Congress high command defers announcement of Kerala CM designate to May 14

The Congress high command has deferred announcing the party’s Chief Minister designate for Kerala, ostensibly until Thursday (May 14, 2026). After an almost 40-minute meeting between Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge at the latter’s residence, party general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the decision on the next Kerala Chief Minister will be announced on Thursday (May 14, 2026), as the party high command has completed all discussions in this regard.

Iran working on Hormuz ‘protocol’ to cover ‘costs’, says Deputy Foreign Minister Gharibabadi

Iran has provided “free of charge services” to international shipping in the Strait of Hormuz for decades but is now working on a “protocol” to include a financial component covering costs it incurs to make navigation safe in the Persian Gulf region, said the country’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, in New Delhi on Wednesday (May 13, 2026). Speaking to a select group of journalists at the Embassy of Iran, Mr. Gharibabadi, who is here for the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ meeting, avoided naming the UAE directly and said “a neighbouring country that is also a member of the BRICS” is thwarting a joint statement at the meeting by trying to introduce language that seeks to condemn Iran’s military strategy against U.S. and Israeli attacks.

Local transport, storage and human handling are the weakest links in conducting NEET: Panel report

The K. Radhakrishnan Committee, constituted following the controversies surrounding alleged malpractice in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) for undergraduates in 2024, identified local transport, storage, and human handling as some of the weakest links in the conduct of the examination. The committee that was formed in June 2024 submitted its report in October the same year. In its report, the committee advised that the exam should be conducted in phases and a computer/hybrid mode should be brought in instead of relying entirely on a pen-and-paper exam. The committee also sought an overhaul of the National Testing Agency (NTA) while also reducing paper leak risks, minimising logistical vulnerabilities, improving encrypted delivery and enabling better audit trails. It said that the NTA should bring in permanent professional staff, reduce dependence on outsourced manpower and have stronger accountability mechanisms.

CBI Director Praveen Sood gets another one-year extension

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Director, Praveen Sood, has been given another one-year extension, as approved on Wednesday (May 13, 2026) by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) based on the recommendations of the Selection Committee. The ACC order stated that Mr. Sood’s tenure has been extended for a year beyond May 24, 2026. The 1986-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer was earlier granted a one-year extension in May 2025 after the completion of his two-year term as CBI chief.

All religious practices presumed protected unless they violate public order, health, morality: Centre in Sabarimala review hearing

The Constitution presumes that every religious practice is protected unless it violates public order, morality, and health, the Union government told the Supreme Court on Wednesday (May 13, 2026). Appearing before a nine-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant in the Sabarimala review hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the protection afforded to religion was not restricted to “essential religious practices” alone but had a wider ambit. Mr. Mehta, who opened the rejoinder in the constitutional reference hearing, said the burden was on the challenger to show that a religious practice breached public order, morality, and health.

Three tribal church leaders killed in Manipur ambush

Suspected armed extremists ambushed a team of tribal church leaders in the Kangpokpi district of Manipur on Wednesday (May 13, 2026), killing three of them and injuring four. The victims, members of the Thadou Baptist Association of India (TBAI) and the United Baptist Council (UBC), were travelling in two vehicles from a Baptist convention in Churachandpur to Kangpokpi when they were attacked. The incident occurred on the hilly Tiger Road between Kotlen and Kotzim villages around 10 a.m.

India weighs joint Centre-State funding framework for heatwave mitigation

India is expected in the coming weeks to firm up arrangements under which the Centre and State governments will jointly finance heatwave mitigation, a senior official at the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has indicated. This comes on the back of a 2024 decision allowing mitigation funds to be used against extreme heat and acts on a fresh recommendation from the 16th Finance Commission to formally notify heatwaves as a disaster. Mitigation means addressing the sources of extreme heat or investing in cooling solutions, as opposed to the current approach of dealing with the after-effects of heatwaves on health.

Israeli drone strikes on vehicles in Lebanon kill 12, including 2 children

Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday (May 13, 2026) struck seven vehicles in Lebanon — three of them on the main highway just south of Beirut — killing 12 people, including a woman and her two children, the Lebanese Health Ministry said. The Israeli military said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure in several areas in southern Lebanon, hours after telling residents of six southern villages to evacuate. Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to hold another round of direct talks in Washington on Thursday (May 14, 2026), as the Trump administration pushes for a breakthrough between the two neighbours that have been in a state of war since Israel was created in 1948.

Trump arrives in China for talks with Xi

U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in China on Wednesday (May 13, 2026) for a three-day state visit during which he will discuss a host of global issues, including the Iran war, with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Mr. Trump, who is visiting China at the invitation of President Xi, was received by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng at the airport. The leaders of ‌the world's two largest economies will hold their seventh face-to-face talks. They last met face-to-face in October 2025 in Busan, South Korea.

Mass protests in Argentina decry Milei’s funding cuts to prized public universities

Tens of thousands of Argentines flooded the streets of major cities nationwide on Tuesday (May 12, 2026) to protest funding cuts by libertarian President Javier Milei to the public university system that represents a near-universal point of pride in this crisis-prone country. Vast crowds in downtown Buenos Aires marched toward the government headquarters to denounce budget shortfalls eroding the financial foundation of the country’s higher education. Argentina’s public university system, a cornerstone of its well-educated workforce cherished by its large middle class, has been tuition-free since 1949 and produced five Nobel Prize laureates.

Netanyahu’s office says he visited UAE secretly during the Iran war

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Wednesday (May 13, 2026) that he secretly visited the United Arab Emirates during the Iran war. Mr. Netanyahu met with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan during the visit, the Israeli leader’s office said. It added that the visit “resulted in a historic breakthrough in relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.”