Live news updates: Former Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit appointed as new Delhi Congress chief

There seems to be no end to woes of lakhs of commuters in Mumbai as an indefinite strike by employees of the city's civic transport undertaking continued for the third day on Thursday.

Commuters complained that auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers were charging much more than normal rates. Some harried commuters also appealed to the Maharashtra government to take necessary steps to end the protest.

A senior BEST official expressed hope of the stalemate getting resolved soon.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in a "tearing hurry" to "sack" CBI chief Alok Verma because of the Rafale deal, Congress president Rahul Gandhi alleged on Thursday.

"1. Why is the PM in such a tearing hurry to sack the CBI Chief? "2. Why will he not allow the CBI Chief to present his case in front of the selection committee ? Answer: RAFALE," Gandhi said on Twitter.

The selection committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet for the second time on Thursday to decide the fate of CBI Director Alok Verma, reinstated by a Supreme Court order after he was sent on forced leave by the government, officials said. The panel's meet held on Wednesday remained inconclusive, they said, without giving further details. Nominated by CJI Ranjan Gogoi, Supreme Court judge Justice A K Sikri and leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge had attended the Wednesday meeting, the officials said. Kharge has sought documents, including enquiry report by the Central Vigilance Commission into the matter.

A plea challenging the bill to provide 10 per cent reservation to general category poor in jobs and education was Thursday filed in the Supreme Court.

The petition, filed by Youth For Equality organisation and Kaushal Kant Mishra, sought the quashing of the bill saying that the economic criterion cannot be the sole basis for reservation.

The Jharkhand High Court on Thursday rejected the bail petition of RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav in three cases of the multi-crore fodder scam. Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh turned down the bail plea of Yadav, CBI lawyer Rajeev Sinha said.

CBI Deputy SP Devender Kumar on Thursday moved the Delhi High Court against Director Alok Verma's decision to reverse transfer orders of various officers.

The plea is likely to be listed for hearing on Friday before Justice Najmi Waziri, who has already reserved verdict on various petitions of Special Director Rakesh Asthana, Kumar and middleman Manoj Prasad seeking to quash the bribery FIR against them.

Kumar, in his application filed in the pending petition, has sought direction to the CBI to not allow Alok Verma and other retransferred officers to deal with FIR against him and others in any manner.

The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its verdict on the Maharashtra government's appeal challenging the refusal of the Bombay High Court to extend the 90-day limit for filing charge-sheet in the Bhima-Koregaon violence case.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said it would pass orders after the counsel for the parties concluded their arguments.

The top court was hearing an appeal of the state government against the Bombay High Court's order refusing to extend the time limit of 90 days by another 90 days for filing the probe report in the violence case

Protests over the contentious Citizenship bill continued in Assam on Thursday with students, lawyers and doctors raising their voice against the legislation across the state.

With 'gamosas' (Assamese scarf of honour) in hand, people observed 'Sankalpa Divas' in front of the state secretariat, asserting that the Bill threatened the existence of Assamese people.

They warned that the "prime minister and his cabinet colleagues will be stopped from entering the state" if their interests were harmed.

At several educational institutes in Guwahati, students were seen boycotting their classes to take to the streets for a protest march to the state capital Dispur, but their attempt was thwarted by security forces.

Similar protests were also observed by students in other parts of the state with some of them regretting that they were forced to come out of their classrooms as the government failed to ensure their protection.

After making the issue of illegal infiltration a major poll plank in the 2014 Lok Sabha and 2016 assembly elections in Assam, the ruling BJP Thursday claimed no Bangladeshi national has illegally entered into India in the last 10 years. BJP spokespersons claimed at a press conference here that the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill will not bring in any new foreigner into India

A high-powered committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi met on Thursday for the second time to decide the fate of CBI Director Alok Verma, reinstated by a Supreme Court order after he was sent on forced leave by the government, officials said

The other members of the committee included Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge and Justice A K Sikri, who was nominated by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi to represent him.

The triple talaq ordinance, which seeks to make the practice of instant divorce a penal offence, will lapse later this month as a bill to convert it into a law is stuck in the Rajya Sabha.

Five CBI officers, JD Ajay Bhatnagar, DIG MK Sinha, DIG Tarun Gauba, JD Murugesan and AD AK Sharma transferred. Anish Prasad will continue as the Deputy Director, Administration and KR Chaurasia will head Special Unit-I.

Former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has been appointed the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president after Ajay Maken resigned from the post citing ill-health. However, an official announcement of Dikshit's appointment is yet to be made. Sources said it would be made soon and she will have a few working presidents to assist her.