March 9: Must-read stories

Timing of Bhopal Train Blast, arrest of ISIS suspects don’t add up

Even as the encounter ended on Wednesday morning, questions have cropped up about the story surrounding the sequence of events that led the UP Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) police to the target building in Thakurganj, Lucknow; about the role played by the MP, Kerala and Telangana police; and about a video clip that surfaced on Wednesday. TheQuint reports.

Chandrababu Naidu son’s assets jumped from ₹14.5 crore to ₹330 crore in 5 months

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s son N Lokesh’s personal assets have drastically increased from ₹14.50 crore in October 2016 to around ₹330 crore by the end of February as he declared their true market value, reports The Indian Express.

Poll cash pile punctures demonetisation pride

Cash seizures from the five states that voted in February to March were more than three times the amount seized during the 2012 elections in these states, despite the post-demonetisation limits on cash withdrawals, reports The Telegraph.

Minorities panel has virtually no members

The National Commission for Minorities—an organisation established to safeguard the constitutional and legal rights of minorities—currently has no chairperson and virtually no members. The last of its members will retire on Thursday, reports The Tribune.

BJP’s claim of unemployment drop: Data confusing, unreliable

On March 5, 2017, the BJP tweeted that “unemployment rate falls sharply, as Modi government’s efforts to create rural employment are yielding results”. It claimed that the unemployment rate had fallen from 9.5% in August 2016 to 4.8% in February 2017. A FactChecker analysis revealed India’s unemployment data as being unreliable.