Overview

• The Supreme Court ruled that media restrictions are an extreme measure and asked a trial court to reconsider Harshendra Kumar’s defamation plea without regard to the high court’s earlier decision.
• Under the BNSS notification, the SIT can now register FIRs directly, designate an inspector-rank officer as SHO and exercise full police investigation powers.
• Excavations have uncovered skeletal remains at spot number 6 and bone fragments near spot number 11, all of which have been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for analysis.
• Multiple FIRs were filed after followers of the Dharmasthala temple management assaulted journalists and YouTubers, prompting increased security and witness protection measures.
• The SIT launched fresh searches at Boliyar and the Bahubali Betta foothills based on new witness tips, with work at the 13th site awaiting ground-penetrating radar surveys.