LIVE: Crime Branch Identifies Over 10 WhatsApp Groups in Paper Leak Probe

CBSE Paper Leak Update | The Delhi Police's Crime Branch has reportedly identified more than 10 WhatsApp groups, each having around 60 members, in its investigation into the CBSE paper leak. Photographs of the Class 12 Economics and Class 10 Maths paper were allegedly circulated over WhatsApp before the exams. 

Members of the Parent-Teacher Association in Mumbai have written to HRD minister Prakash Javadekar and Maharashtra Education Minister Vinod Tawde, requesting them to not conduct re-examination in Mumbai since the regional is “unaffected”. (2/2)

Members of the Parent-Teacher Association in Mumbai have written to HRD minister Prakash Javadekar and Maharashtra Education Minister Vinod Tawde, requesting them to not conduct re-examination in Mumbai since the regional is “unaffected”.  (1/2)

A satirical take on the government's response to the CBSE paper leak. (Mir Suhail/News18 Creatives)

Rahul Gandhi Mocks PM Over Paper Leak | Congress president Rahul Gandhi has taken a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his book Exam Warriors. In a tweet, Gandhi says the next book would teach students and parents to deal with the stress of paper leaks.  

PM wrote Exam Warriors, a book to teach students stress relief during exams.

Next up: Exam Warriors 2, a book to teach students & parents stress relief, once their lives are destroyed due to leaked exam papers. pic.twitter.com/YmSiY0w46b

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) March 30, 2018

Dates for Re-Exam Out Today Evening | NSUI president Fairoz Khan says he met Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar with few Class 12 students. Khan says Javadekar has assured that new dates for Class 12 Economics and Class 10 Maths re-examination would be announced today evening.

Delhi Police Seek Info from Google in Paper Leak Case | Delhi Police’s Crime Branch has sought a reply from Google on an email sent to CBSE chief Anita Karwal the night before Class 10 Mathematics exam. According to the second FIR registered in the paper leak case, the email was received at 1:30am on March 28. The FIR, a copy of which has been accessed by CNN-News18, says the email contained 12 pages of .jpg (photo) attachments of the hand-written question papers leaked on WhatsApp. In the email, the sender had asked the CBSE chief to cancel the examination.  

Meeting on Re-Exam Dates | Sources in the HRD ministry say that Prakash Javadekar held a meeting with CBSE chief Anita Karwal and other officials today morning. The dates for re-examination for Class 12 Economics and Class 10 Maths have not been decided yet, but sources they the government is trying to avoid a clash with other entrance examinations, keeping in mind the interests of Class 12 students. The government is reportedly also looking at the extent of the paper leak and ensure that the remaining exams are conducted fairly.

Protests Against CBSE Turn Political | Members of the Congress’ Delhi unit and its student body NSUI have joined protests against the CBSE outside the Udyog Bhawan. Protesters are holding up placards against the Board and the BJP-led government and are trying to breach the barricades put up by the Delhi Police, while the cops are trying to keep them at bay.

New Delhi: From carrying chits inside the exam hall to the 'Munnabhai formula' of using Bluetooth, cheaters have certainly kept up with technology.

A copy of the second FIR in the CBSE paper leak case, according to which Board chairman Anita Karwal was informed of the Class 10 Maths paper leak the night before the exam.

CBSE Chief Informed of Maths Leak Night Before Exam | According to the second FIR registered in the paper leak case, CBSE chairman Anita Karwal was informed of the Class 10 Maths paper leak at 1:39am on March 28, hours before the exam, via email. The FIR, a copy of which has been accessed by CNN-News18, says the email contained 12 pages of .jpg (photo) attachments of the hand-written question papers leaked on WhatsApp. The mail was sent on the CBSE chairman’s official email id chmn-cbse@nic.in by one Dev Naryan from devn532@gmail.com. In the email, the sender had asked the CBSE chief to cancel the examination. According to the first FIR in the case, the office of the CBSE had received an unaddressed envelope on March 26 containing four sheets of handwritten answers of the Class 12 Economics paper. The Board said that they received a complaint by fax on March 23 from an "unknown source" that a man running a coaching institute in Rajinder Nagar was involved in paper leakage.

