Morning Digest: Trump raises U.S. global tariff rate from 10% to 15%; Nearly 8% of voters removed from final electoral lists across 9 States and U.T.s in SIR second phase, and more

Morning Digest: Trump raises global tariffs, voter removals in nine states, and key updates on security and legal matters.

President Donald Trump said on Saturday (February 21, 2026) that he was raising the global tariff he wants to impose to 15%, up from 10% he had announced a day earlier. Mr. Trump said in a social media post that he was making the decision “Based on a thorough, detailed, and complete review of the ridiculous, poorly written, and extraordinarily anti-American decision on Tariffs issued yesterday,” by the U.S. Supreme Court.

While the Supreme Court of the United States has struck down the reciprocal tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump on various countries, including India, several other tariffs remain in place that continue to hurt various sectors, trade analysts and export data show. In a February 20 ruling, the Court held that Mr. Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose tariffs on other countries exceeded his authority as President, and so struck down the duties. In a statement issued on Saturday, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said it had “noted” the U.S. Supreme Court’s judgement, but did not clarify what would happen to India’s interim agreement with Washington.

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS), in a 6:3 ratio judgment, declared that President Donald Trump overreached his authority to unilaterally impose unbounded tariffs and change them at will using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977 during peacetime. Mr. Trump criticised the Supreme Court for being “very unpatriotic and disloyal to the Constitution”, suggesting the ruling was influenced by “foreign interests”.

Nearly 8% of voters have been removed across nine States and Union Territories in the final electoral rolls published after the second phase of the special intensive revision (SIR). While the final lists of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Andaman and Nicobar, Chhattisgarh, and Goa were published on Saturday (February 21, 2026), that of Gujarat were released on February 17 and Puducherry and Lakshadweep on February 14.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday (February 22, 2026) accused the BJP government of “playing” with his security and sought an explanation for the withdrawal of the National Security Guard (NSG) cover provided to him. In a statement issued from the SP headquarters, the former Chief Minister said the government must clarify the reasons cited in his security cover review that led to the withdrawal.

Five teachers of a private school were arrested on Saturday (February 21, 2026) for allegedly raping a 13-year-old girl in Odisha’s Kendrapara district, police said. The arrests were made after the father of the class 7 student and the district child welfare committee lodged separate complaints at the Rajkanika police station, alleging that the accused teachers had raped the minor, a senior officer said. The parents of the student approached the district child welfare committee after their daughter accused the teachers of abusing her sexually for a long period, he said.