Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday attended the Dev Deepawali Mahotsav at the Ghats of Varanasi. Modi witnessed the spectacle of Dev Deepawali in which rows of lamps were lit on the bank of Ganga.
The Cabinet meeting and the holy dip comes on a day that marks the first anniversary of the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
The email that was sent to alumni a couple of days ago purportedly gave detailed instructions on how to change the location, which had drawn sharp criticism from a section of alumni and social media users.
The Hindu litigants claim the mosque holds signs suggesting that it was a temple once.
Underlining the Bharatiya Janata Party's commitment to cultural development of the country, party president J P Nadda on Monday said that contentious religious matters would be decided by "courts and the Constitution" and the party would implement the decisions in letter and spirit.
The Muslims side said that they have received the letter and it will be deliberated upon in a meeting.
"It's my destiny to serve Maa Ganga," Prime Minister designate Narendra Modi told Varanasi after an hour-long ceremony on the banks of the scared river.
After eggs, ink was thrown at Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal while he was undertaking a road show in Varanasi on Tuesday following his visit to the Kal Bhairav and Kashi Vishwanath temples.
'He has divine power... For our future, safety is in the hands of Modi.'
District Judge A K Vishvesh ordered that it would continue to hear the petition seeking the right to worship in the temple.
Visiting Varanasi for Dev Deepavali should be on your bucket list.
The Archeological Survey of India (ASI) on Wednesday urged a Varanasi court not to make its Gyanvapi mosque complex survey report public for at least four more weeks, according to the lawyer for the Hindu side.
Devotees attending the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj are facing transportation challenges, with many forced to walk long distances in search of transport. Thousands of pilgrims returning from the event are stranded at Varanasi Cantt and Banaras railway stations, with some missing their trains due to the rush and others stuck because of cancellations. Officials say the traffic situation in the district has returned to normal, but some pilgrims report difficulties in finding transport and reaching their destinations.
The ASI, which was to submit the report of the survey by October 6, now has time till November 6 to do so.
The district court in Varanasi on Monday heard the arguments on the maintainability of a plea by five Hindu women seeking permission for daily worship of the Shringar Gauri Sthal in the Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanvapi complex.
The various terrorist outfits through letters, e-mails and SMSs had threatened to strike in UP on Friday, which necessitated the stringent security measures across the state, the reports reaching Lucknow at the state headquarters said.
The photocopies have to be verified by the district judge, the high court said.
One of the main litigants from the Hindu side Jitendra Singh Visen has announced that he and his family are withdrawing from all cases related to the Gynavapi issue due to alleged 'harassment'.
Advani and Dr Joshi might not attend the consecration ceremony due to health and age-related reasons. Advani is 96 and Dr Joshi will turn 90 next month.
Actor Mamta Kulkarni has renounced the worldly life at the Maha Kumbh and will be consecrated as a Hindu nun under the Kinnar Akhara. She performed her own 'Pind Daan' and will be consecrated as 'mahamandaleshwar'.
Claiming that the BJP's government's works in the three holy cities are only follow-ups of her government's initiatives, Mayawati went on to promise, in what is being seen as a subtle shift towards soft Hindutva ahead of the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, to complete all those work on time.
Security has been beefed up at all sensitive places and security personnel have been deployed in strength to thwart designs to create problems in the state, sources said.
According to the counsel for the Hindu side Madan Mohan Yadav, the ASI sought more time due to non-availability of the technical report.
The stars performed a series of pujas at Varanasi's famous Kashi Vishwanath temple and the Sankat Mochan temple during the early hours of Monday.
Priyanka Gandhi and other leaders, including Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, waved at the large crowd as the procession wound its way through Varanasi's roads.
Khan said, "I personally have nothing against any individual or any group opposing my efforts, but I am just deeply saddened by their mental sickness, the ignorant mindset and the injury they inflict upon mankind."
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday visited Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency, meeting activists held during protests against the amended Citizenship Act and accusing the government of acting against the Constitution.
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to grant an interim order of status quo on the survey of the Gyanvapi-Shringar Gauri complex at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.
The Banaras Bar Association and Central Bar Association, Varanasi had decided to boycott work as they were upset over the remarks of a Special Secretary against lawyers because of which the hearing did not take place in the court, according to advocate Abhay Yadav, representing the Muslim side in the case.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday revived a Gyanvapi panel plea it inadvertently disposed of on July 24 while staying an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey on the mosque premises to determine if it was built upon a temple.
Accompanied by a large entourage, including the kids, the couple reached Varanasi by a private plane in the afternoon.
In a first, seat number 64 of coach B5 in the Kashi-Mahakal Express, that connects three Jyotirlingas in two states, had been turned into a mini-temple devoted to Lord Shiva.
To maintain law and order, he said, the entire city has been divided into sectors which have been allocated police force as per their requirement.
The ASI told the court on November 2 that it might take some more time to compile the report, along with the details of the equipment used in the survey work, following which additional time till November 17 was granted for the submission of the document.
The ASI had on Wednesday urged the court not to make its Gyanvapi complex survey report public for at least four more weeks, citing the December 19 judgment of the Allahabad high court.
The prime minister will be part of the launch of several development initiatives on his birthday.
The Aam Aadmi Party leader took a dip in the Ganga, visited the Kashi Vishwanath temple before he declared war against Narendra Modi.
At present the people are allowed to worship once in a year only, he submitted before the court.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) began working on a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi premises in Varanasi on Friday to determine whether the 17th-century mosque was constructed over a pre-existing structure of a Hindu temple.
