A state-wide bandh was observed across Punjab on Thursday following the murder of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa. Markets and educational institutions remained shut, and roads were blocked by protesters, disrupting traffic. Jhota was shot on Tuesday for questioning the illegal sale of addictive drugs. His family, supported by various political parties and farmer unions, has refused to perform his last rites until justice is delivered, demanding resignations of top officials and a CBI probe. The incident has intensified the political debate on drug menace and law and order in Punjab.
A 'Punjab Bandh' was observed on Thursday, leading to widespread closures of shops and private schools and road blockades across several districts, following the murder of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa on Tuesday. Jhota was shot by a chemist owner for questioning the sale of addictive drugs. The incident has triggered significant political backlash against the Aam Aadmi Party government, with various organisations and opposition parties demanding accountability and a CBI probe.
Thousands of protesters, including farmers, trade unionists, students, and Left party members, marched towards the Election Commission of India headquarters in Delhi, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the withdrawal of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging 'vote chori' and exclusion of eligible citizens.
Former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar, who was serving a life sentence for his involvement in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, has died. He was convicted in two separate cases related to the killings of Sikhs during the riots and was lodged in Tihar Jail.
BJP President Nitin Nabin has summoned three Delhi MPs, Kamaljeet Sehrawat, Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, and Yogender Chandolia, expressing strong displeasure over their controversial visit to the residence of former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar, who was convicted in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. This action comes amidst strong condemnation from other BJP leaders and highlights the ongoing political sensitivity surrounding the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
There is a strong opinion within the BJP in Punjab that the party must now stand on its own two feet and dump the badly compromised SAD baggage.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has called for the immediate passage of the women's reservation bill and the delimitation bill, advocating for a uniform 50 per cent increase in seats for all states to ensure fair and equitable representation.
Amritpal Singh, chief of 'Waris Punjab De', will be formally arrested again by Punjab Police after his detention under the National Security Act (NSA) ends. He will remain in Dibrugarh Central Jail, where he has been lodged for three years, and face trial via video-conferencing in the Ajnala police station attack case.
Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj has given the Punjab government one month to address objections regarding the anti-sacrilege law, the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026, which he claims was enacted without consulting the Sikh Panth and interferes in religious affairs.
Olympians Mandeep Singh and Udita Duhan tied the knot in an elegant ceremony on Friday in Jalandhar.
The Punjab Assembly has unanimously passed a bill proposing stricter punishment, including life imprisonment and a fine up to Rs 25 lakh, for any act of sacrilege against the Guru Granth Sahib.
On Saturday, May 24, 2025 Rahul Gandhi -- leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha -- arrived in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district to meet the victims of Pakistan's relentless shelling last fortnight.
'The words they have used seem to suggest that they hate our community.'
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Wednesday met a Sikh delegation in Teheran on the sidelines of his visit to Iran to attend the 16th Non-Aligned Movement summit. Dr Singh's wife, Gursharan Kaur, who has accompanied him, visited the Bhai Ganga Singh Sabha gurdwara, a Sikh shrine and an Indian school on Wednesday
'They want to snatch the land and give it to their friends'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited Poonch in Jammu and Kashmir, offering condolences to families affected by cross-border shelling and encouraging students who lost two classmates to the violence. During an hour-long visit, Gandhi met with students at the convent school that lost the twins, and visited families whose homes were damaged in the shelling.
The worst-hit in the Pakistani shelling was Poonch district which accounted for all the civilian deaths, the officials said, adding 28 persons were also injured and the condition of some of them was stated to be critical.
The mortal remains of former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh were consigned to flames at the Nigambodh Ghat in New Delhi on Saturday amid the chanting of religious hymns. The funeral pyre was lit by his eldest daughter Upinder Singh.
British Prime Minister David Cameron on Thursday lauded the efforts of the hundreds of Sikhs and other people of Indian origin who gathered outside the Guru Singh Sabha gurdwara over the last 48 hours to protect it from rioting mobs on the streets of London.
A villager was killed and three others were injured in shelling by Pakistan in forward areas of Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch and Rajouri districts early Friday morning, prompting Army troops to retaliate. The shelling also caused significant damage to property, with many houses and hundreds of vehicles affected. The firing and shelling were directed at areas in Rajouri, Poonch, and Jammu districts, apart from Kashmir's Kupwara and Baramulla districts, overnight.
Armed with swords and hockey sticks, over 700 Sikhs took to the streets to protect the Guru Singh Sabha gurdwara in Southall as the police in United Kingdon were stretched to maintain law and order in London.
The 62-year-old former deputy chief minister was first elected the party president in 2008. His re-election at the outfit's general delegate session in Amritsar comes barely four months after he quit after he was declared 'tankhaiya' (guilty of religious misconduct) by the Akal Takht for "mistakes" committed by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and its government from 2007 to 2017.
"In 1948, Indian armed forces were in a decisive position to take back Pakistan-occupied Kashmir but then PM Jawaharlal Nehru declared unilateral ceasefire," Amit Shah said. In 1971, Shah said, 93,000 Pakistani soldiers surrendered and India had 15,000 sq km Pakistan territory under control, but still PoK was not taken back. During the 1962 war with China, then PM Nehru bade goodbye to Assam in a speech on Akashvani, he said.
The priest of a Hindu temple in the Canadian city of Brampton has been suspended for spreading 'violent rhetoric' during recent clashes between protesters carrying Khalistani flags and the people present there.
The Akali Dal is convinced that Waris Punjab De and Amritpal Singh are part of a bigger plan to create a law and order problem in the state, leading to the imposition of central rule and even the exclusion of Punjab from the Lok Sabha polls as was done in 1991.
Modi brought up the emotive issue of the gurdwara in Kartarpur Sahib, a place sacred to Sikhs as Guru Nanak Dev spent the last years of his life there, and blamed the Congress for country's partition, saying they did it for sake of power.
Rebel Akali leader Gurpartap Singh Wadala slammed Badal's move, saying instead of showing "a sense of renunciation", he issued a "dictatorial order" aimed to sideline those who want a "change" for strengthening the party
Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate also shared the video and said the BJP leader is openly threatening to kill the Leader of the Opposition of this country.
Hours before the ceremony, Saini visited the Valmiki Bhawan and offered prayers at a gurdwara and the Mansa Devi temple in Panchkula.
"I condemn is the strongest terms the statement he has made about Sikhs not being able to wear turbans and kadas," the BJP leader from the Sikh community said.
According to the sources, when the charges are laid against the two men, police will reveal their role and that of the Indian government.
Amritpal Singh, the chief of the 'Waris Punjab De' outfit, who is lodged in Assam's Dibrugarh jail under the National Security Act, has thrown his hat into the ring as an Independent.
The Aam Aadmi Party has fielded Karamjit Anmol, while the BJP has named North West Delhi MP Hans Raj Hans from Faridkot, a reserved parliamentary constituency.
The senior Congress leader was in a coma since October last year, when he was admitted to AIIMS after he suffered a brain haemorrhage.
Special judge Vikas Dhull also imposed certain conditions on Tytler, including that he will not tamper with evidence or leave the country without its permission.
'Go around and ask what Amritpal has done for the village and nearby areas.'
The others to be elected to the Upper House from Punjab were Ashwini Kumar and Dharampal Sabharwal (Congress) and Virender Singh Bajwa (Shiromani Akali Dal).
On Wednesday, the couple hosted a Sufi night for family and friends at Raghav's residence in New Delhi.
The tenth Sikh guru is believed to have drunk milk from the bowl in 1705.
