Here are the top 5 news updates of December 21, 2021:
Taking a swipe at his rivals, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said women are happy with the government's decision to raise the marriage age to 21 but this has caused pain to some. Addressing a rally in Prayagraj, he also said that 25 lakh of the 30 lakh houses given under Prime Minister Awas Yojana are registered in the name of women in Uttar Pradesh. This shows the government's commitment to "sacha (true) empowerment of women", Modi said. "We are trying to increase the age of marriage of women to 21 years so that they can have time to study and progress. The country is taking this decision for its daughters. Everyone is seeing who is having problems with this...it has caused pain to some," he said.
Attacking the Centre, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today said the incidents of lynching were unheard of before the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government came to power in 2014. Taking to Twitter, Rahul Gandhi said, "Before 2014, the word 'lynching' was practically unheard of. #Thank you Modi Ji." Reacting to Rahul Gandhi's tweet, BJP's IT cell in-charge Amit Malviya said, "Meet Rajiv Gandhi, father of mob lynching, justifying blood-curdling genocide of Sikhs. Congress took to streets, raised slogans like 'khoon ka badla khoon se lenge', raped women, wrapped burning tyres around necks of Sikh men while dogs gorged on charred bodies dumped in drains." In another tweet, Malviya said, "Ahemdabad (1969), Jalgaon (1970), Moradabad (1980), Nellie (1983), Bhiwandi (1984), Delhi (1984), Ahemdabad (1985), Bhagalpur (1989), Hyderabad (1990), Kanpur (1992), Mumbai (1993)... This is just a small list in which more than 100 people died under Nehru-Gandhi parivar's watch."
India's stature on the global stage has grown significantly and the world expects more from the country, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said today. In an address at an event, he said there has been a profound transformation in the international order and its expressions are many. "We find ourselves in a different strategic environment. Our stature on the global stage has grown significantly. The world expects more from us and in a globalised era," he said. "There is so much that we too can seek from the world for our national development. All of this has direct relevance to good governance," Jaishankar said at the event organised to mark 'Good Governance Week'.
Maharashtra Cabinet Minister Nawab Malik today alleged that the BJP leaders - MLC Suresh Dhas and former Ashti MLA Bhimrao Dhonde from Beed district-- have usurped the temple land and siphoned off crores of rupees by indulging in Benami transactions. This statement came a day after the Enforcement Directorate conducted searches at five places related to Malik's son Faraz Malik in a case where a nationalised bank was duped to the tune of Rs 149.89 crore. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader said that his colleague in the party, Ram Khade, has filed a complaint against these illegal transactions with the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Equity benchmark Sensex rebounded 497 points today after a two-day selloff, tracking gains in index majors Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank amid a positive trend in other Asian markets. The 30-share BSE index jumped 497 points or 0.89 per cent to end at 56,319.01. Similarly, the NSE Nifty advanced 156.65 points or 0.94 per cent to 16,770.85. HCL Tech was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising around 4 per cent, followed by Wipro, Tata Steel, Titan, Tech Mahindra and Sun Pharma. On the other hand, PowerGird, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance and SBI were among the losers.
