Daily Bulletin: Delhi HC verdict on DK Shivakumar's bail plea; Sourav Ganguly to take over as BCCI president today, Jay Amit Shah as secretary; day's top stories

Delhi HC to give verdict on DK Shivakumar’s bail plea today in money laundering case The Delhi High Court is likely to pronounce on Wednesday its order on the bail plea of Karnataka Congress leader DK Shivakumar in a money laundering case. Justice Suresh Kait had reserved the order on 17 October on Shivakimar’s bail plea, in which the latter claimed that the case was a result of political rivalry and there was not enough evidence against him. Shivakumar, 57, was arrested by the ED on 3 September in the money laundering case. He is lodged in Tihar jail under judicial custody. He has challenged the trial court’s order denying him bail in the case. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had opposed his bail plea saying he was an influential person and, if released, he could tamper with evidence and influence witnesses. Shivakumar, a seven-time MLA in Karnataka, was booked along with Haumanthaiah — an employee at Karnataka Bhavan in New Delhi — and others for alleged offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Former India captain Sourav Ganguly to take over as BCCI President today One of India's most decorated captains Sourav Ganguly will be taking over as the 39th president of the BCCI on Wednesday at its AGM, ending a tumultuous 33-month reign of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators. Ganguly is the unanimous nomination for the post of BCCI president along with Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s son Jay as the secretary. Mahim Verma of Uttarakhand is the new vice-president. [caption id=“attachment_2332742” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File picture of Sourav Ganguly. Reuters[/caption] Former BCCI president and current MoS finance Anurag Thakur’s younger brother Arun Dhumal is the treasurer while Kerala’s Jayesh George is the joint secretary. However Ganguly will have a curtailed tenure of around nine months as he would need to demit office by the end of July, next year as per the provisions of new constitutions, which makes ‘Cooling-Off’ period mandatory after six years in office. Easily one of the most high profile names to assume office, Ganguly will make use of his experience gained as the secretary and later president of Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), which will come in handy. Kamlesh Tiwari murder: Two more suspects arrested near Gujarat-Rajasthan border Two men allegedly involved in the sensational killing of Hindu outfit leader Kamlesh Tiwari were arrested by the Gujarat ATS on Tuesday evening, said officials. The accused, Surat residents Ashfaq Shaikh (34) and Moinuddin Pathan (27), were absconding since Tiwari’s brutal killing in Lucknow on 18 October, they said. They were arrested from near Shamlaji on the Gujarat- Rajasthan border when they were about to enter Gujarat on Tuesday evening, said Himanshu Shukla, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). Primary interrogation of the accused revealed that they had committed the crime “in retribution to the purported statements by Tiwari”, an ATS release said. Their location was traced through technical surveillance as they contacted their family members and friends after running out of cash, Shukla said. He said the duo will be handed over to the Uttar Pradesh police, probing the sensational killing of Tiwari, who headed a little known outfit, Hindu Samaj Party (HSP). While Shaikh, a resident of the Limbayat area in Surat, used to work as a medical representative, Pathan, a resident of Umarwada, was employed as a food delivery boy, the release said. Narendra Modi likely to visit Saudi Arabia on 29 October; to take part in annual investment forum Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit Saudi Arabia on a day-long visit on 29 October to participate in an annual investment forum to be held there, official sources said on Tuesday. Modi’s visit comes months after Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman paid a visit to India in February. Modi will attend the third edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII), an annual investment forum being held on 29-31 October. Saudi Arabia had said last month that it is looking at investing $100 billion in India in areas of petrochemicals, infrastructure and mining among others, considering the country’s growth potential. Saudi Ambassador Saud bin Mohammed Al Sati had said India is an attractive investment destination for his country, the world’s biggest oil exporter, and it is eyeing long-term partnerships with New Delhi in key sectors such oil, gas and mining. The Two Popes director Fernando Meirelles says he has never watched Marvel films Oscar-nominated Brazilian filmmaker Fernando Meirelles says he does not know whether superhero films are bad as he has not watched any of the films from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, according to Press Trust of India. “I can’t disagree with [Martin] Scorsese because I don’t watch them, so I don’t know if they’re boring. I watched Spider-Man eight years ago and that was it. I am not interested in them, doesn’t mean it’s bad!,” Meirelles said at the ongoing JIO MAMI 21st Mumbai Film Festival with Star. Facebook puts out CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s testimony before a congressional hearing Mark Zuckerberg will be appearing before Congress today to face questions from the Financial Services Committee. He will be answering about the social network’s cryptocurrency plans through Libra that is in the middle of a lot of controversies globally. Zuckerberg agrees that Facebook isn’t the best messenger right now and Libra won’t move forward until it’s approved by US regulators. With inputs from agencies