New Delhi, Apr 17 (PTI) Following are the top stories at 5 pm: NATION DEL39 MEA-CHOKSI-BELGIUM **** Working closely with Belgium on Mehul Choksi’s extradition: MEA New Delhi: India on Thursday said it is working closely with Belgium for extradition of fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi. **** DEL42 VP-JUDGES-LD ACCOUNTABILITY **** Why no FIR in burnt cash discovery at judge’s house case, questions Dhankhar New Delhi: Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday questioned the lack of an FIR in the discovery of wads of burnt cash case from the residence of a high court judge, wondering whether a “category beyond law” has secured immunity from prosecution. **** DEL30 DEF-RAJNATH **** India has set target of Rs 3 lakh cr in defence production by 2029: Rajnath New Delhi: The value of India’s defence production this year is expected to cross Rs 1.60 lakh crore and the target is to manufacture military hardware worth Rs 3 lakh crore by 2029, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday. **** DEL21 KHARGE-MGNREGA **** ‘Anti-poor’ Modi govt bent on ‘oppressing’ MGNREGA workers: Kharge New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday alleged that the “anti-poor” Modi government is bent on “oppressing” MGNREGA workers and reiterated the party’s demands that their minimum wage per day be fixed at Rs 400 and that they be provided at least 150 days of work in a year. **** DEL22 BJP-ED-GANDHIS **** Modi govt will put corrupt behind bars: BJP on ED chargesheet against Gandhis New Delhi: The BJP on Thursday kept up the heat on the Gandhi family on the issue of corruption and asserted that those who indulged in corruption and usurped farmers’ land will be put behind bars under the “honest government” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. **** DEL26 CONG-MEETING **** Herald case: Congress calls meeting of general secretaries, in-charges to plan protests New Delhi: The Congress has called a meeting of all its general secretaries, in-charges and heads of frontal organisations on Saturday to decide the way forward for staging protests against the alleged targeting of party leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald case. **** CAL30 WB-GUV-MURSHIDABAD VICTIMS **** Victims of violence-hit Murshidabad district meet Bengal Guv, seek permanent BSF camp in area Kolkata: West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar on Thursday took a group of people, rendered homeless due to the recent riots in Murshidabad, to the Raj Bhawan, where they narrated their ordeal to Governor C V Ananda Bose. **** CAL24 WB-MAMATA-GUV-MURSHIDABAD **** Mamata urges Guv to defer visit to riot-hit Murshidabad amid efforts to restore normalcy Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday urged Governor C V Ananda Bose to defer his proposed visit to violence-hit Murshidabad district, stating that the situation was gradually returning to normal and confidence-building measures were underway. **** CAL23 WB-MAMATA-TEACHERS **** ‘Sense of relief’: Mamata welcomes SC order extending services of untainted terminated teachers Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday welcomed the Supreme Court’s order extending the services of untainted teachers whose appointments were earlier terminated, stating that there was now a “sense of relief”. **** CAL22 OD-TURTLE *** Tagged in Odisha, Olive Ridley Turtle swims 3,600 km in 4 years, reaches Maharashtra beach Kendrapara: Tagged at Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary on Odisha coast around four years ago, an Olive Ridley Turtle swam around 3,600 km through the Bay of Bengal before being spotted at a Maharashtra beach, a senior Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) scientist said. **** MDS4 TN-AIADMK-COALITION GOVT (R) **** No place for coalition govt in TN, says AIADMK leader Chennai: There was no place for a coalition government in Tamil Nadu and AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami will form a government “alone” in the state after the 2026 Assembly polls should the NDA win, senior party leader M Thambidurai said on Thursday. **** LEGAL LGD30 SC-LD WAQF ACT **** Waqf case: Centre says won’t denotify properties, SC grants it 7 days to reply to pleas New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday recorded the Centre’s assurance that neither waqf properties, including “waqf by user”, will be denotified nor appointments will be made to the central waqf council and boards till May 5. **** BOM21 MH-HC-FADNAVIS-SUMMONS **** HC issues summons to CM Fadnavis in petition challenging his 2024 assembly poll win Nagpur: The Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court on Thursday issued summons (notice) to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in a poll petition challenging his 2024 win from the Nagpur South West assembly seat. **** CAL12 WB-HC-MURSHIDABAD **** Situation under control in violence-hit Murshidabad: Bengal govt to Cal HC Kolkata: The West Bengal government on Thursday submitted a report before the Calcutta High Court and claimed that the law and order situation in violence-hit Murshidabad district was under control. **** BUSINESS DEL44 BIZ-SITHARAMAN-BSE **** India to navigate global disruptions with policy agility, long-term investments: Sitharaman Mumbai: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said the rise of protectionist policies has the potential to disrupt global supply chains but India will navigate the global disruptions with policy agility and long-term investments. **** FOREIGN FGN33 US-TRUMP-LD HARVARD **** Submit disciplinary records or lose eligibility to enrol foreign students: Trump admin warns Harvard New York: The Donald Trump administration has threatened to revoke Harvard University’s eligibility to enrol international students if it doesn’t submit detailed records of its foreign student’s “illegal and violent activities”. By Yoshita Singh **** FGN25 RUSSIA-HAMAS-HOSTAGES **** Putin thanks Hamas for release of Russian hostages Moscow: President Vladimir Putin has thanked Palestinian group Hamas for releasing three Russian hostages captivated during the October 2023 attack on Israel. By Vinay Shukla **** FGN26 BANGLA-PAK-TALKS **** Bangladesh, Pakistan hold Foreign Office Consultation after 15 years Dhaka: Bangladesh and Pakistan on Thursday held a foreign secretary-level Foreign Office Consultation here after a gap of nearly 15 years and discussed the entire range of bilateral issues focusing on trade ties. **** FES27 UK-GOLCONDA-DIAMOND **** Rare ‘Golconda Blue’ diamond with royal connections to be auctioned in Geneva London: rare ‘Golconda Blue’ diamond with its rich royal history tracing back to the Holkar dynasty is set for a “once in a lifetime” grand appearance on the auction circuit as it goes under the hammer in Christie’s ‘Magnificent Jewels’ sale in Geneva next month. By Aditi Khanna **** FGN31 UK-INDIA-DEFENCE **** India-UK Defence Consultative Group reviews ties, agree to enhance collaboration London: A review of defence ties, with a particular focus on enhancing defence industry collaboration and boosting the ‘Make in India’ initiative, were on the agenda of the 24th India-UK Defence Consultative Group discussions here this week. By Aditi Khanna **** PTI ARI