NEET protests: Supreme Court quashes FIRs against protesters under Article 142The Supreme Court on Tuesday (September 1, 2026) directed all FIRs concerning NEET-UG protests registered between July 20 and July 25 be quashed under Article 142 of the Constitution.As the Bench assembled to hear the Delhi Police’s application to invoke plenary powers under Article 142, Cockroach Janta Party’s Saurav Das informed the Chief Justice of India Surya Kant that the outfit has decided to call off its planned September 5 protest march. Mr. Das said that the decision was taken after “assurances” from the Centre regarding withdrawal of FIRs and compensation to victims.SCO must confront countries using terrorism as instrument of state policy: PM ModiPrime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday (September 1, 2026) urged the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to confront countries using terrorism as an instrument of State policy and reject “double standards” in the collective fight against terror financing and recruitment, remarks widely viewed as a direct swipe at Pakistan.In presence of Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chinese President Xi Jinping and many other global leaders, Mr. Modi told the annual SCO summit that the grouping should work unitedly to “dismantle the entire ecosystem” of terrorist financing, recruitment, radicalisation, and safe havens.Indian tunnel rescue team makes progress at Chilime, Langtang hydropower sitesIndia’s specialised tunnel rescue team made progress at two hydropower sites in flood-hit Nepal, establishing a foothold inside a tunnel at Chilime and probing up to 185 metres at Langtang, the Indian envoy in Kathmandu has said. The team worked at the Chilime and Langtang sites in coordination with the Nepali Army despite inclement weather and difficult access conditions, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava said in a post on X on Monday (August 31, 2026).India has deployed specialised teams to assist Nepal following the devastating flash floods of August 26, which swept through northern and central parts of the country, killing hundreds, leaving thousands missing and destroying homes, roads and bridges and hydropower projects.SC seeks Centre’s stand on use of totalisers in polls; EC warns against risks, flags public misapprehensions against EVMsThe Supreme Court on Tuesday (September 1, 2026) sought the Centre’s response on the use of ‘totalisers’, which are machines designed to consolidate and count votes from multiple Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) Control Units simultaneously without revealing booth-wise voting trends, as a “fall-back option”. The court’s order to the Union government came despite a warning from the Election Commission of India that bringing in totalisers now, when even EVMs are subject to frequent public questioning, may not be the right move.“It is relevant to state that the present time is one in which the functioning and integrity of EVMs are still a subject of frequent public questioning… In such a climate, the introduction of new and as yet unregulated mechanisms such as totaliser could give rise to fresh allegations and controversy, thereby further complicating public confidence in an already sensitive area of the electoral process,” the Election Commission (EC) cautioned.NEET protests in Delhi: CJP calls off September 5 protest march after ‘assurances’ from Centre over withdrawal of FIRsThe Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP), on Tuesday (September 1, 2026), withdrew their call for a march on September 5, 2026, after “assurances” given by the Centre over withdrawal of FIRs in connection with the NEET-UG paper leak protests in Delhi in July.CJP co-convenor Saurav Das read out a statement in open court before the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, stating that, owing to the assurances given by the government to withdraw the FIRs and work out the modalities of the compensation scheme for victims of the July 20 police crackdown, the CJP “deems it appropriate to withdraw the march scheduled for September 5, 2026”.Solicitor General Tushar Mehta assured the Supreme Court that no FIRs registered between July 20, 2026, and July 25, 2026, in connection with the NEET-UG protests would be pursued, and that there would be no new FIRs.FIRs against CJP-led student protesters to be withdrawn; Centre has consulted BJP-ruled States: NaddaShortly after the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) withdrew their call for a march on September 5, Union Minister and senior BJP leader J.P. Nadda on Tuesday (September 1, 2026) reiterated the Centre’s assurance over withdrawal of FIRs in connection with the NEET-UG paper leak protests in Delhi in July.His remarks came shortly after the Supreme Court quashed all the FIRs registered against students who participated in the CJP-led protests from July 20-25 across the country, prompting the outfit to call off its September 5 march in the national capital.Bank unions announce strikes on September 11 over unresolved issuesThe United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), which claims to represent more than 90% of the banking workforce, has announced a series of strikes over unresolved issues related to the five-day banking week and the government’s revised Performance Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme.The UFBU has called for a one-day strike on September 11, followed by a three-day strike from September 28 to 30. If its demands are not addressed, the unions have announced an indefinite strike from October 26, 2026. The forum comprises seven unions — AIBEA, AIBOC, NCBE, AIBOA, BEFI, INBOC and INBEF — and represents workers across public sector, private, foreign, regional rural and cooperative banks, according to the union release.Tamil Nadu CM Vijay opens Mettur Dam releasing Cauvery water for irrigation in StateTamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay opened the sluice gates of the Stanley Reservoir in Mettur for delta irrigation, on Tuesday (September 1, 2026). Around 10.15 a.m. on Tuesday, the Chief Minister reached Salem Airport at Kamalapuram. Then, he reached Mettur on road via Thoppur, Mecheri, and Kunjandiyur and released Cauvery water from the dam at 11.30 a.m. and threw flowers on the water that gushed out.Mr. Vijay also interacted with farmers and received petitions from them. The farmers urged him to open water from the dam for more days instead of the announced 45 days and also sought steps from the government to divert Mettur’s surplus water to water bodies in Thalaivasal.Kuki MLAs asked to stay away from Manipur Assembly sessionThe Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), the apex body of the Kuki community, has asked the Kuki-Zo MLAs to stay away from the State Assembly session beginning Wednesday (September 2, 2026). The Manipur Assembly session is scheduled to continue until September 7, with three sittings planned.In a statement on Tuesday (September 1, 2026), the KIM said the resumption of legislative proceedings should not be treated as a return to normalcy, as the community’s demand for a separate political administration remained unresolved. It said Kuki-Zo MLAs must demonstrate solidarity with the community. It warned that those who ignore the directive would be seen as moving away from the community’s collective political position.Dhoni’s ₹100-crore defamation suit: Madras High Court directs Registry to number retired IPS officer’s pleaThe Madras High Court on Tuesday (September 1, 2026) directed its Registry to number three applications filed by retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer G. Sampath Kumar to video record the evidence of cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni in a ₹100-crore defamation suit filed by him in 2014 against the former police officer and a few others for dragging his name in the 2013 IPL betting scam.Justice K. Govindarajan Thilakavadi issued the direction after the three applications were listed before her by the Registry for deciding their maintainability. The applicant’s counsel contended the three prayers sought for by his client were maintainable in view of a Supreme Court order in a similar case. After perusing the order, the judge was convinced such applications could be filed.