Daily Bulletin: Donald Trump impeached by US House; Delhi HC to hear PIL seeking judicial probe in Jamia violence; day's top stories

Delhi HC agrees to hear PIL seeking fact-finding committee to look into violence in Jamia University The Delhi High Court on Wednesday agreed to hear a PIL seeking setting up of a fact-finding committee to look into the recent violence at Jamia Milia Islamia University. The petition was mentioned before a bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Rekha Palli by advocate Rizwan and the court allowed it to be listed on Thursday. The plea has sought judicial inquiry into the action taken by the police, including allegedly firing at students. It also sought proper medical treatment and compensation for the injured students. Protestors torched four public buses and two police vehicles as they clashed with police in New Friends’ Colony near Jamia University during a demonstration against the amended Citizenship Act, leaving six cops and two firemen injured, officials said. The trouble started during a protest by students of Jamia Millia Islamia. But a students’ body later said they had nothing to do with the violence and arson and alleged that “certain elements” had joined in and “disrupted” the demonstration. President Donald Trump impeached by US House on two charges President Donald Trump was impeached by the US House of Representatives Wednesday night, becoming only the third American chief executive to be formally charged under the Constitution’s ultimate remedy for high crimes and misdemeanours. The historic vote split along party lines, much the way it has divided the nation, over the charges that the 45th president abused the power of his office by enlisting a foreign government to investigate a political rival ahead of the 2020 election. The House then approved a second charge, that he obstructed Congress in its investigation. [caption id=“attachment_7620341” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of US president Donald Trump. AP[/caption] The articles of impeachment, the political equivalent of an indictment, now go to the Senate for trial. If Trump is acquitted by the Republican-led chamber, as expected, he would have to run for reelection carrying the enduring mark of impeachment on his purposely disruptive presidency. The trial is expected to begin in January in the Senate, where a vote of two-thirds is necessary for conviction. While Democrats had the majority in the House to impeach Trump, Republicans control the Senate and few if any are expected to diverge from plans to acquit the president ahead of early state election-year primary voting. Cops gear up to tackle anti-CAA protest in Mumbai today In view of the protest march scheduled to be held on Thursday at August Kranti Maidan in central Mumbai against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the city police have put in place security measures, an official said on Wednesday. Protesters under the banner of ‘Hum Bharat Ke Log’ will congregate in August Kranti Maidan to take part in the protests against the CAA and National Register of Citizens (NRC), the official said. “Thousands of people belonging to different communities, NGOs and political parties are expected to take part in the protest. Mumbai police will maintain a strict vigil to prevent any untoward incident during the protest,” he said. There will be adequate police deployment in and around the venue, he said. Along with the local police, Riots Control Police (RCP), Quick Response Teams (QRT), SRPF will be deployed, he said. Police personnel in plainclothes will also keep a vigil and the crowd will also be monitored using drones and CCTV, the official said. No permission given for protests as Section 144 in place: UP Police In view of violence during demonstrations in different parts of the country against the amended citizenship law, the Uttar Pradesh Police on Wednesday said no permission has been given for protests as prohibitory orders are in place in the entire state. “Section 144 (prohibiting unlawful assembly) of CrPC is in force and no permission for any gathering has been given for December 19. Please do not participate. Parents are also requested to counsel their children,” DGP OP Singh said in a tweet.

Samajwadi Party and some other organisations have announced that they will protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act on Thursday. Portuguese PM Antonio Costa to begin two-day visit to India starting today Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa will visit India from 19 to 20 December during which he will hold talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi. The Ministry of External Affairs said Costa is visiting India on Modi’s invitation to attend the second meeting of the Organising Committee on the celebrations for the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi on 19 December. The meeting would be presided over by President Ram Nath Kovind. It said Modi and Costa will also hold talks. “The high level political exchanges between India and Portugal have imparted a robust momentum to bilateral relations, including in several new areas such as science and technology, defence, startups, shipping, youth exchanges and culture,” the MEA said. Stage set for IPL 2020 auctions in Kolkata The much-awaited Indian Premier League 2020 auctions will take place in Kolkata on Thursday. As many as 332 cricketers will go under the hammer, with only 73 slots to fill up. Out of those 73, only 29 are reserved for overseas players. Australia’s Pat Cummins and South Africa’s Dale Steyn will be among the international stars who go into the auction with the highest base price of Rs 2 crore. Robin Uthappa and Jaydev Unadkat are among the Indian cricketers with a base price of Rs 1.5 crore and Rs 1 crore respectively. Afghanistan’s 14-year-old bowling sensation Noor Ahmad Lakanwal is the youngest-ever entrant into the auction. The auction starts at 2.30 pm on Thursday and cricket fans can log onto Firstpost.com to follow our LIVE blog of the event. Boeing to launch its Starliner spacecraft in first-ever flight The CST-100 Starliner spacecraft developed by Boeing is preparing for its first flight on Friday. It will be launched aboard an Atlas V rocket into a low-Earth orbit. The capsule aims to carry crews of up to seven members, however, the upcoming mission won’t conduct the test with people. This test is a part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program to develop a transportation system for its astronauts to the space station. With inputs from agencies