News Headlines for CAT, CLAT and IPM aspirants
Source: The Hindu , Indian Exp and others

President Murmu gives assent to Bill to rename Kerala as Keralam

President Droupadi Murmu has given assent to a Bill to rename Kerala as Keralam, with the legislation now becoming a law.The Lok Sabha passed the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026, on August 11, 2026, followed by the Rajya Sabha the next day. In the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said the Kerala Assembly passed a resolution in 2024, urging the Centre to bring a law to change the name of the State to Keralam. “The Bill provides that the State of Kerala will be known as the State of Keralam, and hence there is a proposal to rename the State of Kerala to Keralam,” he said.

Supreme Court decides to watch progress on Cauvery water-sharing, tells Tamil Nadu water is being given

The Supreme Court on Monday (August 17, 2026) decided to wait and watch the progress in Cauvery water sharing between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, even as Karnataka said that over 12,000 cusecs was released by 8 a.m. on August 17. A Bench headed by Justice Vikram Nath addressed Tamil Nadu, saying “it is not that the State [Karnataka] is not giving water to you”. Tamil Nadu, represented by senior advocate C.S. Vaidyanthan, emphasised that the court must ensure that Karnataka should strictly follow the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) directions on water allocation.

CID raids under way at JSSC office in connection with Jharkhand recruitment exam irregularities

The Criminal Investigation Department on Monday (August 17, 2026) began conducting raids at the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission office here in connection with its probe into irregularities in recruitment exams, an officer said. Job aspirants have been protesting for 24 days now against irregularities in various recruitment examinations in Jharkhand.

BJP reshuffle: Ram Madhav, Smriti Irani, Biplab Deb in new national team; Piyush Goyal named treasurer

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday (August 17, 2026) announced a new team under its chief Nitin Nabin, naming 13 vice-presidents including Vasundhara Raje Scindia, Ram Madhav, D Purandeshwari.
Former Uttarakhand CM Tirath Singh Rawat, former Union Minister Bharti Pawar, Manpreet Singh Badal, and Tariq Mansoor were also named as vice-presidents.
Former Union Minister Smriti Irani, former Tripura CM Biplab Deb, Sunil Bansal, Vinod Tawde, Satish Poonia were among the eight new national general secretaries announced, as the party chose to retain B.L. Santhosh as national general secretary (organisation).

Over 200 operatives of ISI-backed terrorist group arrested ahead of Independence Day: HM Amit Shah

More than 200 operatives of the ISI-backed terrorist group Shahzad Bhatti Network were arrested ahead of Independence Day across the country, said Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday (August 17, 2026).
He said the Modi government destroyed the ISI-backed terror group Shahzad Bhatti Network ahead of Independence Day. “Modi govt destroyed the ISI-backed terror group Shahzad Bhatti Network ahead of Independence Day and thwarted its plans for subversive attacks by arresting more than 200 operatives,” he posted on X.

Ram Temple donations theft: SC says ball is in SIT’s court, suggestions can be directed to Solicitor General’s office

The Supreme Court on Monday (August 17, 2026) conveyed a hands-off approach on the investigation into the Ram Temple donations’ misappropriation case, saying a Special Investigation Team (SIT) is expected to take the probe to its logical conclusion, and anyone with further suggestions could approach the office of the Solicitor General of India directly.

“Let the SIT conclude. They must take it to its logical conclusion,” Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, heading a three-judge Bench, addressed petitioners and intervenors.

Jharkhand government cancels JSSC-CGL exam, all exams conducted by tainted firm

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren announced the cancellation of the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission-Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) examination late on Monday (August 18, 2026), 24 days after students began the protest over alleged irregularities in recruitment exams in the State. However, Ravindra Paswan, leader of the JPSC-JSSC Reform Manch, which has been leading the protest, said the agitation would continue as their key demand of a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into alleged examination irregularities had not been met.

‘Trapped’ constable fired AK-47 during NEET protest: Bihar Police to Supreme Court

The Bihar Police told the Supreme Court in an affidavit on Monday (August 18, 2026) that a police constable “trapped” in the crowd during the Bihar students’ NEET-UG paper leak protests and ensuing violence fired four rounds from his AK-47 rifle in the air. “No one was injured from the bullets of the AK-47,” the affidavit said.

Ridding elections of black money is ECI’s responsibility: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court observed in a judgment on Monday (August 17, 2026) that ridding the electoral process of the influence of black money is a responsibility of the Election Commission of India (ECI). “Black money in the electoral process is one such aspect that compromises democracy, rule of law and the electoral process itself,” a judgment authored by Justice Sanjay Karol noted. The court said the bane of tainted money circulating and influencing voters’ choices was an age-old problem. It has been recognised time and again, but not yet resolved.

Left parties renew call to scrap NTA, NEP after UGC-NET paper errors

The Left parties on Monday (August 17, 2026) renewed their demand for scrapping the National Testing Agency (NTA) and the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, after the NTA announced a retest for three papers of the UGC-NET June 2026 examination following complaints of errors in the question papers. CPI(M), CPI and CPI(ML) say the retest announcement exposes deep flaws in the examination system; demand an overhaul of the education policy and testing mechanism.

Supreme Court orders restoration of AAP Gujarat's Facebook, Instagram accounts

The Supreme Court on Monday (August 17, 2026) directed the restoration of the Instagram and Facebook accounts of the Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP’s) Gujarat unit. A Bench of Justices P.S. Narasimha and Alok Aradhe passed the order on an interim application filed by the party. The top court, which allowed the application subject to the removal of objectionable posts, if any, posted the main case for hearing after two weeks.

Centre says 2026 law does not invalidate identity cards already issued to transgenders

The Union Government gave an assurance in the Supreme Court on Monday (August 17, 2026) that transgender identity cards issued prior to the enactment of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Act, 2026, will continue to remain valid. Appearing before a three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the validity of these cards would not be affected by the new law.

Indian sailors’ SOS: ‘Company asking us to risk lives, cross Strait of Hormuz’

Indian sailors aboard a ship in the Persian Gulf have sent out an SOS video alleging that their employer is telling them to transit the Strait of Hormuz despite the security risks and put their lives in danger. In a video posted on X by the Forward Seamen’s Union of India (FSUI), the master of AM Pioneer, a Marshall Islands-flagged vessel, Anil Raj said that the ship went to Ras Al Khaimah Port in the UAE last month for a survey.

Trump threatens to bomb Oman if it gets in way of Iran deal

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Oman if it “gets in the way” of a U.S. deal with Tehran on the Strait of Hormuz, the key waterway for Gulf exports, and called for Iran to surrender. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said that a 60-day deadline for negotiations included in June’s memorandum of understanding was “irrelevant” because the U.S. had violated the deal early on.

Iran says it will escalate if U.S. does not honour deal within weeks

Iran will escalate tensions in the Strait of Hormuz ​and beyond and launch an attack if the ‌U.S. fails to implement an interim peace deal fully ​in a matter of weeks, a senior ⁠Iranian official told Reuters on Monday (August 17, 2026). If the U.S. does not meet that deadline and diplomacy fails, Tehran ‌would conduct a “timely and precise” military attack to break the U.S. naval blockade on ‌the Islamic Republic, the official added.

Trump’s envoy says Hamas disarmament could begin within 30 days

U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner said on Monday (August 17, 2026) that progress towards disarming Hamas and moving forward with a Gaza peace plan could begin within a month after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The comments came as Mr. Kushner and Mr. Netanyahu agreed that an American general would verify Hamas’s disarmament, an Israeli official said, as the premier insisted there would be no Israeli pullout from Gaza until then.