Girish Chandra Murmu has become the new Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India. His appointment as the new CAG was confirmed by the government a day after the the Gujarat cadre IAS officer resigned as the first Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. He was replaced by former Union Minister Manoj Sinha.
Murmu will succeed Rajiv Mehrishi, who completes his term as the CAG today. A notification from the Department of Economic Affairs read, “The President has been pleased to appoint Shri Girish Chandra Murmu to be the Comptroller and Auditor General of India with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.”
Murmu, who served as Principal Secretary to Narendra Modi during his tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister, had stunned everyone by resigning as the LG of Jammu and Kashmir on the first anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370. The Modi government had appointed him in his role in October last year after it bifurcated Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories.
LIVE UPDATES on today’s BIG stories will appear below:
18:33 PM: CBI books ex-ESIC DG PC Chaturvedi for alleged violation of CVC guidelines in sanctioning projects worth Rs 6255 cr during 2007-09: Officials. (PTI)
17:43 PM: 14 killed, over 50 feared trapped under debris after landslide in Kerala’s Idukki district: Officials. (PTI)
17:30 PM: The #SupremeCourt on Friday dismissed a plea seeking directions to the #Bihar government to transfer the investigation in connection with the #SushantSinghRajput case to either #CBI or #NIA, as the case was already with the CBI since Thursday. (IANS)
16:47 PM: Kerala: At least eight persons were killed and around 60 others reported missing after a landslide at Rajamalai in Idukki district due to #heavyrain for the past four days in the hilly area, an official said on Friday. (IANS)
15:57 PM: Madhya Pradesh govt relaxes night curfew by two hours, restriction now from 10 pm to 5 am; weekend lockdown partially lifted in coronavirus-affected districts of state: Official. (PTI)
14:57 PM: Supreme Court refuses to entertain PIL seeking NIA probe into alleged 2008 agreement between Indian National Congress and Communist Party of China. Allows petitioners to withdraw plea with liberty to approach high court. (PTI)
14:11 PM: Special NIA Court rejects Assam-based peasant leader Akhil Gogoi’s bail plea in anti-CAA protest case; activist to move Gauhati HC. (PTI)
13:26 PM: The Bihar government on Friday informed the Supreme Court that the Mumbai Police has been obstructing the investigation into the Sushant Singh Rajput case by Patna police and have not supplied crucial documents connected with the case. (IANS)
13:20 PM: Bareilly (UP): A young man in his early twenties, allegedly kidnapped a 15-year-old girl from her house, married her forcefully and later, posted photos of their ‘wedding’ on Facebook. Seeing the photos, the police rescued the girl, while the youth is still on the run. (IANS)
12:38 PM: Four days after an #IndianArmy soldier was abducted his clothes were found in an apple orchard, leading the security forces on Friday to intensify their search operation. Rifleman Shakir Manzoor went missing on Monday. (IANS)
12:10 PM: The #SupremeCourt on Friday asked the Centre & J&K administration that authorities concerned must come up with a definite stand on the possibility of restoring 4G services in select areas of #UnionTerritory.The apex court emphasised that this matter cannot be delayed any further. (IANS)
12:03 PM: #SushantSinghRajput death case: Rhea Chakraborty arrives at Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in Mumbai. ED rejected her earlier request that the recording of her statement be postponed till Supreme Court hearing. (ANI)
11:23 AM: Bombay HC quashes Maharashtra government orders restricting TV, film artistes above 65 from attending studio/ outdoor shoots. (PTI)
10:43 AM: Record 62,538 COVID-19 cases in 24 hrs push India’s tally to 20,27,074; death toll climbs to 41,585 with 886 new fatalities: Centre. (PTI)
10:03 AM: Congress General Secretary #PriyankaGandhi’s office clarified that she is not visiting #Shimla & the permission for visiting #Himachal capital was only sought for her children & domestic staff. Her office said that there “has been some mischief” & news of her visiting Shimla is “incorrect”. (IANS)
09:33 AM: Rhea Chakraborty, accused of abetting Sushant Rajput suicide, seeks postponement of statement recording by ED till SC plea hearing. (PTI)
08:55 AM: The #BrihanMumbaiMunicipalCorporation has released #BiharIPS officer #VinayTiwari from home quarantine of past 6 days which sparked off a huge row, officials said on Friday. (IANS)
04:00 AM: Rhea Chakraborty says CBI probe into Sushant Singh Rajput’s death at this point will be ‘totally illegal and beyond any known legal principles, affecting the Federal Structure of the Nation.’ NDTV quoted a statement from her, “The Bihar Government transferred a case with which it had NO Jurisdiction to investigate, to CBI instead of The Mumbai Police.”
04:30 AM: A Defence Ministry document that contained an admission, for the first time, that China had “transgressed” into Indian territory in eastern Ladakh disappeared from the Ministry’s website on Thursday afternoon, a day after it was uploaded, reported Indian Express.