No flights will be allowed to land at, or take-off, from Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport between 10:20 am and 12:45 pm till Republic Day, or January 26, the government said in a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) issued Friday morning. The partial shutdown of ops at one of the busiest airports in the world is an annual feature as the capital is put under a security blanket before the Republic Day celebrations.

India will celebrate its 75th Republic Day next week with France President Emmanuel Macron as the chief guest; this will be the 6th time a French leader will be the guest of honour at an R-Day parade.

In a first, the Border Security Force’s (BSF) all-women marching and brass band contingents will participate in this year’s Republic Day parade on Kartavya Path.

An Assistant Commandant rank woman officer and two subordinate officers will lead a total of 144 women BSF constables marching down Kartavya Path on January 26 when India will be celebrating its 75th Republic Day in the presence of Emmanuel Macron, President of France, as the Chief Guest.

The Delhi police has increased vigil in the national capital ahead of the Republic day. As part of the Republic day preparedness, Delhi East District Police conducted a mock drill at Akshardham Temple, simulating a terrorist attack scenario.

The exercise, designed to evaluate the force’s readiness in respond to diverse crisis situations, aimed to enhance overall security preparedness for the upcoming national event.

A total of 2,274 cadets from all 28 states and eight Union Territories will participate in the month-long National Cadet Corps (NCC) Republic Day Camp 2024. With 907 girls, this year’s camp will see the largest participation of girl cadets.

The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed petitions by the 11 Bilkis Bano case convicts seeking more time before they surrender to the authorities and are sent back to jail. A bench led by Justice BV Nagarathna said the petitions – which cited reasons from attending family weddings and dependant parents to the harvest season – lacked merit and told the men to report to prison officials by Sunday.

The 11 – who raped Ms Bano and slaughtered members of her family during the Godhra riots – were released by the Gujarat government on Independence Day in 2022, on the basis of an obsolete law.

Ms Bano and civil society activists filed frantic appeals against their release, and these were heard by the Supreme Court this month. An irate top court revoked the convicts’ release; the court cancelled its May 2022 order, which had allowed the 11 to appeal to the Gujarat government for early release.

READ | 11 Convicts In Bilkis Bano Gang-Rape Case To Surrender Within 2 Weeks

The court said the order was “obtained through fraudulent means and suspension of facts” and rebuked the state government for not filing a petition to review the release. It also said the state ought to have noted the men could only be released by Maharashtra, where they were tried.

READ | “Obtained By Fraudulent Means”: Supreme Court Cancels Its 2022 Order

The convicts had been released by Gujarat government after it consulted a ‘panel’ that included men linked to the ruling BJP. The panel declared the rapists and killers “sanskari Brahmins” and recommended their release citing a 1992 remission policy, which has since been overwritten.

The convicts were given a hero’s welcome and were seen sharing stage with a BJP MP and MLA.

Bilkis Bano was 21 and five months’ pregnant when she was gang-raped while fleeing during the communal riots that broke out after the fire in Sabarmati Express in which 59 kar sevaks were killed. Her three-year-old daughter was among the seven family members slaughtered in the riots.

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About 21 children at an orphanage in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore have alleged horrific abuse and torture by its staff, the police said. 

The horror unraveled after a team of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) carried out a surprise inspection at the orphanage last week. 

Sources say the children told officials that the staff would torture them over minor mistakes. “The children told the team that they were hung upside down, branded with hot iron and photographed after being stripped,”officials said.

They were also made to inhale smoke from burning red chilies.

A First Information Report or FIR has been registered against five employees of the orphanage and investigation is on.

“A four-year-old child was locked in the bathroom and not given food for two-three days after he defecated in his pants,” the FIR said.

“The case was filed based on a complaint filed by the CEC. The orphange was immediately sealed and the children were shifted to government facilities,” said Amrendra Singh, Additional Commissioner of Police, Indore.

“The allegations of the alleged abuse are being probed,” Mr Singh said.

Police said the CWC team has also submitted pictures of children’s injuries in its complaint.

The children at the facility are orphans from Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Odisha, and Madhya Pradesh, it’s learnt.

Police said the orphanage – run by the Vatsalyapuram Jain Trust – had not been registered under the Juvenile Justice Act. The Trust also has orphanages in Bengaluru, Surat, Jodhpur and Kolkata.