United Nations, Jun 6: India has slammed Pakistan for its “unwarranted reference” to Jammu and Kashmir at the UN, telling the current non-permanent member of the global body that it was a huge responsibility and not a forum for peddling “biased and false narratives”.

“The unwarranted reference by Pakistan to a matter strictly internal to India, the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, has compelled me to respond,” India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish said on Friday.

The strong retort by Harish came after Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad raised the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in his remarks in the UN General Assembly on Friday on the ‘Annual Report of the Security Council’.

Pakistan, which constantly raises the issue of Jammu and Kashmir as well as other topics internal to India at various UN platforms, currently sits in the Security Council as a non-permanent member and its tenure will end this year.

Harish said in the UNGA hall that Pakistan has decided not to spare this forum either from their characteristic misuse of august UN platforms for their divisive political interests.

“Abuse of its presence on the Security Council by Pakistan, including through the circulation of several misinformed and misleading communications also testifies to this counter-productive approach. I would like to remind Pakistan that being a member of the UN Security Council is a huge responsibility. It is not a forum for peddling biased and false narratives,” Harish said.

Making it clear that Jammu and Kashmir was, is and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India, Harish emphasised that any assertions to the contrary are baseless, devoid of and inconsistent with historical facts.

“Empty rhetoric and hollow claims by Pakistan would not change this fundamental reality. In the interest of time of the wider UN membership, I would not delve any further into this,” he said.

The Indian envoy also pointed out that the international community recognises the importance of reform of the Security Council to make it fit-for-purpose to handle contemporary and future challenges we face.

“The current structure reflects geopolitical realities of 1945. Retaining the staus quo has so far not enabled effective functioning of the Security Council and cannot do so in future,” he said.

He noted that the “marginal” reform in the 1960s that expanded only the non-permanent category has not changed the fundamental mode of functioning of the Security Council in any impactful manner.

“Expansion of both permanent and non-permanent categories is central to implementing real and meaningful reform,” he said.

The G4 nations of India, Brazil, Germany and Japan have proposed that Security Council membership needs to be increased from the current 15 to 25 or 26, with a reformed Council consisting of 11 permanent members and 14 or 15 non-permanent members.

Currently, the powerful UN organ consists of five veto-wielding permanent members — China, France, Russia, the UK and the US.

The remaining 10 members are elected to sit at the horseshoe table for two-year terms as non-permanent members. India last sat in the Council as a non-permanent member in 2021-22.

New Delhi, June 06: The Report of the Committee on Datasets for State Finance Commissions is scheduled to be released at a function organized by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj on 8th June 2026 in New Delhi. Dr. V. Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India, will release the report in the presence of Vivek Bharadwaj, Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, and Dr. Manish Gupta, Associate Professor, National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP), along with senior officers and distinguished representatives from research institutions, and policy bodies. The release of the report will be followed by a keynote address by the Chief Economic Advisor on data-driven policymaking and evidence-based fiscal governance as essential foundations for empowered local self-government and inclusive development.

The release of this report marks a significant step in the Government’s sustained commitment to strengthening the evidence base for fiscal decentralisation in India. State Finance Commissions, constituted under Article 243-I of the Constitution, are the primary constitutional bodies mandated to review the financial position of Panchayati Raj Institutions and to recommend principles governing the devolution of financial resources to local governments. For these Commissions to discharge this constitutional responsibility with the requisite rigour and credibility, access to reliable, timely, and disaggregated data on local government finances, demographics, infrastructure, service delivery, and asset management is indispensable. The Ministry constituted the Committee on Datasets for State Finance Commissions in response to concerns raised at the Finance Commissions’ Conclave on Devolution to Development, convened in November 2024 under the leadership of the Chairman of the Sixteenth Finance Commission, where the difficulty in accessing comprehensive datasets across departments and agencies was identified as a critical gap affecting the quality and timeliness of State Finance Commission recommendations.