Delhi Lt. Governor Anil Baijal has objected to a state government scheme to offer free pilgrimage for senior citizens, Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot said on Friday. Under the "Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana", 77,000 people were proposed to be taken on free pilgrimage every year, but it needed Baijal's approval.

Now LG objects to “Teerth Yatra Yojana”. LG wants it to be restricted to BPL. LG forgets that many children do not support their old parents. They would be happy to receive govt support. And every govt facility should not be restricted only to BPL.

— Kailash Gahlot (@kgahlot) March 30, 2018

Trump Warns He May Freeze South Korea Trade Deal for North Talks | US President Donald Trump has threatened to hold up the trade agreement his administration finalised this week with South Korea in an effort to gain more leverage in potential talks with North Korea. Speaking on infrastructure in Ohio, Trump highlighted the recently completed renegotiation of the Korea-US free trade agreement. But he warned: "I may hold it up until after a deal is made with North Korea." The announcement comes as the two Koreas have announced plans to hold bilateral meetings next month in advance of a possible meeting between Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong Un by the end of May.

US Says Russia's Move to Expel 60 Diplomats Not Justified | The US has decried Russia's move to expel 60 American diplomats and close the US consulate in St Petersburg, saying there is "no justification" for Moscow's retaliatory action. The US reaction comes after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow would expel 60 US diplomats and close its consulate in Saint Petersburg in a tit-for-tat expulsion over the alleged poisoning of ex-double agent Sergei Skripal. The Trump administration earlier ordered the expulsion of 60 Russian diplomats and shutter the country's consulate general in Seattle.

New Delhi: ICICI Chairman MK Sharma on Thursday revealed that the bank's Managing Director and CEO Chanda Kochhar was part of the committee that approved loans to the Videocon group, but denied any quid pro quo on the latter's part.

EXCLUSIVE | Videocon chairperson Venugopal Dhoot says his group has not given “any Rs 64 crore gift” to any company of individual. Speaking to CNBC TV-18, Dhoot says Videocon has not invested any money in Supreme Energy and that he is not involved with Supreme Energy in any capacity. He says his investments in Supreme Energy were sold before this matter came to light, and that they were worth a few thousand rupees. He also denied being questioned by any regulator. Dhoot’s Videocon is embroiled in a controversy after a blog post highlighted a letter written by one of ICICI Bank’s shareholders to the Prime Minister and Finance Minister. The letter alleged a nexus between ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar’s husband Deepak Kochhar’s NuPower Renewables and Videocon Group.

Withdrawing Work Permits for Spouses of H1B Visa Holders to Hit US, Says Report | The Trump administration's proposal to withdraw the provision of giving work permits to the spouses of the H-1B visa workers, most of them Indians, will make America less attractive for foreign talent, according to an influential US immigration advocacy body. Since 2015, the spouses of H-1B workers, who are in the process for becoming permanent residents, have been allowed to work. However, the Trump administration is considering rescinding this policy of the previous Obama administration, the American Immigration Council said on Thursday. Arguing against Trump administration's reported move to rescind its policy on H-4 visas, which is issued to the dependents of H-1B visa holders, the council said authorising H-4 spouses to work is advantageous as it allows them to work and brings the US in line with other countries competing to attract talented foreign nationals.

Comedian Siddharth Sagar aka 'Selfie Mausi' Missing | Comedian Siddharth Sagar, best known for his onscreen character Selfie Mausi on The Kapil Sharma Show, has been missing for four months, reports say. The news about him going missing first came into the public eye after a lady named Somi Saxena, who claims to be his close friend, shared a post on Facebook that Siddharth was last seen in November and requested people to help her find him.

