LIVE updates: Top news headlines of today – 20 Feb 2025

New Delhi: First-time MLA Rekha Gupta will be the new chief minister of Delhi, capping 11 days of suspense over who will get the top post after the BJP returned to power after over 26 years ending the 10-year rule of the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP.

Gupta, who won from Shalimar Bagh defeating AAP candidate Bandana Kumari by over 29,000 votes and was among the frontrunners for the chief ministership, will take the oath of office at a grand ceremony at the Ramlila ground on Thursday. She is set to become the fourth woman chief minister of Delhi after Sushma Swaraj(BJP), Sheila Dikshit(Congress) and Atishi(AAP).

Around 50,000 people, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his cabinet colleagues and the chief ministers of NDA-ruled states among others, are expected to attend the oath-taking ceremony.

The selection of Gupta, who will be the only woman chief minister among the states being ruled by the BJP or in coalition with its allies at present, is being seen as efforts by the BJP to send a message to its women voter base. Gupta will now be the second woman chief minister in the country after TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee (West Bengal).

Though the Law graduate from Delhi University with strong RSS roots is making her debut in the Assembly, Gupta, who hails from the Baniya community, entered politics as an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) member in 1992. Born in Haryana's Julana, she has a 32-year association with the RSS and is a former Delhi civic councillor.

Track this LIVE update page for other important developments throughout the day.

Feb 20, 2025 22:33 IST
Gill, Shami shine as India beat Bangladesh by six wickets
Riding on Mohammed Shami's 5/53 and Shubman Gill's excellent hundred, India registered a comfortable six-wicket win over Bangladesh in their opening match of the Champions Trophy here on Thursday. Read more...



Feb 20, 2025 21:14 IST
Delhi cabinet portfolios allocated
New Delhi: Following her swearing-in as Delhi’s Chief Minister, Rekha Gupta has announced the portfolio allocation for her cabinet ministers. 
 
CM Gupta will oversee key departments, including Finance, Revenue, General administration, Services, Women & Child Welfare, Land & Building, Public Relations, Vigilance & Administrative Reforms. 
 
Parvesh Verma has been assigned Public Works Department (PWD), Legislative Affairs, Irrigation, Flood Control, Water and Gurudwara Elections. 
 
Ashish Sood has been allocated Home, Urban Development, Education, Higher Education, Technical Education, Power and Training departments.
 
Manjinder Singh Sirsa takes charge of Industries, Food & Civil Supplies, and Forest & Environment Planning.
 
Ravinder Singh will manage Social Welfare, SC & ST Welfare, Cooperative and Elections. 
 
Kapil Mishra will oversee Law & Justice, Labour & Employment, Development, Art & Culture, Language and Tourism.
 
Pankaj Kumar Singh has been allotted Health, Transport and Information Technology portfolios.



Feb 20, 2025 18:46 IST
Shami takes 5/53 as ton-up Hridoy lifts Bangladesh to 228 against India
Pacer Mohammed Shami returned to an ICC tournament with a five-wicket haul as Bangladesh rode on Towhid Hridoy's maiden international century to recover from a nightmarish start and posted 228 all out against India in their opening match of Champions Trophy here on Thursday.
 
On the day, Shami also picked up his 200th ODI wicket.
 
Opting to bat, Bangladesh was off to a disastrous start and slipped 35 for five with Shami and left-arm spinner Axar Patel (2/43) doing the early damage. Read more...



Feb 20, 2025 16:26 IST
President Donald Trump confirms election interference in India
US President Donald Trump has once again questioned the Biden administration's decision to allocate USD 21 million to India for “voter turnout”, guessing that they were trying to "get somebody else elected".
 
Trump made these remarks while addressing the FII PRIORITY Summit in Miami on Thursday. He had raised similar concerns earlier, questioning the necessity of such financial aid. Read More...



Feb 20, 2025 14:59 IST
Delhi CM Rekha Gupta will commence her official duties with a series of key engagements
At 3:00 PM, she will visit the Delhi Secretariat to formally assume office. Later in the day, at 5:00 PM, she will visit the Vasudev Ghat, Yamuna Bazaar.
 
In the evening, at 7:00 PM, she will hold her first Cabinet meeting at the Delhi Secretariat



Feb 20, 2025 14:44 IST
Apple launches 'made in India' iPhone 16e; sale starts from Feb 28, check prices
Apple's new iPhone series, iPhone 16e, is being assembled in India for domestic sales as well as export to select countries, the company said on Thursday.
 
The company has launched iPhone 16e at a lower price range, compared to iPhone 16 series, which will start selling in India from February 28 onwards.
 
The pre-orders of iPhone 16e will begin on Friday, February 21 and availability on Apple store as well as on authorised partners of the company will be from February 28 onwards. Read more...



Feb 20, 2025 14:29 IST
Bangladesh opt to bat against India in Champions Trophy opener
Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto won the toss and opted to bat against India in their Champions Trophy opener here on Thursday.
 
India have made two changes from their previous ODI against England earlier this month, bringing in Mohammed Shami and Ravindra Jadeja in place of Arshdeep Singh and Varun Chakaravarthy.
 
Bangladesh have fielded three seamers and two spinners and have opted for Tanzim Hasan ahead of much-talked about Nahid Rana in the pace department. Read more...



