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South Korea’s ex-first lady Kim arrested
South Korea’s former first lady Kim Keon Hee was arrested late Tuesday over a range of charges, including stock manipulation and corruption, prosecutors said.
The arrest occurred hours after the Seoul Central District Court reviewed the prosecutors’ request for an arrest warrant against the 52-year-old.
The court granted the warrant, citing the risk of tampering with evidence, after prosecutors submitted an 848-page opinion laying out Kim’s alleged “unlawful acts”.
With the arrest, South Korea now has a former president and first lady both behind bars for the first time in the nation’s history.
The charges against Kim include violations of capital market and financial investment laws, as well as political funds laws.
The arrest caps a dramatic fall for the ex-first couple after former president Yoon Suk Yeol’s stunning martial law declaration on December 3, which saw soldiers deployed to parliament but was swiftly voted down by opposition MPs.
Yoon, a former top prosecutor, was impeached and removed from office in April over the martial law declaration, prompting the country to hold a snap election in June.
He has been under arrest and in detention since July 10.
Last week, Kim underwent hours-long questioning by prosecutors, who filed for her arrest warrant the next day.
“I sincerely apologise for causing trouble despite being a person of no importance,” Kim said as she arrived at the prosecutors’ office on Wednesday.
Controversy has long surrounded Kim, with lingering questions about her alleged role in stock manipulation.
Public criticism was reignited in 2022 when a left-wing pastor filmed himself presenting her with a Dior handbag that she appeared to accept.
She is also accused of interfering in the nomination process for MPs in Yoon’s party, a violation of election laws.
Yoon, as president, vetoed three special investigation bills passed by the opposition-controlled parliament that sought to probe the allegations against Kim, with the last veto issued in late November.
A week later, Yoon declared martial law.
Mug shot
Under prison regulations, Kim will have to change from her normal clothes into a khaki prison uniform and be assigned an inmate number.
She will also have to take a mug shot.
The ex-first lady is being held in a 10-square-meter (107-square-feet) solitary cell that has a fan but no air-conditioning, as a heat wave grips South Korea.
According to the prison’s official schedule, she was offered a regulation breakfast including bread, jam and sausages.
Local media reported that her cell includes a small table for eating and studying, a shelf, a sink and a toilet, but no bed.
While she would typically have been held at the same detention centre as her husband, prosecutors on Monday requested that she be detained at a separate facility about 20 kilometres (12.5 miles) away.
Upon the issuance of the warrant, the first lady’s Presidential Security Service protection was terminated immediately.
Kim can be held for up to 20 days as prosecutors prepare to formally indict her, legal expert Kim Nam-ju told AFP.
“Once Kim is indicted, she could remain detained for up to six months,” said lawyer Kim Nam-ju.
The former first lady can challenge the warrant in court as unlawful, “but given the current circumstances, there appears to be a high risk of evidence destruction, making it unlikely that the warrant will be revoked and the individual released,” he added.
“Another option is bail, but this too is not granted if there are concerns about the destruction of evidence.”
New Delhi: February 2026 brings a series of important deadlines related to Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) that taxpayers and deductors should not overlook. From issuing TDS certificates to submitting mandatory statutory forms, these compliance dates play a key role in ensuring smooth and accurate tax reporting. Businesses, employers, and government offices must stay alert and complete the required filings on time to avoid penalties or complications under the Income-tax Act. Keeping track of these dates can help ensure hassle-free compliance and prevent last-minute stress.
February 14:
– Deadline for issuing TDS certificate under Section 194-IA for tax deducted on transfer of immovable property in December 2025.
– Deadline for issuing TDS certificate under Section 194-IB for tax deducted on rent paid by individuals or HUFs in December 2025.
– Deadline for issuing TDS certificate under Section 194M for tax deducted on contractual or professional payments made in December 2025.
– Deadline for issuing TDS certificate under Section 194S for tax deducted on transfer of virtual digital assets by specified persons in December 2025.
