From the Newsroom: Pak minister backtracks on Pulwama remark; FB helped protect integrity of 200 elections, says Zuckerberg

In your evening news brief, From The Newsroom, Zuckerberg says Facebook helped protect the integrity of over 200 elections; Pakistani minister Fawad Chaudhry reportedly says his remarks on Pulwama misinterpreted; new suspect in the French church stabbing in custody; An employee of a diagnostic centre in Bengaluru caught offering fake Covid-19 negative results for Rs 12,000 and Karnataka government proposes a ban on government servants acting in films and television programmes.

Here are the top news of October 30, 2020:

After admitting that Pakistan was responsible for the 2019 Pulwama terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir that killed 40 CRPF personnel and brought the two countries to the brink of war, the senior Pakistani minister Fawad Chaudhry reportedly said that he was misinterpreted.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said steps taken by the social media giant have helped protect the integrity of more than 200 different elections around the world, including in India, and have also played an important role in stopping abuse ahead of US elections.

Noting that next week will certainly be a "test" for Facebook, Zuckerberg said the company will continue "fighting to protect the integrity of the democratic process".

A new suspect is in custody Friday in the investigation into a gruesome attack by a Tunisian man who killed three people in a French church, as France heightened its security alert amid religious and geopolitical tensions around cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.

The suspect is a 47-year-old man believed to have been in contact with the attacker the night before the attack on the Notre Dame Basilica in the Riviera city of Nice, according to a judicial official.

An employee of a diagnostic centre in RT Nagar was on Thursday caught offering fake Covid-19 negative results for Rs 12,000. This comes days after two staffers and a doctor were sacked for selling fake Covid negative reports.

Speaking to DH, an employee at the centre said he was ready to supply fake negative result certificates for Covid-19 patients who sought clearance documents for international travel. “The negative result can be obtained, which will also be reflected in the SRF record,” he said.

If you do not wear masks on the roads of Mumbai – and are not ready to pay fine, you will need to sweep the roads. Wielding the stick, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to instil fear so that people start wearing masks.

Over Thursday and Friday, more than 100 persons have been made to sweep the roads when found not wearing masks and not ready or unable to shell out Rs 200 as fine.

The Karnataka government has proposed a ban on government servants acting in films and television programmes.

In the draft Karnataka State Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 2020, which was published on Tuesday, the Karnataka government has laid down a set of dos and don'ts for government servants.

The government has given 15 days time for people to submit their suggestions and objections in the draft gazette notification. Once it is finalised, it will come into force immediately.