Security measures have been tightened as the anti-talks faction of the outlawed United Liberation Front of Assam has called for Assam bandh on April 20 in protest against the visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Guwahati to kick-start the platinum jubilee celebrations of Assam assembly.
Apart from the assembly of five or more persons, it prohibits processions, use of loud speakers, musical band and bursting of crackers in any procession.
Goa police have alerted their Mumbai counterparts about possible presence of a Harkat-ul-Jihadi-Islami terror suspect in the metropolis after he left the coastal state two days ago.
Delhi's Lieutenant Governor Tejinder Khanna and Chief Minister Mrs Sheila Dikshit, who normally do not see eye to eye on most administrative matters, have decided to impose undeclared curfew and restrict the movement of people in public places on Sunday to ensure there is no untoward incident that could mar the opening and closing ceremonies of the Commonwealth Games.
A day after the Ayodhya court verdict was pronounced, the nation remained calm on Friday, with no untoward incident reported from any part, as tens of thousands of security personnel kept a hawk's vigil.
The ABVP state secretary Subir Haldar threatened to "cut off" the legs of "anti-national" Left-aligned students of Jadavpur University if they stepped out of the campus.
The police protection followed protests after a media report claimed she had named her dog after a revered Muslim figure.
The first death anniversary of Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Laxmanananda Saraswati, whose killing triggered anti-Christian riots in Kandhamal district in Orissa was peaceful on Thursday.
The police arrested two activists of the Islamist organisation Popular Front on Monday, in the case related to the chopping of the palm of a lecturer of the New Man college in Thodupuzha, Kerala. The arrested are Jaffer from Kothamangalam and Ashraf from Kalady.
At least five people were injured as people took to the streets at several places across Kashmir valley and clashed with security personnel on Tuesday, while the separatist-sponsored strike against the killing of a youth paralysed life for the second successive day.
Boroscopic inspection of all operational engines of all Q400 engines within one week, immediate inspection of Magnetic Chip Detectors (MCD), drawing of engine oil samples every 15 days for analysis and inspection of bleed-off valve screen and housing for evidence of oil wetness in weekly check, are among the other directions.
Sporadic incidents of violence and allegations of booth jamming marred the voting process in the second phase.
Tension prevailed in Sisoli village in Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh after supporters of Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Mahender Singh Tikait clashed with police trying to arrest him for allegedly making derogatory remarks against state Chief Minister Mayawati, leaving a dozen policemen injured. Uttar Pradesh government has sounded an alert in all the districts of Western Uttar Pradesh and paramilitary forces rushed to the area to avoid any untoward incident.
The curfew in Hyderabad was relaxed for the first time on Thursday morning, in parts of the old city which witnessed communal clashes that left two persons dead since Saturday. The restrictions were eased to allow people to buy essential commodities under the limits of Charminar, Hussainialam, Kamatipura, Kalapathar, Bahadurpura, Madannapet, Santoshnagar, Kanchanbagh and Bhavaninagar police stations.
A day-long bandh called by Gujjars in support of their demand for five per cent reservation in government jobs hit vehicular traffic in Dausa district even as Gadia Luhar community joined the stir which entered the fifth day on Friday.
Sanath Jayasuriya is both 'angry' and 'sad' to witness his beloved Sri Lanka grapple with enormous financial crisis and civil unrest but the former cricketer is expecting that democracy will soon be restored in the island nation.
The repolling started at 7 am amid tight security with four central forces personnel deployed in each booth, besides state police. Till 11 am, 10.9 per cent voter turnout was recorded.
Telangana is facing a day-long bandh on Saturday called in protest against the passage in Lok Sabha of a Bill to transfer some villages of the newly-created state to Andhra Pradesh to aid the construction of the Polavaram project.
Approximately 35 per cent voting was recorded till 1 pm on Wednesday in the first phase of elections to the 26 assembly seats in Jharkhand.Adequate security measures were put in place along with air surveillance and no untoward incidents have been reported from anywhere in the Maoist-infested tate so far.It is the second assembly election in Jharkhand after it was carved out from Bihar on November 15, 2000.
