Nitish Kumar, Furious With Rahul Gandhi, Left INDIA Video Meet 10 Min Early

The BJP and Nitish Kumar in Bihar are going to stick to the 2020 formula to share the cabinet berths in Bihar, sources have said. The Bihar Chief Minister switched sides last week -- the fifth time in a decade -- and formed a new government in partnership with the BJP, which he dumped in 2022.

BJP deputies 'keeping watch

He took oath yesterday with two deputies from the BJP, who, sources said, were deputed by the party "to keep an eye" on the 72-year-old dubbed "Paltu Kumar" by many for his frequent flip-flops.

The Council of Ministers will be expanded over the next few days, sources said, and the allocation of portfolios will take place after that. The crucial home department will stay with Mr Kumar.

In the coming days, the two sides will also discuss seat sharing for the Lok Sabha polls, but the earlier 17-17 formula for Bihar's 40 parliamentary seats will have to be tweaked, sources indicated.

This is because seats will also have to be allocated for the new allies, including Jitan Ram Manjhi's HAM.

Mr Kumar, sources said, had made up his mind to quit the Opposition on January 13, the day they were holding a video meet. Furious with Rahul Gandhi, he had left the meet 10 minute early.

Sources said what drove him to the final step was a response by Mr Gandhi that he would consult Mamata Banerjee on the post of the coordinator for the INDIA bloc. Shortly after that, the leaders chose him as the convenor. But angry, Mr Kumar rejected the post, saying it can be given to Lalu Yadav, sources said.

For chairman post, the suggestion was Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, whose name was also proposed by Ms Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal at an earlier meeting as the Opposition's Prime Ministerial candidate.

For Mr Kumar, it was the other big letdown since he was counting on being projected for the job, sources earlier told NDTV.

While announcing the break-up over the weekend, Mr Kumar had said he was unhappy with the way things were progressing at the Opposition camp.

Navy Rescues 19 Pak Sailors Kidnapped By Pirates, Second Op In 2 Days

Indian warship INS Sumitra rescued 19 Pakistani sailors after pirates hijacked their fishing vessel off the east coast of Somalia on Monday. This was the second anti-piracy operation carried out by the warship within 36 hours, the Indian Navy said.

Navy Rescues 19 Pak Sailors

Iranian-flagged fishing vessel FV Al Naeemi was boarded by 11 armed pirates who took the 19 crew members - all Pakistanis - hostage. The Navy warship intercepted the fishing vessel and coerced the pirates to release the hostages.

Responding swiftly to the developing situation Sumitra intercepted the FV (fishing vessel) on PM 29 Jan 24 and through coercive posturing and effective deployment of her integral helo and boats compelled the safe release of the crew and the vessel," the Navy said in a statement

The Navy personnel boarded the vessel subsequently to check on the well-being of the crew.

The swift rescue comes a day after INS Sumitra responded to an SOS call by another Iranian-flagged fishing vessel, FV Iman, which was hijacked by Somali pirates. The vessel's 17 Iranian crew members were rescued by the Navy.

"INS Sumitra, over the course of less than 36 hours, through swift, persistent and relentless efforts has rescued two hijacked Fishing Vessels along with 36 Crew (17 Iranian and 19 Pakistani) in Southern Arabian Sea approximately 850 nm West of Kochi, and prevented misuse of these Fishing Vessels as Mother Ships for further acts of Piracy on Merchant Vessels," the official statement said.

INS Sumitra is Indian Navy's indigenous offshore patrol vessel that has been deployed for anti-piracy and maritime security operations in east of Somalia and Gulf of Aden.

Earlier, Indian Navy's guided missile destroyer INS Visakhapatnam, which is currently on an anti-piracy mission, had helped extinguish a massive blaze onboard a merchant vessel after it was struck by a missile in the Gulf of Aden on Saturday night .

Indian Student In US Found Dead A Day After Mother Sought Help To Trace Him

Neel Acharya, an Indian student studying at Purdue University in the US was found dead on Sunday, hours after he was reported missing by his mother.

Neel Acharya

According to the Tippecanoe County Coroner's Office, officials were called around 11:30 am on Sunday to 500 Allison Road in West Lafayette for a possible dead body. Upon arrival, a "college-aged male" was found dead on Purdue's campus.

The student was identified as Neel Acharya, a double major in computer science and data science at the John Martinson Honors College of Purdue University.

On Sunday, Neel's mother Gaury Acharya, had appealed in a post on X, "Our son Neel Acharya is missing since yesterday Jan 28 (12:30 AM EST) He is studying in Purdue University in the US. He was last seen by the Uber driver who dropped him off in Purdue University. We are looking for any info on him. Please help us if you know anything."

The Consulate General of India in Chicago replied to her post, saying, "Consulate is in touch with Purdue University authorities and also with Neel's family. Consulate will extend all possible support and help."

According to Purdue Exponent, a multimedia agency independent of the university, the head of the Computer Science department Chris Clifton informed the faculty and students of Neel Acharya's death in an email on Monday.

Earlier this week, another Indian student was brutally killed with repeated blows from a hammer by a homeless man inside a store in Lithonia, Georgia, US.

A video of the incident went viral on social media, but the date of the incident can't be confirmed.

The man seen attacking Vivek Saini is reportedly a homeless person who used to frequent the store. A person familiar with the case told ANI that police authorities acted firmly on the visual evidence of the case, and arrests were made promptly.

Vivek Saini's body was sent back to his family in India on January 24.