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The Supreme Court has granted journalist Abhisar Sharma interim protection from arrest for four weeks in the case against him for accusing Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of engaging in communal politics. But the bench refused to quash the first information report against him and instead directed Sharma to approach the Gauahati High Court.

Sharma had been booked on August 21 under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections pertaining to acts endangering national unity and sovereignty, promoting enmity between groups and making assertions prejudicial to national integration.

In his petition, the journalist said that the case misuses legal provisions to silence dissent and curb press freedom. He also told the court that his remarks were supported by verifiable facts, including video clips of speeches made by the Assam chief minister. Read more.

The Donald Trump administration has proposed limiting the length of stay in the United States for international students, cultural exchange visitors and journalists. The changes aim to curb “visa abuse” and increase the “Department of Homeland Security’s ability to properly vet and oversee these individuals”.

The proposed regulations would require visa holders to apply for extensions periodically, instead of enjoying a more flexible legal status. Foreign students will be issued F visas for a maximum of four years, while foreign journalists or I visa holders will face a limit of 240 days, which can be extended.Read on.

Eight persons have died amid floods, triggered by heavy rainfall, in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar division. Heavy rains are also continuing in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.

The Jammu-Srinagar national highway was closed for traffic for the third consecutive day on Thursday due to several landslides triggered by heavy rainfall in the Udhampur-Ramban belt. About 500 to 600 vehicles are stranded at various places.

Southern India also saw heavy rainfall, with Kerala reporting waterlogging and a rise in water levels in several dams. Landslides were also seen in certain parts of the state. Read more.

Seventeen persons have died after a building in Virar in Maharashtra’s Palghar district collapsed on Tuesday, the chief minister’s office has said. Nine persons have been rescued till now.

A portion of the allegedly unauthorised four-storey Ramabai Apartment in the Vijay Nagar area of Virar collapsed while a birthday celebration of a one-year-old girl was underway in one of the flats. Constructed in 2011, the building had 50 flats, of which 12 collapsed.

On Wednesday, the Virar Police arrested Nittal Sane, the builder of the complex. Read on.

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