Uttar Pradesh is on high alert as Holi coincides with Friday namaz, prompting authorities to implement additional security measures in the state, including enhanced patrolling, surveillance drones, and strict monitoring of social media. The decision follows controversial remarks made by some politicians and a police officer, raising concerns about potential incidents in mixed population localities. The administration has also decided to cover mosques to prevent them from being stained with colors, while several mosques have shifted the timing of Friday prayers.
More than 1,000 arms, including handguns, machine guns, grenades, mortars, and INSAS and AK-56 rifles, were surrendered by people in Manipur during a two-week amnesty period for voluntarily giving up looted and illegally held weapons. The surrender of arms comes as Manipur grapples with ethnic violence that has left hundreds dead and thousands displaced.
The Delhi assembly results have underscored that a section of Arvind Kejriwal's committed supporters abandoned him because they were let down by his refusal to take a stand on crucial issues that impinge on the security and Constitutionally enshrined rights of the people, notes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
Fadnavis further said it was too early to comment on a foreign or Bangladeshi link to the riots as the probe is underway.
Firhad Hakim, a senior minister in West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC), has defended his remarks on the Muslim population in the state and India, saying he is a diehard secular and patriotic Indian. Hakim's comments, made at a minority students' event, have sparked controversy with the BJP, Congress, and Hindu monks accusing him of promoting communalism and advocating for a Muslim majority. Hakim, however, clarified that his remarks were taken out of context and that he was merely advocating for the empowerment of the Muslim community. He also highlighted the need for greater representation of Muslims in the judiciary.
Before the violence and rioting that erupted in Nagpur on Monday, March 17, over Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's tomb came provocative statements from various political leaders.
Nagpur Guardian Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said social media was used to vitiate the atmosphere, and appealed to the opposition not to politicise the matter.
Amid demands for allowing Holi celebration on the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) campus, its administration has decided that students can do so "freely" at the Non-Resident Students Centre Hall. The decision came after a controversy erupted when members of a right-wing group accused the university administration of denying permission to Hindu students to organize a 'Holi Milan' function on campus. However, the university administration clarified that the decision to allow Holi celebrations at the NRSC Hall was taken because of an AMU board examination scheduled for March 9. The administration further stated that March 10, 11, and 12 are working days and there will be classes, while March 13 and 14 are holidays, making them suitable for celebrations.
The Delhi High Court has refused to stay the trial court proceedings against Delhi Law Minister Kapil Mishra for allegedly posting objectionable tweets during the 2020 assembly elections. The court rejected Mishra's plea challenging a sessions court order dismissing his petition against the summons of a magisterial court in the case. The court said there was no need to stay the trial court proceedings and that the trial court was at liberty to proceed further with the matter. The high court granted four weeks to the police to file its response to the petition and posted the hearing on May 19. The hearing is slated to come up in the trial court on March 20.
The body of Ibresh Khan was kept at a government hospital in Indore for eight days after it was found in Khargone's Anand Nagar area as the freezer facility was not available in Khargone, police said on Monday.
The Telangana government has issued a circular allowing Muslim employees to leave offices an hour early during the holy month of Ramzan. The move has been criticized by the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which termed it "appeasement politics". The BJP questioned why similar measures are not extended during Hindu festivals. The ruling Congress party defended the decision, stating that such facilities are provided during various festivals and are not unique to Ramzan.
Be your stylish best this Lohri.
According to police, Anil dialed 112, an emergency service number, and claimed that he would shoot the chief minister on January 26.
The DMK and its allies submitted a list of pending assembly bills with the Raj Bhavan.
L2: Empuraan is an ambitious sequel that is bigger, bolder and timid in equal measure, observes Arjun Menon.
Three persons have been arrested and 37 detained after a scuffle between two groups of people from different communities following a quarrel among children playing in a park in the Welcome area of Delhi, officials said on Thursday.
"If the BJP had governed with the same intensity with which it is running the bulldozer of injustice, today its members wouldn't have to hide in their homes, fearing the anger of students," he said.
The members of the two communities pelted each other with stones after an argument broke out between them over some issue when the Ganesh procession was passing through Panigate Darwaza in the communally sensitive Mandvi locality at around 11.15 pm, a city police official said.
The Act prohibits conversion of any place of worship and provides for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on August 15, 1947.
The Supreme Court of India granted bail to eight convicts in the 1987 Hashimpura massacre case. The case involved the killing of 38 people by personnel of the Provincial Armed Constabulary. The court considered the fact that the convicts have been incarcerated for over six years following the Delhi High Court's reversal of their acquittal by the trial court.