RBI to Take Hawkish Stance by End of 2018 | The Reserve Bank of India will keep monetary policy steady at its April meeting but shift to a hawkish stance by the end of this year and raise interest rates early in 2019 as inflation pressures build, according to a Reuters poll of economists. All 61 economists polled between March 23 and 28 expected the RBI to hold the repo rate at 6 percent and the reverse repo rate at 5.75 percent at its April 4-5 policy meeting. The RBI is expected to keep rates steady for the rest of this year.

Palestinian Killed by Israeli Strike Ahead of Gaza Protest | A Palestinian farmer was killed in Gaza by an Israeli strike today, the health ministry in the enclave said, ahead of a day of major protests. A spokesman for the ministry said one farmer was killed and another injured by Israeli artillery fire near Khan Yunis in southern Gaza. It comes just hours before the start of a major demonstration, which is set to kick off six weeks of protests leading up to the inauguration of the new US embassy in Jerusalem around May 14. The protests have raised concerns in Israel about potential border breaches, with the army adding hundreds of reinforcements, including more than 100 special forces snipers, along the border in recent days. Hamas has fought three wars with Israel since 2008.

ICICI Bank Chairman Reveals Chanda Kochhar Was on Panel That Cleared Videocon Loans | ICICI Chairman MK Sharma has that the bank’s Managing Director and CEO Chanda Kochhar was part of the committee that approved loans to the Videocon group, but denied any quid pro quo on the latter’s part.  Addressing a press conference on Thursday — the second one by the bank in Kochhar’s defence — Sharma denied any conflict of interest. ICICI, the country’s largest private bank, is embroiled in a controversy after a blog post highlighted a letter written by one of its shareholders to the Prime Minister and Finance Minister. The letter alleged a nexus between Kochhar’s husband Deepak Kochhar’s NuPower Renewables and Videocon Group Chairman Venugopal Dhoot, and thereby ICICI Bank’s involvement in saving Videocon Group from debt defaults.

The CBSE caters to 1.4 crores, it is spread across 22 countries and holds educational, professional and recruitment exams. "It is burdened but that's not an excuse for letting us off from what happened.

Congress Fires 5 Questions at Modi Govt on CBSE Paper Leak, Alleges 'Cover Up' | The Congress has alleged a “cover up” in the CBSE paper leak case and posed five questions to the Narendra Modi government, demanding the sacking of the Board chairman. Taking to Twitter, Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala asked why the practice of drawing up three versions of the question paper done away with. He also questioned the free run to “exam mafia” and the earlier denial of a paper leak by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). The party has demanded the resignations of HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar and CBSE chief Anita Karwal over the leak of Class 12 Economics and Class 10 Maths question papers, forcing a re-examination. Students have been also been protesting at Jantar Mantar in the national capital.

The Delhi Police, which had registered two cases in connection with the leaks, started questioning the owner of a coaching centre in Rajender Nagar whose name was shared by the CBSE in its complaint and is suspected to be behind the alleged leak. The office of the CBSE had received an unaddressed envelope on March 26 containing four sheets of handwritten answers of the Class 12 Economics paper, the Board said in its complaint to the Delhi Police. The Board has said that they received a complaint by fax on March 23 from an "unknown source" that a man running a coaching institute in Rajinder Nagar was involved in paper leakage.

We will keep track of major news events across the world through this live blog. The big news continues to be the CBSE paper leak. The Delhi Police have seized a dozen mobile phones to establish the WhatsApp trail of the CBSE paper leak. Around 40 people, including students and tutors, have been questioned in the case that has embarrassed the CBSE and given the opposition ammo against the BJP-led government. Sources in the Delhi Police say the investigators are mulling adding the Information Technology (IT) Act to the FIR. The CBSE is set to announce dates for the Class 12 Economics and Class 10 Mathematics re-examinations.