LIVE news updates: Sri Lanka’s defense secretary Kapila Waidyaratne resigns

Sri Lanka's defense secretary Kapila Waidyaratne has resigned following suicide bombing attacks.

Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena has asked the police chief and defense secretary to quit following the Easter Sunday suicide bomb attacks on churches and luxury hotels that killed 359 people

The National Green Tribunal has directed the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) not to dump solid waste or raise any structure near a school in Shahdara.

A bench headed by Justice Raghuvendra S Rathore also directed the Delhi Development Authority to provide land for relocating auto workshop which is functioning in densely populated residential area of Jhilmil colony.

"However, it is made clear that the concerning authority for the purpose of giving the land to EDMC may take immediate steps to complete the procedural formalities. Needless to say that the land which is to be given to EDMC for construction of auto workshop, would be with consideration and in accordance to the prevailing laws," the bench said.

The tribunal also directed the EDMC to pay Rs 50,000 to advocate Sanjay Upadhyay, who was appointed as amicus curiae in the case.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed that one of the suicide bombers involved in the Sri Lankan bombings spent time in Australia, Nine News Australia said on Thursday.

The Prime Minister has said the man was not granted another visa after leaving Australia more than six years ago, the Daily Mirror reported.

"I can confirm that the suicide bomber had been in Australia. They departed in early 2013. That individual had been here on a student and a graduate skilled visa," Morrison told reporters in Townsville.

A minor explosion was reported on April 25 from a vacant plot of land in Pugoda on the outskirts Colombo, Sri Lanka, police informed the Press

Nearly 4,000 military personnel with sweeping police powers to arrest suspects were on Thursday tasked to provide security to churches and other religious places across Sri Lanka in the wake of the Easter Sunday bombings.

A statement from the Defence Ministry said hundreds of Army officers and other ranks "immediately took up position" across the country after the armed forces were conferred with "the powers of search, detention or arrest without warrant", reports Efe news.

A total of 3,984 military personnel in coordination with the police will provide security to religious places and vital installations like power stations, government buildings, hospitals, hotels, bus stands and television centres.

All embassies and diplomatic missions have also been given necessary security.

The AAP government has informed the Delhi High Court that it is considering framing rules for grievance redress and accountability under the food security law.

It said this in an affidavit filed in response to a contempt petition by an NGO which claimed that the authorities have failed to comply with the high court's September 2017 directions regarding implementation of grievance redress and accountability measures under the National Food Security Act (NFSA).

The matter is listed for hearing on Friday before a bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice A J Bhambhani.

Three men were arrested for allegedly robbing people in southwest district's Delhi Cantt area, police said Thursday.

The accused were identified as Rahul Kashyap (25), Surender (20), residents of Badayun district in Uttar Pradesh and Ranjeet (27), a resident of Darbhanga district in Bihar, they said.

According to Devender Arya, Deputy Commissioner of Police (southwest), on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday near Dhaula Kuan flyover, police noticed two persons raising alarm for help and three men running towards railway tracks near Dhaula Kuan.

However, one of the accused was arrested and later identified as Kashyap, while two of his accomplices managed to escape.

India has 2.9 million children who have missed out on the first dose of measles vaccine between 2010 and 2017 despite over 80 per cent of immunisation coverage, the UNICEF said on Thursday.

India, with its large annual birth cohort of 25 million, is followed by Pakistan and Indonesia - 1.2 million each, and Ethiopia 1.1 million, it said, adding that the situation is "critical" in low and middle-income countries.

In 2017, for example, Nigeria had the highest number of children under one year of age who missed out on the first dose of vaccine, at nearly 4 million, the United Nations child health body said.

A 70-year-old man died apparently due to shock after his minor grandson was taken into custody by police in connection with a stone pelting incident in Osmanabad district of Maharashtra, an official said Thursday.

Dattu Ganpati More died immediately after police apprehended his grandson from their house in Telmod village in Umarga taluka late on Wednesday night, the official said.

More's grandson was held as part of the operation launched to catch those allegedly involved in pelting stones at a police vehicle, he added.

The Chinese military said on Thursday that it "always attached importance" to relations with the Indian and Pakistani counterparts and was ready to make more efforts to advance the ties, but kept silent over the absence of ships from its all-weather ally at the fleet review of the 70th anniversary celebrations of China's navy.

Two Indian battle ships, including INS Kolkata - the biggest indigenously built stealth destroyer - along with INS Shakti - one of biggest fleet support ships - took part in the fleet review at Qingdao on April 23 which was presided over by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Significantly, conspicuous by their absence were the ships

Nineteen students have committed suicide in Telangana during last one week over the failure in the Intermediate examinations, according to media reports.