Superboys of Malegaon is a delight to watch, raves Deepa Gahlot.
A process has also been initiated to invoke the stringent National Security Act against one of the accused persons, identified as Akram Khan Rain, for allegedly making inflammatory speech.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 was passed in the Lok Sabha early Thursday, with 288 members supporting it and 232 against it.
The Bhasma Shankar temple in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, has reopened after being locked for 45 years following communal riots. The district administration has requested the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to conduct carbon dating of the temple, including a well on the premises. The temple is being guarded round the clock and worshippers have started visiting. The reopening of the temple has been met with gratitude from local residents, who have expressed their desire to reconnect with their heritage.
Local residents shared their memories of the temple, with many highlighting its importance as a religious site for the community.
The iconic East Bengal Football Club called on the Bangladesh government to take immediate and effective measures to safeguard vulnerable communities.
Vijay said the TVK respected all languages but would not give up its self respect for another language.
Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe Patil lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and questioned the need for Rane to remain part of the cabinet.
The Uttar Pradesh government has informed the Supreme Court that the disputed "private well" near the Mughal-era Jama Masjid mosque in Sambhal was situated on public land. The state government said the petitioner failed to disclose there was a well within the boundary walls of the mosque known locally as "yagna koop". The committee, in a spot inspection, found that the well was situated outside the mosque boundary wall, the report said. The report said the state was committed to ensuring peace and harmony in the region and any restraint on the use of such public wells by the community at large may not help in achieving that goal.
Abul Kalam Azad chose not to contest Congress Presidency and to throw his weight behind Nehru, instead of Patel, a decision he would come to regret. Patel would have seen his plan through, while Nehru, in Azad's opinion 'gave Jinnah the opportunity to sabotage' it, notes Aakar Patel.
Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com traces how the beating up of a man in Ghaziabad went from alleged communal attack to reported regular crime in a matter of days.
Members of two communities hurled stones at each other when a Ram Navami procession reached Chhapariya locality in Himmatnagar city in the Sabarkantha district in the late afternoon, a police official said.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has strongly criticised Maharashtra Minister Nitesh Rane for calling Kerala a "mini Pakistan", saying the remark is "highly provocative and condemnable". Vijayan said Rane's comments expose the Sangh Parivar's approach towards Kerala, which he said involves alienating and spreading hate campaigns against the state. He also criticised the leadership of the ruling party for not reacting to Rane's "serious breach of oath". Vijayan called for all democratic and secular forces to unite against the Sangh Parivar's "hateful propaganda".
A Shiv temple in Ludhawala, a predominantly Muslim locality in Muzaffarnagar, was reopened on Monday after being closed for over 30 years. The temple, built in 1971, was shut down during the communal tensions triggered by the Ayodhya incident in 1992. The reopening ceremony was conducted peacefully with a 'havan' and local Muslims showering flowers on a procession of Hindu activists. The event was marked by a display of harmony, highlighting the importance of religious tolerance and understanding.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath denounced the violence and directed the administration to communicate with religious organisations and get the idol immersions done on time.
The News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority (NBDSA) has asked News18 India, TimesNow and Zee News to remove from their online platforms videos of certain programmes aired by them after it found them to be in violation of the Code of Ethics and Broadcasting Standards and Specific Guidelines.
The NCRB report stated that a total of 71,107 cases of 'offences against public tranquillity' were lodged across the country in 2020, an increase of 12.4 per cent over 63,262 such cases in 2019.
A teacher who asked other students to slap a Muslim boy in a school in Muzaffarnagar surrendered at a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act court and was released on bail, an official said on Friday.
Students at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) defied an advisory from the university administration and screened a banned BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The screening, organized by the Left-backed All India Students' Federation (AISF), was initially planned to be displayed on a projector but was moved to a laptop after security personnel allegedly damaged the projector. The university had warned of disciplinary measures for violating the advisory, which stated that the documentary could "disrupt communal harmony" on campus. The AISF and the JNU Students' Union (JNUSU) condemned the advisory, calling it an attack on students' fundamental rights and alleging that the administration was attempting to stifle dissent and curb freedom of expression.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has accused Bangladeshi migrants of seeking birth certificates illegally in the state to obtain voting rights, labeling it as "vote jihad part 2". He claimed that nearly 100 such cases have been reported in Amravati and Malegaon tehsil in Nashik. Fadnavis reiterated his government's commitment to combating anarchist forces and urged people to remain vigilant. He also lauded the BJP's performance in the recent assembly polls, attributing the victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.
