as […]
The article The US-Saudi Nuclear Deal Redrawing The Middle East’s Atomic Map appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has claimed that cruise missiles struck Amazon Web Services infrastructure in Bahrain, describing the facility as a key component of United States-linked digital operations in the Gulf. The scale and timing of any new damage have not been independently verified. The IRGC said the attack destroyed what it called Amazon’s central data hub in Bahrain. Its statement presented the operation as retaliation […]
A Saudi-owned oil products tanker was struck in the Red Sea, triggering a fire at its bow and raising fresh concerns over the security of energy shipments along one of the world’s most important maritime corridors. All crew members aboard the Encelia were safe after the attack, the Transport General Authority said on Thursday. Emergency measures were taken to secure the vessel, contain the fire and prevent […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington remained willing to negotiate an end to the Iran conflict, but accused Tehran of showing no serious commitment to diplomacy as attacks and threats disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb. Speaking during a visit to Manila on Wednesday, Rubio said the United States was prepared to pursue a negotiated settlement if […]
Matein Khalid The revival of the US-Israel-Iran war is set to intensify the concatenation of economic, energy and geopolitical shocks facing neighbouring Iraq. Before the February 28 onset of the conflict, Iraq was Opec’s second-largest oil producer, with estimated output of 4.3-4.5 million barrels per day. By June, national production had fallen to a paltry 817,000 bpd, comparable to that of minor producers such as Azerbaijan or Oman. This is an […]
The United States and Iran have intensified their exchange of attacks, drawing Gulf states deeper into a conflict that has entered an eleventh consecutive night of American strikes and raised the risk of a wider regional war. US Central Command said its latest operation targeted Iran’s military infrastructure, including coastal surveillance systems, air defence installations, maritime assets and storage facilities for missiles and drones. The campaign is […]
By Dr. Gyan Pathak Both Houses – Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha – of the Parliament of India adjourned for the second day of the Monsoon Session on July 21 amid protests by the opposition seeking discussion on the police “brutality unleashed” on students during their “March to Parliament” on July 20. The March was […]
The article Parliament Adjourned For The Second Day On Police Brutality Unleashed On Students appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
By Dr. Gyan Pathak The issues of irregularities in examinations in India and the theft of donations in Ram Temple at Ayodhya rocked the parliament on the first day of the Monsoon Session on July 20 and that led to adjournment of both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha until 12 PM just after obituary […]
The article Opposition Parties Rock Parliament In Support Of Fasting Sonam And CJP Protest March appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Iran has claimed that ballistic missiles and drones destroyed several US military aircraft stationed in Jordan, widening a fast-escalating exchange of attacks across the Middle East. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the operation targeted US fighter jets and aerial refuelling aircraft at military facilities in Jordan. It claimed several aircraft were destroyed and others seriously damaged, but offered no independently verifiable evidence. […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Iran launched missile and drone attacks on US military facilities across the Gulf on Friday after American forces completed a sixth consecutive night of strikes on Iranian military infrastructure, deepening a cycle of retaliation that has disrupted regional shipping and unsettled energy markets. Tehran said its forces targeted US facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait during the early hours of Friday. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards […]
The US military has disabled an oil tanker sailing towards Iran’s main crude export terminal, marking the first publicly disclosed attack on a commercial vessel since Washington renewed its blockade of Iranian ports. A US aircraft fired Hellfire missiles into the smokestack of the empty, Curaçao-flagged M/T Belma after the vessel ignored repeated warnings while crossing international waters towards Kharg Island. The strike left the tanker unable […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Iran has threatened to disrupt energy exports across the Middle East as renewed US military action and a naval blockade deepen the struggle for control of the Strait of Hormuz. The warning raised the prospect of attacks extending towards the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the southern entrance to the Red Sea and a vital route for oil, liquefied natural gas and container traffic. Iran’s […]
U. S. President Donald Trump has abandoned his proposed 20 per cent charge on cargo moving through the Strait of Hormuz, replacing it with planned trade and investment agreements with Gulf states while keeping a naval blockade on Iran in force. The reversal came a day after Trump said Washington would collect a “reimbursement fee” from vessels using the strategic waterway, a move that triggered objections over […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Iranian cruise missiles struck two UAE tankers in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, killing one crew member and injuring eight others as maritime tensions intensified across the Gulf. The Mombasa and Al Bahiyah were hit while travelling through the southern shipping lane within Omani territorial waters, the UAE Ministry of Defence said. Fires broke out on both vessels and caused material damage […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai The United States and Iran exchanged fresh strikes overnight into Monday, deepening a military confrontation that has sharply reduced commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and unsettled global energy markets. US Central Command said American forces completed another round of attacks intended to weaken Iran’s ability to threaten civilian mariners and commercial vessels using the strategic waterway. Dozens of targets were struck, […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai The UAE activated its air defence network early on Sunday to intercept ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones launched from Iran, as a fresh exchange of attacks widened the Gulf conflict and triggered emergency alerts across several countries. The Ministry of Defence said loud sounds heard in scattered parts of the country were caused by interception operations. Fighter aircraft and ground-based systems were […]