While there were no official figures available, newspapers and channels have reported that 19 students of Intermediate first and second year (Classes 11 and 12 ended their lives since last Thursday.

This is said to be the highest number of suicides by Intermediate students in recent years with the opposition parties blaming the goof-ups by the Telangana Board of Intermediate Education (TBIE) for the spate of suicides.

One person injured after part of a house collapsed in New Basti area of Dharavi in Mumbai. R

Police in Sri Lanka on Thursday arrested three suspects during a raid in Colombo and seized 21 hand grenades, six swords and a van.

The raid was carried out by the Colombo Crime Division (CCD) and the Special Task Force (STF) personnel in the city's Modara area, the Daily Mirror reported.

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan police spokesman, Ruwan Gunasekera told CNN that more than 70 suspects have been arrested across the country since the Easter Sunday bombings that claimed the lives of 359 people and injured over 500 others.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday predicted rains on April 30 and May 1 in Tamil Nadu as the well marked low pressure area lying over East Equoatorial Indian Ocean and adjoing southeast Bay of Bengal will first intensify into a depression and then into a cyclonic storm in the next 48 hours.

According to the IMD, the low pressure area lying over East Equatorial Indian Ocean and adjoining southeast Bay of Bengal is likely to intensify into a depression during the next 24 hours.

As campaigning picks up steam in Delhi with leaders motivating people to exercise their franchise, Asha Devi and Badri Nath Singh, the parents of the woman who was gangraped and killed and came to be known as Nirbhaya, say they might not vote this time at all.

The couple, the face of courage in the face of impossible odds, said they are tired of parties promising them justice and doing nothing about it.

The sympathy expressed by the parties and their promises have been just a "political gimmick" as the culprits are still alive, said the parents of the paramedic student who was gangraped on the night of December 16, 2012, and died of her grievous injuries 11 days later in a Singapore hospital.

The use of all drones and unmanned aircraft within the Sri Lankan airspace has been suspended with effect from Thursday until further notice, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said.

It said the decision was made after taking into consideration the prevailing security situation in the country in the wake of the Easter Sunday suicide bombings that have claimed 359 lives and injured hundreds.

Kavinder Singh Bisht (56kg) produced another lion-hearted performance to enter the finals along with three other Indians in the Asian Boxing Championships here on Thursday.

Deepak Singh (49kg) and Ashish Kumar (75kg) joined Bisht in the men's finals, while Pooja Rani (75kg) advanced in the women's draw in the early session of the marquee event's last-four stage.

Settling for bronze medals were veteran L Sarita Devi (60kg) and last edition's silver-medallist Manisha (54kg).

Police are holding the father of two Sri Lankan suicide bombers on suspicion of aiding and abetting his sons to carry out Easter Sunday attacks that have left at least 359 people dead.

Mohamed Yusuf Ibrahim was arrested on Sunday following attacks at hotels and churches. His adult sons, Imsath Ahmed Ibrahim and Ilham Ahmed Ibrahim, blew themselves up in two different attacks earlier that day, reports CNN.

On Thursday, police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera told CNN that their father, Mohamed Yusuf Ibrahim, was in custody on suspicion of aiding and abetting his sons.

Expressing disgust over the issue of nationalism and Pakistan being played up in election campaign, yesteryear actress and Trinamool Congress candidate from Asansol, Moon Moon Sen, said if needed, she would again talk to her old "friend" Imran Khan, the Pakistan prime minister.

Sen, however, declined to speak to Khan on bilateral issues, saying with "several astute politicians" in the country, she would never be given the responsibility.

She praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for boosting India's image abroad but regretted that while doing so, he had forgotten the issues plaguing his own country, especially unemployment

A suspected militant was killed on Thursday when a device he was planting inside a washroom at a university in Kabul went off prematurely, police said.

Three students were also injured in the explosion at Jahan University in the east of the Afghan capital.

"Today at around 10.30 a.m., a terrorist wanted to place explosives in the toilets of Jahan University in Police District 8. The explosives went off prematurely and the man was killed," Basir Mujahid, Kabul police spokesperson, told Efe news

Two persons were killed and one other injured when the motorcycles they were riding collided near Naudad village on Thursday, police said.

The deceased were identified as 7-year-old Aham of Uttargaon village and Shamim Khan (28), a resident of Gaderi, they said.

The injured, Satyam, who is Aham's uncle, was referred to another hospital in Lucknow, police added.

