With that, let’s move on to the top stories from today’s edition:

• Bills passed in Parliament
• Protesters being asked about Umar Khalid
• India’s crude oil options

🚨 Big Story

After a two-day debate punctuated by acrimonious exchanges as the Opposition slammed the government over the police crackdown on student protesters in Delhi, the Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed the stringent Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 by a voice vote amid sloganeering. Union Minister Jitendra Singh hailed the Bill, saying it reflected the government’s “openness to incorporate constructive inputs, learn from experience and further strengthen the law” to deal with exam paper leaks.

While probing the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak case, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) uncovered two messaging app trails — a Maharashtra-Rajasthan-Haryana route and a Maharashtra-Rajasthan-Kerala pathway — through which the question papers travelled. Investigators have referred to it as a “countrywide conspiracy” involving subject experts, coaching institute operators and intermediaries. In a chargesheet filed on Tuesday in a Delhi fast-track court, the CBI has named 13 accused including NTA biology, physics, and chemistry experts. Among these experts, Shivraj Raghunath Motegoankar, owner of Renukai Career Centre Coaching Institute in Latur, continues to remain at the centre of the controversy.

⚡ Only in Express

At least two protesters, who joined a protest in Goa’s Mapusa on July 24 to express solidarity with the protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, were asked by the Goa police to fill out a questionnaire with around 240 questions such as “What is your understanding of the words ‘Free Umar Khalid’…?” Other questions included, “Did you criticise any government authority during your address?”; and “Who financed the protest?” On July 25, the Goa police had detained a man for allegedly carrying a “Free Umar Khalid” placard at a gathering in Panaji’s Azad Maidan. Now, two other protesters have been summoned, and questioned by the police, based on an “application” submitted by a local group called ‘Citizens of Mapusa’. Many of the questions were specifically about Khalid, an activist and a former JNU student, who is facing charges of criminal conspiracy under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in connection with the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots.

📰 From the Front Page

Green nod: The Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down the Centre’s 2021 office memorandum on retrospective approval for projects that had already commenced construction or operation without environmental clearances. The Bench said the Centre can grant exceptions where the project is in public interest, but it has to be done under Section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and not through a mere administrative office memorandum. To avoid disruption to existing projects, the bench said the ruling will apply prospectively, leaving existing clearances unaffected.

Clean chit: Over a decade after a trial court summoned India’s former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in connection with the coal block allotment cases, the Supreme Court Wednesday accepted the CBI’s closure reports, clearing him in the matter. The Bench said the trial court had no justification for rejecting CBI’s closure report, and closed the proceedings. Singh died on December 26, 2024. This comes despite the special judge rejecting CBI’s reports filed before a trial court in 2014, taking cognisance of the case and, in March 2015, summoning Singh to face trial.

Lured: Three Indian youths, all in their early 20s, were allegedly lured to Pattaya in Thailand through a low-cost seven-day holiday package, held captive and tortured for five days while ransom calls were made to their families in India. All of them were rescued by police on Monday. Their alleged kidnappers – also Indians – were arrested from Bangkok a day later while they prepared to flee the country, according to local media reports. While the suspects admitted to the charges, they claimed that a Pakistani national had ordered them to carry out the kidnapping. The alleged mastermind is reportedly based in Dubai and had planned to receive ransom payment in cryptocurrency.

📌 Must Read

In our Opinion section today, Sanjaya Baru hails the victory of the Cockroach Janta Party leaders and India’s Gen Z supporters, who were met with solidarity from young people across South Asia – Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal. Referring to their support as a “rare” occurrence, Baru writes: “A subcontinent divided by the antediluvian bigotry of a dominant and powerful few suddenly found that such domestic prejudices are not shared by victims of similar forms of authoritarianism and corruption in their own country. More than the politics of the Indian protest movement, it is the music and its irreverent humour that found an echo across South Asia.”

Options: The West Asia conflict has already impacted India’s crude oil import options dramatically. And now, the Yemen-based Houthi militia’s announcement that it will target Saudi Arabian tankers attempting to cross the Bab al-Mandab — which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea — has added to the concerns. My colleague Sukalp Sharma shares that according to industry analysts, “if Saudi Arabian oil supplies to India are disrupted, Indian refiners are likely to further increase purchases of Russian oil barrels, while also drawing on commercial crude inventories to bridge temporary supply gaps.” We explain.

⏳ And Finally…

The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed a Bill that criminalises intentional disruption or prevention of the singing of the national song, Vande Mataram, thereby according it legal sanctity at par with the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana. The Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, seeks to amend a 1971 law by the same name, which makes insults towards the national anthem, national flag and the Constitution a criminal offence. The Bill was passed amid protests and sloganeering from the opposition members, who demanded Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement on the recent Delhi Police action against students and youngsters who were protesting against paper leaks at Jantar Mantar.

🎧 Lastly, don’t forget to tune in to today’s episode of our 3 Things podcast, where we discuss a PIL challenging the use of facial recognition technology for surveillance of protesters at Jantar Mantar; the latest Jharkhand Public Service Commission controversy; and more

That’s all for today. Have a wonderful day!

Until next time,
Ariba

Business As Usual by E P Unny