The report offers a structured and comprehensive mapping of the essential datasets required by State Finance Commissions and sets out actionable recommendations to improve data availability, standardisation, interoperability, and institutional capacity across the data ecosystem supporting fiscal analysis at the local level. It is expected to serve as an authoritative reference for State Governments, State Finance Commissions, constitutional bodies, economic researchers, and all those committed to deepening democratic decentralisation and strengthening local public finance in India.

New Delhi, Jun 6: Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the online movement Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), criticised the government for focusing on the organisation’s social media activity rather than addressing their demands, which include Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation over alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests.

Dipke participated in a planned demonstration at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on Saturday, which was held under heavy security and joined by scores of youth.

“My friends, this is a long struggle. It has been a month since we started demanding Pradhan’s resignation on social media, but these individuals are so shameless that instead of taking action, they have been focused on other distractions, like hacking our accounts and getting our posts deleted. You may be able to delete our posts, but you cannot erase us from this space,” Dipke stated during his address to the crowd, which energetically supported his words.

He also mentioned that activist Sonam Wangchuk would be joining the protest shortly and thanked him for his support.

Recalling his arrival at Indira Gandhi International Airport that morning, Dipke said that just before his flight was about to land, he felt as though he was living his last moments of freedom. “I was fully prepared to sacrifice my freedom for this cause,” he said.

The CJP founder claimed that many people have compromised themselves and ‘sold out’ due to the fear of imprisonment. “Lekin is desh ka chatra, yuva nahi bika hai (The youth and students of this country have not sold themselves),” he said amid loud cheers from the crowd.

Hundreds of people, mostly young individuals, turned out for the demonstration, many of whom were wearing cockroach masks and holding flowers. School students were also seen attending the protest along with their parents.

The majority of participants were a mix of school and college students, along with young professionals.

Scores of students gathered at the venue, chanting slogans and demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

Dipke, who arrived in Delhi early in the day, had urged supporters to maintain discipline and ensure that the protest remains peaceful.

Activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has also expressed support for the protest, stated that he would undertake a six-week fast if Dipke is arrested.

In a post on X, Dipke expressed excitement about meeting supporters at Jantar Mantar and encouraged them to bring a book and the national flag. He also urged participants to offer flowers to police personnel as a “gesture of compassion and gratitude,” emphasising that the movement should be led with “love and peace.”

The protest has been organised by the CJP, a youth-led online movement demanding accountability for alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests, including NEET, CBSE, CUET, and SSC examinations.

Security was heightened across the national capital in anticipation of the protest. Police officials stated that additional personnel had been deployed at Indira Gandhi International Airport, border entry points, and other sensitive locations.

More than 1,000 police personnel have been allocated for deployment throughout New Delhi and other strategic locations as a precaution.

In the run-up to the protest, the CJP had circulated guidelines urging participants to maintain non-violent conduct and avoid confrontation. Dipke’s latest appeal reiterated those instructions, emphasising respectful engagement with law enforcement personnel during the demonstration.

Ludhiana, Jun 6: A sleeper coach of the Delhi Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Special train developed a crack and partially separated near the toilet area shortly after the train began moving from the Ludhiana railway station on Saturday, triggering panic among passengers.

The S-2 coach of the train suffered a structural failure causing a portion near the toilets to cave in, officials said. Toilet fittings including seats, fell onto the tracks as the coach body gave way, officials said.

No passenger was hurt in the incident, they said.

Passengers said they felt a sudden and violet jolt as the train started moving, prompting fears of derailment, following which several people rushed out immediately.

Railway officials and emergency teams reached the spot, evacuated passengers from the affected coach and detached it from the train.

Ludhiana Station Director Aditya said a replacement coach was attached to the train, allowing it to resume its journey to Katra without significant delay.

Railways has ordered a detailed inquiry into the incident to ascertain the cause of the structural failure.

Deputy Superintendent of Police, Government Railway Police, Tejpal Singh said preliminary investigation had found no evidence of sabotage.

Officials believe a technical defect caused the coach body to fail at the start of movement.

Officers noted that the consequences could have been far more serious had the coach failure occurred while the train was running at high speed.