AI Summit Protest: Delhi court sends IYC president Uday Bhanu Chib to 4-day police custody
New Delhi (PTI): A Delhi court on Tuesday sent Indian Youth Congress (IYC) president Uday Bhanu Chib to four-day police custody in connection with a protest at the India AI Impact Summit.
Judicial Magistrate Ravi allowed four days of custody to the police to question Chib over his role in the AI Summit protest, during which IYC members took their shirts off to reveal anti-Modi and anti-Centre slogans on t-shirts beneath.
The accused opposed the prosecution's remand plea, denying no "riot-like situation" was created and calling the allegations an attempt to "insert riots everywhere."
They said those present were unarmed and beaten, questioning the need to recover t-shirts through custody.
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Terming it a "simple case of criticism," the accused asked, "Can we not even handle criticism?" and argued there was no common intention to assault police or threaten the nation's sovereignty.
The counsel for the IYC president submitted that his client was not present at the spot and had already been interrogated, calling the remand plea "frivolous and irrelevant" as he asked the prosecution to show any prima facie conspiracy.
Public Prosecutor Atul Kumar Srivastava countered that the accused, though not physically present, was "communicating and monitoring each and everything" and was the "mastermind."
He said the knowledge that the act could lead to a riot-like situation was sufficient and that as IYC president, he bore "additional responsibility."
The protest happened at India's artificial intelligence conclave, the AI Impact Summit-2026, at Bharat Mandapam.
The summit began on February 16 and saw packed halls and long queues throughout, as tech moguls, industry leaders, policymakers, and founders thronged the venue.
On Friday, police arrested Krishna Hari, national secretary of Youth Congress from Bihar; Kundan Yadav, state secretary of Bihar; Ajay Kumar, state president of Uttar Pradesh; and Narasimha Yadav from Telangana for holding a 'shirtless protest' inside an exhibition hall at the Summit.
The accused wore t-shirts bearing images of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump, with slogans against the government and the India-US trade deal.
The protesters also allegedly engaged in a protracted scuffle with security personnel and police staff deployed at the venue.
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Rupee falls 28 paise to 94.77 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee depreciated 28 paise to 94.77 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday as market sentiment took a dramatic turn after reports emerged that the US and Iran are discussing a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at reducing tensions and reopening negotiations.
Forex traders said Brent oil prices, which had fallen to USD 98 on the US-Iran peace deal, edged slightly higher to USD 101 per barrel after investors weighed the prospects for a Middle East peace deal.
Moreover, factors such as unabated foreign capital outflows amid rising geopolitical uncertainties further dented investor sentiment.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 94.77 against the US dollar, registering a fall of 28 paise over its previous close.
On Wednesday, the rupee appreciated 69 paise to close at 94.49 against the US dollar.
"Markets are currently focused on the critical 48-hour window during which the US expects Tehran’s formal response through Pakistani mediators," said CR Forex Advisors MD Amit Pabari.
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened Iran with more bombing if it doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz, amid a report that the warring sides were nearing an agreement to end the war.
US media outlet Axios reported, quoting US officials and two other sources, that the US and Iran were getting close to a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and set a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations.
The US expects Iranian responses on several key points over the next 48 hours, Axios reported, adding that nothing has been agreed yet. This was the closest the parties had been to an agreement since the war began.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 98.01, down 0.01 per cent.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading higher by 0.65 per cent at USD 101.83 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex declined 160.24 points to 77,798.28 in early trade, while the Nifty was down 30.25 points to 24,300.70.
Foreign Institutional Investors offloaded equities worth Rs 5,834.90 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
On the domestic macroeconomic front, the country's goods and services exports rose 4.6 per cent to an all-time high of USD 863.11 billion during 2025-26, up from USD 825.26 billion in 2024-25, despite global economic uncertainties, according to revised commerce ministry data.
Merchandise exports grew 0.93 per cent to USD 441.78 billion in the last fiscal year from USD 437.70 billion in 2024-25, the data showed.