Feb 20, 2025 13:05 IST
I am very disciplined worker of BJP, will fulfill responsibility given to me: Parvesh Verma
BJP leader and New Delhi MLA Parvesh Verma on Thursday said he is a very disciplined worker of the party and will fulfill the responsibility entrusted to him.
 
Verma said the Delhiites have supported the BJP and given a mandate of 48 seats. Read More...



Feb 20, 2025 13:00 IST
Newly sworn-in Delhi CM Rekha Gupta gets 'Z' category security
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has been accorded 'Z' category security of the Delhi Police, sources said on Thursday.
 
This is as per security guidelines of Ministry of Home Affairs outlined in the 'Yellow Book' which details protection protocols for VIPs and VVIPs.



Feb 20, 2025 12:52 IST
As BJP makes a comeback in Delhi, challenges await new city govt
The BJP which returned to power in Delhi after 26 years with a decisive mandate has its task cut out: it will have to fulfil key election promises, continue welfare schemes of the previous government, fix the city's pollution and infrastructure issues, and deliver on cleaning the Yamuna.
 
The BJP government will have to get all this done while keeping a check on the financial health of the national capital. The Aam Aadmi Party, which will now be in the opposition, will also be breathing down its neck given it has never been out of power in Delhi since its formation. Read More...



Feb 20, 2025 12:51 IST
Indian deportees from US arrive in Panama; Embassy team gets consular access
Panama has informed India about the safe arrival of a group of Indians deported from the US and the Indian mission in the country is working closely with the host government to ensure their wellbeing after obtaining consular access to them.
 
The Embassy of India in Panama, Costa Rica & Nicaragua took to X on Thursday to share the information but did not provide data on the number of Indians arriving in Panama. Read More...



Feb 20, 2025 12:46 IST
Vedanta demerger receives approval from shareholders, creditors
Vedanta Ltd has received approval from its shareholders and creditors for its proposal to demerge the company into five independent, sector-specific companies, according to a stock exchange filing by the company.
 
The demerger was approved by 99.99 per cent of shareholders, 99.59 per cent of the secured creditors, and 99.95 per cent of unsecured creditors of Vedanta Limited who voted in favour of the demerger, as per the stock exchange filing made by the company. Read More...



Feb 20, 2025 12:46 IST
Trump says it will be 'very unfair' to US if Musk built Tesla factory in India
President Donald Trump has said if Elon Musk's Tesla built a factory in India to avoid that country's tariffs, it would be unfair to the US.
 
Trump's comments came amid moves by him to increase tariffs significantly.
 
On February 13, hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's bilateral meeting with Trump at the White House, the US President announced reciprocal tariffs. Read More...



Feb 20, 2025 12:45 IST
Hindi film 'Chhaava' declared tax-free in Goa
The Goa government has announced that Hindi movie "Chhaava", based on the life of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Sambhaji, will be tax-free in the state.
 
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant made the announcement on Wednesday evening in a post on X.
 
The sacrifice of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj is an inspiration for people, he said. Read More...



Feb 20, 2025 12:44 IST
Women in Delhi to get Rs 2,500 monthly aid by March 8: Delhi CM Rekha Gupta
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Thursday assured that the BJP government would fulfill its poll promise on providing Rs 2,500 monthly financial assistance to women.
 
The first installment of the monthly support would be credited to their accounts by March 8, Gupta said.
 
Ahead of the polls, the BJP's manifesto aimed to outdo the Aam Aadmi Party's announcement of Rs 2,100 monthly support if it came to power.



Feb 20, 2025 12:43 IST
Yogi govt tables Rs 8.09 lakh cr Budget for UP; 13% allocated for education
Uttar Pradesh Finance Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna on Thursday tabled Rs 8,08,736 crore Budget for the financial year 2025-26 in the state assembly with a focus on research & development and Information Technology.
 
Khanna in his Budget speech said 22 per cent of the Budget has been allocated for development purposes, 13 per cent for education, 11 per cent for agriculture and related services, while six per cent has been allocated for health. Read More...



Feb 20, 2025 12:42 IST
Delhi CM Rekha Gupta gets 'Z' category security
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has been accorded 'Z' category security of the Delhi Police, sources said on Thursday.
 
This is as per security guidelines of Ministry of Home Affairs outlined in the 'Yellow Book' which details protection protocols for VIPs and VVIPs.



Feb 20, 2025 12:42 IST
Rekha Gupta sworn in as Delhi chief minister
BJP's debutant legislator Rekha Gupta was sworn in as Delhi chief minister on Thursday in a grand show of strength that marks the party's return to power in the city after more than 26 years.
 
The ceremony at the historic Ramlila Ground was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the top BJP brass and NDA chief ministers. Gupta is Delhi’s fourth woman chief minister. The 50-year-old MLA from Shalimar Bagh is also the only woman in the NDA team of chief ministers.



Feb 20, 2025 07:20 IST
Six ministers to take oath with Delhi CM Rekha Gupta
Along with CM Rekha Gupta, six newly elected MLAs -- Parvesh Verma who defeated AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal from New Delhi seat, Ashish Sood, Pankaj Singh, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, Kapil Mishra and Ravinder Indraj -- will take oath as members of the new council of ministers.



Feb 20, 2025 07:18 IST
Unprecendeted security arrangements for Delhi CM's oath ceremony
More than 25,000 security personnel and over 15 companies of paramilitary forces have been deployed in Delhi for Thursday's oath ceremony of the new chief minister at Ramlila Maidan, a police officer said. Read more...