In the last assembly elections in 2018, the state recorded a voter turnout of 74.06 per cent. The Election Commission has set a target of at least 75 per cent turnout in each constituency this time.
The Supreme Court's 2023 order refusing to stay a scientific survey at the Gyanvapi Mosque complex has sparked claims over several other disputed places of worship across India. This has led to several court cases, including one in Mathura where a survey of the Shahi Idgah Mosque complex was ordered, and another in Ajmer where a claim was made that a Shiva temple existed within the dargah of Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti. The article also highlights a dispute over the Bhojshala in Madhya Pradesh, which Hindus consider a temple and Muslims consider a mosque. The Supreme Court's order has reignited debates about the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, which prohibits the change of character of religious places as they existed on August 15, 1947.
A youth was killed and two others were injured when security forces fired at demonstrators in Srinagar.
Two persons were injured when security forces allegedly opened fire to chase away a stone-pelting mob in Baramulla district of north Kashmir on Tuesday morning. A group of people defied the curfew at Khanpora, 50 kms from Srinagar, and indulged in heavy stone-pelting on the police and paramilitary forces, official sources said. They said the security forces initially used teargas shells and batons to disperse the protestors but after they refused to disperse.
Stone-pelting protestors clashed with security forces in Sopore town of north Kashmir, forcing Central Reserve Police Force personnel to open fire in which one person succumbed to his injuries.
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 DDC election is being seen as a triangular contest among the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration, the BJP and the Apni Party floated by former finance minister Altaf Bukhari.
After four days of violence and deaths, Kashmir was today relatively incident-free even as more violence-hit areas were brought under curfew in South Kashmir where 3 youths were killed in alleged CRPF firing.
Convenor of the Minority Coordination Committee (MCC) Mujahid Nafees issued contempt notices to the officers after some policemen were seen publicly flogging the accused in Undhela village in Kheda on Tuesday.
The Union home ministry said the Muslim Conference Jammu and Kashmir - Sumji faction, chaired by Ghulam Nabi Sumji, is known for its anti-India and pro-Pakistan propaganda and its members have been involved in supporting terrorist activities and providing logistical support to terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir.
Hundreds of people who had gathered for the protest were booked for allegedly violating the model code of conduct and prohibitory orders in Muzaffarnagar district that has been enforced in view of the by-elections in Meerapur assembly constituency.
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the bail pleas of the convicts in the 2002 Godhra train burning case who were awarded the death penalty by the trial court but it was commuted to life sentence by the Gujarat high court.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani has described the "proxy war" and stone-pelting incidents in Kashmir Valley as a result of Pakistan's failure to win the first Indo-Pak war in 1947 and favoured a firm approach to tackle the problem.
Minister of State for Home Hansraj Ahir said in the Lok Sabha that between October 1, 2016 and March 31 this year the state reported 155 terror attacks.
The funeral of 10 Kuki-Zo youths, who were killed in an alleged gunfight with CRPF, has been delayed pending the release of post-mortem reports. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF), representing the Kuki-Zo community, is exploring the possibility of conducting a second autopsy in Churachandpur. The youths' bodies were airlifted to Churachandpur from Assam's Silchar town on Saturday. The incident follows a series of clashes between security forces and militants in the region. The post-mortem examination of the 10 Kuki-Zo youths, who ITLF claimed were village volunteers as against the Manipur government's assertion that they were militants, was conducted at Silchar Medical College and Hospital (SMCH) in Assam. The bodies have been kept in the local hospital morgue for the time being.
Questioning the silence of separatists over the killing of a civilian in stone-pelting, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday accused them of putting the lives of innocent people at risk by encouraging such protests."Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who had a given a call for Friday protests and is encouraging stone pelting, and his followers are responsible for the death of the innocent person and they were responsible for the death of the 10-day-old boy in Baramulla," he said.
Shops and schools remained closed and streets wore a deserted look as sporadic violence continued since Monday with mobs running amok, looting shops and setting properties on fire.
Calling the FIR against the army as 'unfortunate', Lt Gen Anbu said that there should have been generic FIR in the matter.
How can a detenu already in jail and facing trial participate in rioting and stone pelting during that intervening period, the judge asked.
The slain militants are reported to belong to the district.
Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPC have been imposed in the town.
The situation in Jainoor town in Kumuram Bheem Asifabad district remained peaceful on Thursday a day after a protest by tribal organisations against an autorickshaw driver's alleged attempt to rape and murder a tribal woman sparked communal tension prompting authorities to impose a curfew.
On August 16, 1980, the Kolkata football derby between arch rivals Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, played at the Eden Gardens (there was no Salt Lake Stadium then) witnessed a massive clash between the supporters of two teams, leading to 16 deaths.
A youth was shot dead and another critically wounded, when police opened fire to disperse a stone-pelting mob in the Nowhatta locality of Srinagar, even as a complete shutdown was observed on Saturday against the Amarnath land transfer agreement.
The Uttar Pradesh government will display posters of individuals accused of violence in Sambhal, seeking damages for public property destruction. This follows a violent clash during a mosque survey, leading to deaths and injuries.
Several BJP leaders including its Bengal minder Kailash Vijayvargiya suffered injuries, sources in the saffron party claimed.
Violent clashes were witnessed at two places in Kashmir on Friday, with stone-pelting mobs attacking security personnel who retaliated by lobbing teargas shells, officials said.
The Jodhpur district administration temporarily suspended internet services in the district as a precautionary measure after the clashes on Monday night.
The former CM of the state also lashed out at the state government saying the Peoples Democratic Party-Bharatiya Janata Party ruling alliance was a failure.
Junagadh Municipal Corporation served a notice to the dargah asking for presenting its documents within five days.
The home minister, however, said the government will make an exception in case someone from a family comes forward and informs the authorities that his or her close relative has joined a terror outfit.
Former King Gyanendra Shah was on Saturday issued a letter demanding fine by Kathmandu's civic body following the damage caused to public property and environment during the pro-monarchy protests in parts of the Nepalese capital a day before.
Earlier in the day protesters defied curfew in Udhampur in Jammu region, hit by violence over the Amarnath land row, even as life in Kashmir valley remained paralysed for third consecutive day following a strike call given by a separatist group.
It may be recalled that seven persons were killed and seven others injured in the police firing while several policemen were injured in stone-pelting, including a constable who suffered an injury in his left eye and lost vision.
The Supreme Court on Friday directed a Sambhal trial court to temporarily halt proceedings in the case over the Mughal-era Shahi Jama Masjid and its survey at Chandausi while directing the UP government to maintain peace and harmony in the violence-hit town.
The communal violence in Sambhal that claimed four lives and left over 20 people injured has now sparked a debate over a purported rivalry between the Turk and Pathan communities, with political and administrative figures weighing in on the cause of the unrest.
Malik allegedly built an "illegal" madrasa in the Banbhoolpura area of Haldwani. Its demolition led to the violence in Banbhoolpura area of Haldwani on February 8.
The deaths occured when police opened fire at a stone-pelting mob during a demolition drive to remove flood waters.
Strict restrictions have been imposed in Kupwara town, Kralgund, Handwara, Magam and Langate areas in north Kashmir to maintain law and order.
Police had to fire dozens of tear smoke shells in an attempt to disperse the stone-pelting students from S P College and the adjoining Women's College on M A Road, officials said.