February 15:
– Deadline for government offices to furnish Form 24G where TDS/TCS for January 2026 was deposited without generating a challan.
– Deadline for issuing the quarterly TDS certificate for non-salary payments for the quarter ended December 31, 2025.
New Delhi: US entrepreneur Elon Musk’s net worth surged past the $800 billion mark after SpaceX acquired his artificial‑intelligence firm xAI, making him the richest person in history by a wide margin.
Musk’s net worth reached roughly $852 billion, almost $578 billion higher than the world’s second-wealthiest person, Google co-founder Larry Page, whose net worth is estimated at $281 billion.
The merger took the combined value of the company to $1.25 trillion and added about $84 billion to Musk’s fortune, according to reports.
Before the merger, Musk owned about 42 per cent of SpaceX which was valued at $800 billion and roughly 49 per cent of xAI, which was valued at $250 billion after a recent private fundraising round. Post‑merger, Musk’s stake in the combined entity touched 43 per cent, worth about $542 billion and SpaceX became Musk’s largest holding by a wide margin, the reports said.
Musk also retains about 12 per cent of Tesla, valued at approximately $178 billion, along with Tesla stock options, estimated at $124 billion. Further, in addition to these, Musk also receives a shareholder‑approved Tesla pay package up to $1 trillion in additional Tesla stock, before taxes over the next decade and the cost of unlocking restricted shares, if performance targets are met.
He crossed several wealth milestones in the past four months such as $500 billion, $600 billion and $700 billion, driven by SpaceX valuation gains and a Delaware Supreme Court ruling that restored his Tesla options.
Musk earlier said that SpaceX’s Starship will begin delivering the much more powerful V3 Starlink satellites to orbit in 2026, with each launch adding more than 20 times the capacity to the constellation as the current Falcon launches of the V2 Starlink satellites.
It will enable launches “every hour carrying 200 tons per flight” and ultimately lifting millions of tons to orbit and beyond, Musk has shared his plan.
Starship will also launch the next generation of direct-to-mobile satellites, which will deliver full cellular coverage everywhere on Earth, he added.
Last Updated:
Indian equities paused on Wednesday after the previous session’s sharp surge triggered by the India–US trade agreement
Stock Market Today.
Sensex Today: Indian equities paused on Wednesday after the previous session’s sharp surge triggered by the India–US trade agreement. The pact, which reduced US tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent from 50 per cent, had buoyed sentiment and removed a major overhang, but markets turned cautious as traders booked profits.
A decline in information technology stocks further weighed on the mood.
At the open, the BSE Sensex was around 83,430, down 309 points or 0.37 per cent, while the Nifty 50 stood at 25,663, lower by 65 points or 0.25 per cent.
Broader markets also traded in the red, with the Nifty MidCap index slipping 0.48 per cent and the Nifty SmallCap index easing 0.18 per cent.
The Nifty IT index tumbled more than 5.5 per cent, led by losses in Persistent Systems, LTIMindtree, Infosys, HCL Tech, Coforge, TCS, Mphasis and Tech Mahindra.
Global cues
US markets ended lower overnight as investors rotated out of technology stocks into sectors more closely tied to economic recovery. The Dow Jones slipped 0.34 per cent, the S&P 500 declined 0.84 per cent, and the Nasdaq fell 1.43 per cent at the close.
Asian markets were mixed in early trade on Wednesday amid the absence of strong triggers. China’s CSI 300 index dropped 0.29 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng edged down 0.05 per cent, and Japan’s Nikkei lost 0.61 per cent. In contrast, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.54 per cent.
In commodities, spot gold gained over 1 per cent to $5,002 per ounce, while spot silver advanced 0.69 per cent to $85.70 per ounce.
On the macro front, investors await the release of S&P Global/HSBC composite and services PMI final data for January from both India and Japan.
February 04, 2026, 09:13 IST
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TDS alert! Important February compliance dates you must track– Check Full list
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