The Evening Wrap: Gehlot recommends Assembly session for third time

The Hindu Newsletter - The Morning Filter Tuesday 28, July 2020 [alt_text]( The Evening Wrap [Here are the biggest news stories of the day]( [alt_text]( Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. We hope you are staying safe. Gehlot recommends Assembly session for third time The Rajasthan Cabinet today [recommended](, for the third time, convening of a new session of the State Assembly from July 31. The Cabinet sent a note with the advice to Governor Kalraj Mishra in response to his missive where had sought some details, including whether there were any plans to hold a trust vote. The Cabinet’s revised recommendation again did not specify whether a trust vote will be held, but did mention that the government had a majority in the Assembly. Earlier in the day, Cabinet members, led by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, deliberated on the Governor’s note at Gehlot’s official residence in Jaipur. At the meeting, they said they did not want any clash with the Governor, who was the “head of the family” and bound by the government’s decisions. The Governor has so far twice returned the Cabinet’s recommendation to call the Assembly session, promptin Gehlot to complain that he was acting “under pressure” from the BJP-led Central government. Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The number of [coronavirus cases reported from India]( stood at 15,25,125 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 34,179. [ A health worker collects a swab sample from a school teacher in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on July 28, 2020. Vijay Soneji ] A health worker collects a swab sample from a school teacher in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on July 28, 2020. Vijay Soneji Some positive news finally came from Mumbai, which today recorded its lowest number of positive cases in a day, with 700 new cases. This number is from the 8,776 tests conducted on Monday, and is the lowest daily total for the city in the last 100 days. Mumbai’s doubling rate is now 68 days, and its recovery rate, 73%. Meanwhile, West Bengal announced an extension of lockdown in containment zones till August 31. Former Malaysian PM convicted on graft charges A Malaysian court pronounced [former Prime Minister Najib Razak guilty]( in his first corruption trial over the multibillion-dollar looting of the 1MDB investment fund. The outcome is widely seen as a test of rule of law five months after a new government took power. Razak’s Malay party returned to office as a key player in the new ruling alliance, less than two years after its shocking ouster in the 2018 elections following public anger over the 1MDB scandal. [ Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, center, wearing a face mask arrives at a courthouse in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Tuesday, July 28, 2020. ] Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, center, wearing a face mask arrives at a courthouse in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Tuesday, July 28, 2020. “I find the accused guilty and convict the accused of all seven charges,” Judge Mohamad Nazlan Ghazali said, taking two hours to read out his ruling. The judge said Razak had failed to raise reasonable doubt, and that prosecutors had established that Razak misappropriated the money for his own use. The current trial involved a charge of abuse of power, three charges of criminal breach of trust, and three money-laundering charges. Shelling on border with Pakistan The Pakistan Army [resorted to heavy firing and mortar shelling]( in forward areas along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district, prompting Indian troops to retaliate, officials said on Tuesday. The ceasefire was violated by Pakistan for the eighth consecutive day on Tuesday, officials said, adding that there have been more than 20 incidents of ceasefire violation by Pakistan troops in the last week or so. “At about 1000 (10 a.m.) hours today (Tuesday), Pakistan Army initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation by firing with small arms and intense shelling with mortars along LoC in Degwar and Qasba sectors of district Poonch,” a defence spokesperson said. Punjan CM condemns attempts to convert Lahore gurdwara into mosque Punjab Chief Minister [Amarinder Singh has condemned]( the attempts reportedly being made to convert a famous gurdwara in Pakistan’s Lahore city into a mosque. “Strongly condemn attempts being made to convert holy Gurdwara Sri Shahidi Asthan in Lahore, site of martyrdom of Bhai Taru Singh Ji, into mosque. “Urge @DrSJaishankar to convey Punjab’s concerns in strongest terms to Pakistan to safeguard all Sikh places of reverence,” Singh said in a tweet. Gurdwara Shahidi Asthan is a historical shrine where Bhai Taru Singh became a martyr of his faith in 1745. India on Monday lodged a strong protest with the Pakistan High Commission over reports of attempts being made to convert the gurdwara at Naulakha Bazaar into a mosque. Centre to ‘verify’ LG’s remarks on restoring 4G in Kashmir [Image for representational purposes only]Image for representational purposes only The Centre today [told the Supreme Court]( that it would verify reports in the media quoting Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor G.C. Murmu as saying that 4G internet should be restored in the Valley. Murmu’s reported recommendation caused a stir as the Centre has all along been telling the Supreme Court that the situation in the Valley was not ripe for restoration of high speed internet due to terrorism-related threats. It had agreed to review the situation again after two months. The court has scheduled the next hearing on the matter for August 7. Evening Wrap Vaccine Watch American biotech company Moderna and pharma giant Pfizer launched late-stage trials of the coronavirus vaccine on Monday, Reuters reported. The trials will be conducted on 30,000 individuals each, and the companies hope to launch the first vaccines by the end of the year. Both vaccine candidates rely on a new technology that allows for faster development and manufacturing compared to older vaccines. This podcast explains the various vaccine technologies: [When will a vaccine be ready?]( The U.S. government is funding the vaccine development for both companies. Moderna has received nearly $1 billion (₹7,483 crore) from the federal government. Pfizer already has an agreement to sell 100 million doses of its vaccine to the U.S. government. Pfizer’s lead vaccine candidate has been developed in association with German biotech company BioNTech. The two firms on Monday said they would begin a pivotal global study to evaluate the vaccine candidate, Reuters reported. If the study is successful, then the companies could submit the vaccine for regulatory approval as early as October, putting them on track to supply up to 100 million doses by the end of 2020 and 1.3 billion doses by the end of 2021. In Brief: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has [arrested]( Delhi University Associate Professor Hany Babu M. Tarayil in connection with the Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad case. He was being questioned at the NIA’s Mumbai office since July 23. It has been reported that the NIA, which had seized his laptop last year, had apparently found a ‘hidden folder’ in his computer containing letters that he had exchanged with Maoists. Babu will be produced before a NIA Special Court on Wednesday and the police will seek his custody for custodial interrogation. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has [conducted searches]( in Mumbai and Hyderabad in connection with a case against G.V.K. Reddy, promoter of the GVK Group and whole-time director of the Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL). The ED searches have been carried out on the premises linked to persons who have been accused of causing a loss of over ₹705 crore to the exchequer. England fast bowler Stuart Broad took his [500th Test wicket]( on Tuesday when he trapped West Indies batsman Kraigg Brathwaite leg before wicket on the last day of the third and final Test at Old Trafford. Broad become the seventh bowler, and the second Englishman after team mate James Anderson, to attain the milestone, reaching it in his 140th Test. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. 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