New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay the appointments of new election commissioners (ECs) under a 2023 law that excluded the chief justice of India from the selection panel.

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Friday directed the police in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore to grant permission with certain conditions to BJP to conduct a four km road show of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in that city on March 18.

New Delhi: A comprehensive examination of the top purchasers of electoral bonds has unearthed intriguing correlations, indicating a pattern of financial transactions connected with legal scrutiny. Among these, several companies have come under the radar of investigative agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Income Tax Department (ITD) over the past five years. Notably, a significant proportion of their electoral bond acquisitions occurred in the aftermath of such inquiries.

Three firms among the top fifteen donors of electoral bonds, which have been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, share the same registered address in West Bengal. These firms, namely Keventer Foodpark Infra Pvt Ltd, Madanlal Ltd, and MKJ Enterprises Ltd, are all part of the Keventer group of companies.

The release of data on electoral bonds by the Election Commission, as mandated by the Supreme Court, has shed light on concerning contributions from pharmaceutical companies, particularly Hetero Drugs, a major manufacturer of Remdesivir, a drug crucial in treating COVID-19 patients.

The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear pleas seeking a direction to the Centre to stay the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Rules, 2024 till the pendency of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 before the apex court.

The recent data released by the Election Commission of India (ECI) regarding electoral bonds has sparked controversy and raised serious concerns about the influence of pharmaceutical companies on the political landscape. According to the data, major pharmaceutical corporations, including Dr. Reddy’s Labs, Torrent Pharmaceuticals, and Natco Pharma, have made substantial contributions to political parties through electoral bonds.