2 min readFeb 19, 2026 07:44 AM IST
First published on: Feb 19, 2026 at 07:42 AM IST

Most opposition parties will boycott the President’s address to the joint session of Parliament on the opening day of the Budget session and follow it up with a Bharat Bandh on February 26 to protest against the government’s decision to increase prices of several essential commodities.

Decision on Kerala polls

Kerala CM K Karunakaran said he would announce his decision on the political future of the UDF (United Democratic Front) ministry after a meeting of the state Cabinet. The CM pointed out that it was the first time in the history of the Parliamentary Board that anyone other than the party president had been given such an important responsibility.

Soviet Politburo shake-up

In a major shake-up, the central committee plenum of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union retired politburo member Viktor Grishin. Grishin had earlier lost the post of first secretary of the Moscow City Committee to Boris M Yeltsin who has been named an alternate member of the Politburo.

Two killed in UP violence

Curfew continued in Varanasi and Musafirkhana in Sultanpur district after more communal violence. Two persons were killed and eight others injured in a clash between two groups over the Ram Janaki Rath in Musafirkhana. The SHO of Musafirkhana has been suspended. The officer had refused to come out of the police station on the ground that he was not well when the trouble broke out.