Centre amends rules for receiving foreign fundsThe government has amended the rules for receiving foreign funds requiring NGOs to choose from predefined list of purposes and their area of operation, allowing a range of faith-based activities while explicitly excluding proselytisation from several categories eligible for registration under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA). In a gazette notification issued on Monday (June 22, 2026), the Union Home Ministry also said any association having foreign nationals, other than those of Indian origin, as its key functionaries will “ordinarily not be considered” for grant of registration or prior permission to receive foreign funds under the Act.NSA Doval meets counterparts from BRICS grouping, discusses West Asia and India-China tiesDevelopments in West Asia formed the dominant backdrop as National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval hosted his counterparts from BRICS grouping in New Delhi for the BRICS NSAs meeting. Mr. Doval met Ghadir Nezamipour, Deputy Secretary for Defence Affairs of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and Secretary of Multilateral and Political Affairs of Brazil Carlos Cozendey among others who are in New Delhi to attend the two-day event that will survey the security architecture of the world.U.S. waives sanctions on Iranian oil, shipsWith the peace process moving ahead after an interruption, the U.S. Treasury Department has issued a waiver that waives all sanctions for a period of 60 days ending August 21 related to the production, sale, delivery and offloading of Iranian crude oil as well as petroleum products. The waiver includes transactions involving vessels that were earlier sanctioned, as per the Treasury Department notification.FIFA World Cup 2026: Messi’s record brace against Austria sends Argentina into knockoutsArgentina booked their place in the FIFA World ​Cup knockout stage on Monday (June 22, 2026) as ‌Lionel Messi recovered from an early ​penalty miss to score ⁠a record-breaking double in a 2-0 victory over Austria in Group J.India, Israel discuss expanding defence, industrial cooperationIndia and Israel have discussed ways to further strengthen defence cooperation during the visit of Director General of Israel’s Ministry of Defense, Major General (retd.) Amir Baram, to India. Major General Baram called on Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and briefed him on Israel’s commitment to expanding the scope of bilateral defence cooperation under the framework of the India-Israel Special Strategic Partnership. The discussions focused on enhancing collaboration in defence manufacturing, technology and joint projects.CJP protesters remain at Jantar Mantar for third consecutive dayThe Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) remained at Jantar Mantar for the third consecutive day, continuing their protest over alleged examination irregularities and the May 3 NEET paper leak. The sit-in, which began on Saturday (June 20) afternoon, continued overnight with protesters staying at the site under police deployment. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke on Sunday (June 21) announced that the protest would continue on Monday and appealed to farmer unions and members of the public to join the movement.Core sector growth slows to 0.5% in May 2026, second-slowest in 21 monthsGrowth in activity in India’s eight core industrial sectors slowed to 0.5% in May 2026, the second-lowest in 21 months, official data showed. The data on the Index of Eight Core Industries released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry showed that five out of eight sectors contracted in May 2026. Apart from electricity, the sectors that saw growth also slowed from previous months. NTA dismisses video claiming paper leak as ‘fake’, says NEET re-exam successfully heldThe National Testing Agency (NTA) has termed as fake a video being circulated on social media claiming that the NEET-UG 2026 paper was leaked. In a statement on X, the agency said the exam was conducted successfully under comprehensive security and surveillance. The agency said manufacturing and deliberately circulating such misinformation to defraud or alarm students was a “serious offence.” “NTA, with the support of I4C and law-enforcement agencies, is taking action against those responsible for originating this content,” the agency said.Supreme Court refuses to entertain Himachal Pradesh judicial officer’s plea against Collegium picks for HC judgeshipThe Supreme Court declined to entertain a petition filed by a judicial officer from Himachal Pradesh challenging the recommendation made by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant-led Collegium to appoint certain judicial officers junior to him as judges of the Himachal Pradesh High Court. The court observed that recommendations relating to appointments to constitutional courts are based on the Collegium’s subjective assessment and are amenable to only limited judicial review in exceptional circumstances.Centre reappoints Solicitor General Tushar Mehta for three years; five ASGs also get extensionThe Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the reappointment of Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta for a further term of three years from July 1, ensuring continuity in the Centre’s legal leadership before the Supreme Court and other constitutional courts. The decision was conveyed through an order issued on Saturday (June 20, 2026) by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT).India in talks to sell BrahMos missile, Akashteer air defence system to the UAE, sources sayThe Indian government is in talks with the UAE ​to sell some of its flagship defence systems, including the supersonic cruise missile BrahMos, four Indian sources said, as the Gulf nation steps up arms ‌procurement following the war in the West Asia. The discussions, which have not been previously reported, include the potential sale ​of India’s air defence system Akashteer, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.Allu Arjun fails to appear before court in stampede case, hearing adjourned to July 6Actor Allu Arjun did not appear before the Nampally Criminal Court on Monday (June 22, 2026) during proceedings in the Sandhya Theatre stampede case, and two representatives of the theatre management were also absent from the hearing. Allu Arjun, who has been named as Accused No. 11 in the case, neither attended the proceedings in person nor joined through video conference. The court directed the defence to submit a memo explaining the reasons for the actor’s non-appearance. His counsel filed an absence petition before the court.Lucknow building fire: Mother’s plea, colleague’s distress call capture horrorAs a mother begged police to let her reach her trapped son, and people made frantic calls for help from inside a smoke-filled building, residents and rescue teams raced against time to save those caught in a devastating fire at a three-storey commercial building in Aliganj area. The blaze erupted at the building housing an animation centre on Usha Mehta Marg, leaving 15 people dead and seven injured. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, with authorities ordering a high-level probe into the incident.2 senior U.S. officials visit Sri Lanka amid growing focus on Indian Ocean regionTwo senior U.S. officials, including Pacific Air Forces Commander General Kevin Schneider, have arrived in Sri Lanka on separate visits focused on defence, security and economic cooperation amid Washington’s growing engagement with the strategically located Indian Ocean nation, officials said.Indians among 13 dead in Qatar explosion, says Qatar MinisterAt least 13 people, including Indians, were killed in an explosion at the Ras Laffan Industrial City in Qatar, the Gulf country’s Energy Minister Saad bin Shreida Al-Kaabi said. Mr. Al-Kaabi, who is also the CEO of QatarEnergy, said 66 people were injured in the fire caused by the explosion at the Barzan local gas supply facility in Ras Laffan Industrial City on Sunday (June 21, 2026) evening, Doha News reported.Cred founder Kunal Shah tapped as WhatsApp global chiefWhatsApp will now be headed by Cred founder Kunal Shah, starting as early as this week, the messaging platform announced, marking the elevation of the serial fintech entrepreneur to the leadership of the world’s largest messaging platform. WhatsApp parent Meta, which also owns Instagram and Facebook, will invest $900 million (around ₹8,550 crore) in Cred as a part of this hire, enabling Cred to move forward with ESOP buybacks.Muzumdar backs India to bounce backIndian coach Amol Muzumdar believes his team could bounce back from the disappointing defeat to South Africa in the Women’s T20 World Cup. “We knew it was a crunch game,” he said. “You need to give credit to South Africa and Marizanne Kapp.” Muzumdar pointed out that it was not the end of the tournament. India still has matches against Bangladesh and Australia left in the group stage. “There is no doubt in my mind that if we play to our potential, we can be on the right side of those two games,” he said.