Evening bulletin March 18: EC removes DGP considered ‘close’ to Mamata; Munawwar Faruqui on Elvish Yadav's arrest

Good afternoon, here are top news stories for you to read on March 18 evening.

Election Commission orders removal of Bengal DGP, home secretaries of 6 states

The Election Commission of India on Monday -- days after announcing the 2024 Lok Sabha elections schedule -- ordered the removal of top officials of several states, including the West Bengal director general of police and home secretaries of six states. Home secretaries in six states, namely Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, have also been directed to be removed. Full story

PM Modi hits out INDIA bloc over Rahul Gandhi’s comments on ‘Shakti’

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday hit out at the Opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) over Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s comments on “Shakti”, saying there are people who talk about its destruction while others worship it. “They declared that their fight is against Shakti... for me, every daughter, mother, and sister is a personification of Shakti,” Modi said at a rally in Telangana. Full Story

SC refuses to stay disqualification of six Congress MLAs from Himachal Pradesh assembly

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to stay the order of the Himachal Pradesh Assembly Speaker disqualifying six Congress rebels, who had cross-voted in the recent Rajya Sabha polls in the state. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta issued notice to the office of HP Assembly speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania and sought its response to the plea in four weeks. Full Story

WPL Final: How Virat Kohli's internet-breaking gesture fell flat

Former India captain and skipper of the men's RCB team, Virat Kohli, made a video call to Smrithi Mandhana moments after the match before the rest of the players joined in. Kohli's gesture was hailed by RCB fans across social media. However, the act fell flat as Mandhana later revealed that details of the conversation saying that she could not hear a word owing to the loud cheer from the crowd at the venue. Full Story

Munawar Faruqui was asked about Elvish Yadav's arrest, here’s how he reacted

Bigg Boss 17 winner Munawar Faruqui has reacted to YouTuber Elvish Yadav's arrest. Speaking with Times Now News, Munawar revealed that he had no idea about Elvish's arrest. As per the report, Munawar interacted with media after the shoot of a Holi event in Mumbai. Full Story