The government on Thursday extended the ban on bulk SMSes and MMSes till Friday in view of the Ayodhya verdict on title suit. "We have decided to extend the ban by a day in consultation with the ministry of home affairs in the wake of the Ayodhya verdict, which is to be pronounced today," said a senior official. The government is apprehensive that some extreme elements may foment trouble by inciting communal passions during the period and is taking all measures.
Curfew was on Friday lifted from Anantnag after four days even as life returned to normal in the Kashmir Valley after hardline Hurriyat Conference suspended protests for the day, the last Friday of Ramzan.
'Some people came on motorcycles on Tuesday night, threatening us that if we do not leave, they would set fire to our slum'
The Orissa government on Thursday assured the Supreme Court that it will not allow Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Praveen Togadia's proposed yatra carrying the ashes of slain Hindu leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati in the state. Following the assurance, a bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan directed the state government to ensure that no untoward incident takes place in the riot-hit Kandhamal district.
Normal life was hit in most parts of Andhra Pradesh as the day-long strike called by the key Opposition Telugu Desam -- in protest against the arrest of its president N Chandrababu Naidu and other party leaders by the Maharashtra police -- evoked a mixed response.
Authorities had clamped curfew in all the ten districts in the Valley for the first time in 13 years after the protests in the tense Kashmir region spread in escalating violence that left another 12 people dead in firing on Tuesday by security forces, taking the death toll to 18.
Broken furniture, damaged computers and ransacked office rooms with documents strewn around greeted former Law Minister C Ve Shanmugam and AIADMK manager V Mahalingam who entered the party office.
Armed vigilante groups have been taking the law into their own hands in parts of Manipur, in the wake of ethnic rioting earlier, thus complicating the peace process. At times, militant groups have joined in the fray, creating an even more volatile cocktail of ethnic tension.
Normal life was affected for the second day on Tuesday in West Bengal's Maoist-infested districts of West Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura during the 48-hour bandh called by the ultras in five states to protest the offensive by security forces against Naxalites in Lalgarh.
Hyderabad city was under a security blanket on the eve of the third anniversary of bomb blast in historic Mecca Masjid as hundreds of armed policemen were deployed in the city to prevent any untoward incident.
The guidelines come in the wake of back-to-back two urination incidents on Air India flights last year.
The 73rd Independence Day was celebrated across the country with fervour.
Kanchan Maslekar speaks to specialist Mukta Mokashi, who provides readers with skincare precautions while playing with colour this Holi.
Tension mounted in Dhinkia village in the Posco project site near Paradip in Orissa as the survey teams, conducting a socio-economic survey of the project site, came eyeball to eyeball with the villagers of Dhinkia, who vehemently oppose the project.
Security has been tightened in Haridwar for the first day of the Shahi Snan (Royal Bath) on Friday, as thousands of devotees are expected to take a dip in the River Ganga to mark the festival of Maha Shivratri. Around 10,000 security personnel have been deployed in Haridwar to thwart any kind of untoward incident when devotees, including ash-covered Naga sadhus participate in the festivities
By-elections to Nalanda and Bhagalpur were necessitated due to resignations of Nitish Kumar and Sushil Kumar Modi after becoming chief minister and deputy chief minister respectively.
Valentines Day in Karnataka passed off peacefully with no untoward incident being reported thanks to the fact that there were more policemen wandering the streets compared to the lovers. Celebrations were subtle across the state due to the threat by the Shri Ram Sena.
Amid tight security, polling for the by-election to the Tamil Nadu Assembly from Tirumangalam constituency began on a peaceful note with about 15 per cent of the total 1.55 lakh electorate, exercising their votes by 1000 hrs, officials said.
The 2008 assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be remembered for a host of reasons. Post 1996, it is the first election which has passed off peacefully, without any major untoward incident marring the process. In the wake of the election boycott call given by the separatists, the voter turnout, particularly in the conflict-ridden valley of Kashmir, has been much higher than expected. Many braved the bitter cold and waited for hours outside polling stations.
They raised slogans against the Bharatiya Janata Party and the central agencies.
The terrorist attacks on Mumbai pose fresh challenges for the Customs. Rethinking on all the customs clearance procedures is now necessary with a view to eliminate all risks of any untoward incidence that can jeopardise the lives of people. The present approach of looking only at revenues and trade facilitation alone will not be enough.
