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Monday,25-August-2025
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‘No case is made out’, SC on PIL seeking independent probe in Rafale deal

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The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain a PIL by advocate M.L. Sharma seeking an independent probe into the Rafale fighter jet deal in view of a French media report, claiming Dassault Aviation paid one million Euros to a middleman for executing the deal.

A bench headed by Chief Justice U.U. Lalit and comprising Justice S. Ravindra Bhat told Sharma that the court was not inclined to entertain the plea. “No case is made out for interference of this court…,” said the bench.

In an attempt to persuade the court to entertain his plea, Sharma said that one day will come when each and every person will feel helpless and further added that nobody came forward to question corruption. The Chief Justice told Sharma that the court has already passed the order to dismiss the plea. Later, Sharma agreed to withdraw the plea, which was allowed by the court. Sharma said he will go to the CBI in the matter. The top court said, “Nobody is stopping you”.

The plea had sought prosecution of an alleged middleman under charges of cheating, breach of trust, and criminal conspiracy, over alleged kickbacks of one million Euros in the Rafale fighter jet deal.

Sharma relied on reports by Mediapart, a French online journal, published earlier this month. The online journal claimed that it was in possession of documents that showed Dassault Aviation, which manufactures the Rafale jet, and its industrial partner Thales, a defence electronics firm, paid around 1 million euros “secret commissions” in connection with the deal.

Maharashtra

Mumbai Rains: City Sees 20mm Downpour In An Hour; Waterlogging Hits Sion, Eastern Express Highway, Traffic Crawls

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Mumbai: After a relatively subdued monsoon phase last week, Mumbai was lashed by heavy early morning showers on Monday, with several areas recording over 20 mm of rainfall in just an hour. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for Tuesday and Wednesday, warning of heavy to very heavy spells in isolated parts of the city and suburbs.

According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) rainfall data, the city (CT) received an average of 12.41 mm, eastern suburbs (ES) 13.84 mm and western suburbs (WS) 18.04 mm of rain between 8 am on Sunday and 7 am on Monday.

Details On Heavy Rains In Early Morning Hours

The heaviest showers were concentrated between 6 am and 7 am on Monday. In the city region, B. Nadkarni Park Municipal School in Wadala logged 29 mm, Sewri Koliwada Municipal School recorded 25 mm and the Storm Water Drainage workshop in Dadar registered 24 mm. Several other locations, including Dharavi’s Kala Killa school (19 mm) and Worli Naka (16 mm), also reported heavy rainfall.

In the eastern suburbs, Mankhurd Fire Station saw 28 mm, while Shivaji Nagar Municipal School in Govandi and Nutan Vidya Mandir each recorded 24 mm. Chembur Fire Station and MPS Maharashtra Nagar in Mankhurd measured 23 mm, with other pockets like Ghatkopar’s Ramabai school (21 mm) also witnessing sharp showers.

The western suburbs too reported intense rain within the same period. The BKC Fire Station registered 26 mm, Pali Chimbai Municipal School in Bandra logged 23 mm, while Santacruz’s Nariyalwadi school and Bandra’s Supari Tank school both recorded 22 mm. Chakala Municipal School in Andheri saw 17 mm, while the HE ward reported 16 mm.

Waterlogging Reported In Sion

Despite the morning downpour, the city did not report widespread waterlogging or severe disruptions. However, minor waterlogging was reported in some areas such as Sion’s Gandhi Market and some patches on the Eastern Express Highway. Local train services continued to operate normally on both the Central and Western lines, though traffic movement slowed in a few low-lying areas during the morning rush hour.

The IMD said that while light to moderate showers will continue on Monday, intense spells are expected midweek as monsoon currents strengthen over the Konkan coast. Temperatures will remain in the range of 27–31 degrees Celsius, with high humidity levels making conditions uncomfortable.

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National News

ED Arrests Congress MLA’s Associate In Sikkim Over Illegal Betting Racket, Seizes ₹6 Crore Cash

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Bengaluru, Aug 23: The Enforcement Directorate, which raided over 30 premises on Friday to unearth the illegal betting racket by Congress MLA from Chithradurga has arrested Veerendra alias Puppy at Gangtok in Sikkim and seized Rs 6 crore unaccounted cash he was carrying with him.

Total Seizures from MLA Hit Rs 12 Crore

With this seizure, the total amount of money seized since Friday from the MLA has accumulated to Rs 12 crore, as the ED had seized cash, foreign currency and gold worth over Rs 6 crore on Friday from his residence in Chitradurga on Friday.

Veerendra alias Puppy, who owns five casinos in Goa — Puppy’s Casino Gold, Ocean7 Casino, Ocean River Casino, Big Daddy Casino and Puppy’s Casino Pride, is the first time MLA from Chitradurga. Apart from the seizure of money, the ED has frozen his 17 bank accounts and two bank lockers.

Dubai-Based Companies Linked to Gambling Apps

ED officials are looking into the illegal betting racket run by Puppy through gaming APPs called King567, Raja567, Puppies003 and Rathna Gambling. He is suspected to be using his brother Thippeswamy’s Dubai based companies to operate these APPs.

Transit Remand Granted, MLA to Be Produced in Bengaluru

Puppy was produced before Judicial Magistrate at Gangtok and obtained transit remand. He is being brought to Bengaluru to be produced before the jurisdictional Magistrate.

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National News

‘Will Blood & Cricket Flow Together?: Sanjay Raut Writes To PM Modi, Condemns Clearance For India–Pakistan Asia Cup 2025 Clash

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Mumbai: Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray faction) MP Sanjay Raut wrote a strongly worded letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, condemning the government’s decision to allow India to play Pakistan in the upcoming Asia Cup 2025. Raut termed the approval ‘painful and insensitive,’ especially in the wake of the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, carried out by Pakistani militants.

In his letter, Raut raised sharp questions for the Prime Minister. He asked how the government could justify sporting ties with Pakistan when it continues to maintain that ‘Operation Sindoor’ against terrorism is still not over. Referring to the 26 women widowed in the Pahalgam attack, he asked whether their grief and emotions had been taken into account. “You once declared that blood and water cannot flow together, will blood and cricket now flow side by side?” Raut questioned.

The Sena UBT leader also accused the government of bowing to external pressure, suggesting that the decision may have been influenced by international powers, including the United States. Further, he alleged that India–Pakistan matches generate large-scale betting and online gambling, in which some BJP members are allegedly involved. Naming Jay Shah, Secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and son of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Raut hinted at possible financial motives behind the clearance.

Raut maintained that had the match been held in Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena under Bal Thackeray would have ensured it was disrupted. He charged the Centre with prioritising cricketing ties with Pakistan over Hindutva and national sentiment, accusing the government of rendering patriotism meaningless in the process.

The controversy comes after the Union Ministry of Sports granted clearance for India’s participation in the Asia Cup clash against Pakistan, despite weeks of growing opposition. Since the Asia Cup schedule was announced, demands for a boycott of the Pakistan fixture had intensified, with many groups calling it inappropriate to play Pakistan while cross-border terrorism persists.

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