A Delhi court has sought an action-taken report from the police on a complaint by an independent journalist seeking registration of an FIR over allegations of sexual assault against Vivek Bhagat, an ACP with the Delhi Police. Judicial Magistrate Kautuk Bhardwaj directed the Parliament Street police station to submit a report on the action taken and ordered the preservation of CCTV footage and other digital evidence, including body-camera recordings. The matter is scheduled to be heard next on December 1. The journalist, identified as Rosy, has alleged that Bhagat touched her inappropriately while she was recording the detention of an activist during a protest in Delhi. Bhagat has denied the allegations. The complaint had triggered protests by journalists demanding an FIR against the ACP, during which eight journalists were detained.

  Veteran journalist Paranjoy Guha Thakurta’s website, paranjoy.in, has been restored to its original form after his web hosting provider, Hostinger, took it offline on October 28, triggering concerns over censorship and press freedom. “Surprise! Surprise! My website - paranjoy.in - has been restored to its original form. What happened Hostinger?” Thakurta posted on X. The journalist had alleged that Hostinger suspended his entire hosting account without prior notice, removing his 12-year-old website and associated subdomains, which contained decades of his journalistic work, books, documentary films and investigative reports. In a public statement dated October 31, the Digital News Publishers Association of India (DIGIPUB News India Foundation) condemned the takedown, describing it as an instance of “backdoor censorship by a private intermediary, outside any courtroom.” The controversy followed an October 24 ex parte interim injunction obtained

Wednesday, 4 November 2026 #1  ·  Times City  ·  Ground report / Investigative Fires Are Down In Punjab, But Most Being Lit At Dusk By Amit Bhattacharya   ·   The Times of India, New Delhi  ·  Page Page 12 A TOI reporter conducted a three-day ground tour across multiple Punjab districts and found that farmers, farm union representatives, and agriculture department officials have learned to set stubble fires in the evening to evade satellite detection, since polar-orbiting satellites used by Indian agencies have a 12-hour observation gap. The reporting reveals that village sarpanches are actively advising farmers to burn quietly after dusk, and that reduced official presence in evening hours further enables the practice. Rare, genuine field reporting — the reporter physically toured multiple districts over three days, obtained named and anonymous on-record sources at multiple levels, and uncovered a specifi

OpIndia has accused Reporters Without Borders (RSF) of serving Western geopolitical interests, a day after the Paris-based watchdog named the website a “press freedom predator” for the second consecutive year.   In an article published on its website, OpIndia described RSF as “Ford Foundation-funded” and that it received substantial backing from Western governments. The publication also alluded that it had “predictably” made the cut again, alongside the Adani Group.   “RSF receives substantial backing from Western governments and quasi-governmental democracy promotion organisations, according to its public statements and independent investigations. Large US foundations like the Ford Foundation, which has a lengthy and contentious history of supporting political action and lobbying in India, including organisations later charged with financial irregularities and anti-India campaigns, are also connected to RSF,” the OpIndia

Rates at 18-year high as RBA warns it will “feel like a recession” The Reserve Bank’s latest rate rise has pushed borrowing costs to an 18-year high, with Governor Michele Bullock warning households may feel recession-like conditions as inflation proves stubborn and growth slows. The decision ramps up pressure on the Albanese government to rein in spending and sharpen its economic narrative as mortgage stress and cost-of-living politics intensify. Covered by: Australian Financial Review, The Australian, Daily Telegraph, Sydney Morning Herald, The Advertiser, The Mercury, Herald Sun. Chalmers flags budget cuts as political heat rises on cost of living With the RBA tightening again, Treasurer Jim Chalmers is signalling further spending restraint in upcoming budget updates to help cool inflation—an implicit acknowledgement that fiscal settings are now central to the inflation fight. Commentators and rival outlets frame it as a credibility test for Labor’s

The Chennai Press Club has expressed grief over the death of senior Tamil journalist Bharathkumar, describing it as a significant loss to the media fraternity. Bharathkumar, who served as Chief Anchor at Maalai Murasu TV, died of a heart attack on November 2. He was 48. With extensive experience in both print and television journalism, Bharathkumar was known for his long association with the Tamil media industry. The Chennai Press Club extended its condolences to his family, colleagues, and friends.  

The Adani Group and the digital platform OpIndia have been named on Reporters Without Borders’ (RSF) Press Freedom Predators List for the second consecutive year. They sit alongside US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Chinese Communist Party among 33 individuals and organisations the Paris-based watchdog accuses of attacking journalism. RSF released the 2026 list on November 2, the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists. The organisation describes it as a tongue-in-cheek awards list. RSF Director-General Thibaut Bruttin called it “a bit like RSF’s version of the Razzies.” "The Press Freedom Predators List is a tongue-in-cheek honours list of the worst of the attacks and abuses directed at the press," he added. The Adani Group appears in the legal category, which covers actors RSF accuses of using abusive legal proceedings against journalists and media outlets. RSF places the conglomerate al