Mahayuti wins civic polls in Maharashtra

The Bharatiya Janata Party-led Mahayuti alliance swept the municipal corporation elections in Maharashtra on Friday (January 16, 2026) with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis claiming victory in 25 of the 29 bodies. He termed the outcome a “massive mandate” even though the State Election Commission declared results for only 11 corporations, with counting going on till late night.

Trump says he may punish countries with tariffs if they don’t back U.S. controlling Greenland

President Donald Trump suggested Friday that he may punish countries with tariffs if they don’t back the U.S. controlling Greenland, a message that came as a Congressional delegation met Danish and Greenlandic lawmakers in Copenhagen and sought to lower tensions.

Diplomat’s meeting with Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami chief was routine: India

A fortnight after the leader of Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami in Bangladesh revealed that he had held a “secret” meeting with an Indian diplomat, the Ministry of External Affairs on Friday said the interaction was part of the routine engagements conducted by Indian diplomats in Dhaka.

Delhi High Court seeks Centre’s reply on Iran’s detention of 16 Indian seafarers

The Delhi High Court has issued notice to the Union government while hearing a plea by family members of 16 Indian seafarers who were detained by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRG) on December 8. At the time, they were on a vessel in international waters off the Dibba port near Dubai.

Talks on Chabahar will continue with U.S. and Iran: India

India remains engaged with both the United States and Iran about ways to continue operations at the port of Chabahar in southeastern Iran, officials said on Friday. Recent media reports have suggested that India is wrapping up its work in Chabahar in the light of fresh U.S. sanctions.

EU leaders to be chief guests at Republic Day function

Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh on Friday announced that European Union leaders Antonio Costa, President of the European Council, and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, will be the chief guests at India’s 77th Republic Day celebrations.

Apex wildlife body readies guidelines on ‘religious structures’ in sanctuaries

An apex expert body of the Environment Ministry, which decides on permitting infrastructure development within wildlife habitat, has brought out guidelines that specify conditions under which land inside wildlife parks or sanctuaries may be diverted for religious structures. This follows a first-of-its-kind instance, when a proposal for land diversion within the Balaram Ambaji Wildlife Sanctuary, Gujarat, came up in early 2024. The sanctuary is host to, according to the State Government, “...two historical temples—Balaram and Ambaji—situated at the opposite corners of the sanctuary.”

Nobel Peace Prize inseparable from laureate, award body says after Trump gets medal from Machado

The Nobel Peace ‍Prize remains inseparably linked to the person ​or organisation designated as the laureate, the ‌Norwegian Nobel Committee said ​on Friday, one day after last year’s winner gave part of her award to U.S. President Donald Trump. The 2025 laureate, Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, on Thursday gave her Nobel ​Peace Prize medal to Mr. Trump, who thanked ⁠her for it. “Regardless of what may happen to the medal, the diploma, or ‍the prize money, it is and remains the original laureate who is recorded in history as the recipient of the prize,” the award body said in a statement.

Trump thanks Iran for not following through on executions of protesters

U.S. President Donald Trump took the unusual step on Friday (January 16, 2026) of thanking the Iranian government for not following through on executions of what he said was meant to be hundreds of political prisoners. “Iran cancelled the hanging of over 800 people,” Mr. Trump told reporters while leaving the White House to spend the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. He added “and I greatly respect the fact that they cancelled.” Mr. Trump posted, “Thank you!”

Greenland is a territory of Denmark, says Russia, slams ‘double standards’ of Western powers

The ‍Kremlin said ​on Friday (January 16, 2026) that Russia ‌considers ​Greenland to be Danish territory, and added that the security situation surrounding ​the island ⁠was “extraordinary” from the perspective of ​international law. The ‍Kremlin also said that the stated ​desire of Italy, France and Germany to resume dialogue on Ukraine with ​Russia was ⁠a significant shift which matched its ​own view ⁠of how things should evolve.

Canada PM Carney announces ‘preliminary’ Canada-China deal to reduce tariffs

Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a deal with China’s Xi Jinping on Friday (January 16, 2026) to reduce tariffs on each country’s products after the two leaders met in Beijing. “Canada and China have reached a preliminary but landmark trade agreement to remove trade barriers and reduce, reduce tariffs,” Mr. Carney told a news conference in the Chinese capital.

“By March the first, Canada expects that China will lower tariffs on Canadian canola seed. The combined rate of approximately 15 percent... this change represents a significant drop from the current combined tariff levels of 84%.”

Equity markets to remain open on Budget Day on Feb 1

Leading stock bourses NSE and BSE on Friday (January 16, 2026) said they will conduct live trading on Sunday, February 1, when Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget.

India a key driver of global growth, says IMF spokesperson

India continues to remain a key growth engine for the global economy, with its economic performance staying strong and resilient, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack, who also heads the Communications Department at the IMF said “India is a key growth engine for the world.”

WPL-4: Radha, Richa, Shreyanka star as RCB maintains perfect run

It’s not for nothing that Radha Yadav and Richa Ghosh are rated so highly, especially in the shortest format of the game. On Friday, the two experienced players once again stamped their class as they brought Royal Challengers Bengaluru out of the woods with a 105-run partnership for the fifth wicket and paved the way for the team’s 32-run win against Gujarat Giants in a Women’s Premier League 2026 fixture at the D.Y. Patil Stadium.