Thirteen luxury cars owned by fugitive diamantaires Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi went on online auction by the Metals & Scrap Trading Corporation, on Thursday.

The auction is being carried out on behalf of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) which had seized these vehicles from Modi and Choksi last year.

The vehicles include a silver Rolls Royce with a reserve price of Rs 1,33,00,000, a Porsche worth Rs 54,60,000, a red Mercedes Benz Rs 14,00,000, a white Mercedes Benz Rs 37,80,000 and a BMW Rs 9,80,000.

A minor girl was allegedly gang-raped in a forest in Central Assam's Hojai district, police said on Thursday.

Three persons have been arrested in connection with the incident, a police officer said.

The incident happened a month ago at Dighaljharuni village in Akashiganga reserve forest area, under the jurisdiction of Doboka police station, he said.

The incident came to light after a video shot by one of the accused went viral on the social media, the police officer added.

The 16-year-old girl, according to the FIR, was raped by five men on March 25, when she was going to a relative's place with her brother-in-law, the Officer-in-charge (OC) of Doboka police station, N Bhuyan, said.

Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik on Thursday expressed grief over the loss of lives after a minibus came under a boulder due to a landslide which hit a stretch of road in Doda district.

In his message, the Governor prayed for peace to the departed souls and strength to the bereaved families in their hour of grief.

Five persons, including three women, were killed and nine others were injured in the mishap Wednesday. The minibus was on its way to Gandoh from Thathri when the boulder hit it at Piyakul belt late afternoon.

Some of the suspected attackers responsible for the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka were being monitored by the country's intelligence services, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told CNN in an interview on Thursday.

But there was not "sufficient" evidence to put the suspected attackers in custody prior to the attacks, Wickremesinghe said.

He reiterated that the attackers were middle- and upper-middle class and had been educated abroad. He added that the profile of the suspected bombers was "surprising".

With the Indian Meteorological Department forecasting "near normal" monsoon this year, the Agriculture Ministry on Thursday set its target for foodgrain production during kharif season 2019-20 at 147.9 million tonnes (MT), with rice output pegged at 102 MT.

These targets are higher when compared to the actual kharif output for 2018-19, which is 142.24 MT, as per the second advance estimates.

The ministry also expects the production during the 2019-20 rabi season to be tentatively around 143.2 MT.

The Uttarakhand High Court has sought a reply from the state government within a month on steps taken to trace those who went missing in the 2013 Kedarnath tragedy.

Hearing a PIL on Wednesday, Chief Justice Ramesh Rangnathan and Justice Narayan Singh Dhanik directed the Government to file a reply within four weeks listing steps taken by the government to determine whereabouts of those who went missing after the deluge.

The Court admitted the PIL for final hearing on Wednesday and directed the state government to file an affidavit detailing steps taken to retrieve the persons or bodies of persons missing since the tragedy. Filed by Delhi resident Ajay Gautam, the PIL had demanded constitution of a special committee to look into whereabouts of disaster victims who continued to be missing more than six years after the tragedy.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday came together for the very first time and held a summit where the two nations pledged for better ties and expressed hope that the historic meeting will revive the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

The summit at the Far Eastern Federal University is the first high-level meeting between the two countries since 2011, when Kim's late father, Kim Jong-il, met then Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in eastern Siberia, reports CNN.

Speaking before the North Korean and Russian delegations, Putin said that he believed Kim's visit would help "our bilateral relations and will help us to understand the ways we can help to settle the situation on the Korean Peninsula, what can be done together, what Russia can do to support the positive processes that are taking their place now.

The Supreme Court on Thursday constituted a one-man panel of former apex court judge Justice A K Patnaik to hold inquiry into the allegations of larger conspiracy to frame Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and fixing of benches in the top court.

The apex court asked the Directors of CBI and IB as also the Delhi Police Commissioner to cooperate with Justice (Retd) Patnaik as and when sought by him during the inquiry.

The top court said however that the inquiry by will not deal with the allegations of sexual harassment against the CJI.

It said the outcome of the inquiry will not affect the in-house committee which is dealing with the complaint against the CJI.

The apex court said that on the completion of inquiry, Justice (Retd) Patnaik will file a report in a sealed cover before the court after which the matter will be heard again.
Justice N V Ramana opts himself out of panel set up to inquire into the allegations of sexual harassment against CJI Ranjan Gogoi.

To accommodate all the 9,250 aspirants from the Kashmir Valley for this year's National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) exams, the National Testing Agency (NTA) has allotted four additional centres in the region, officials said on Thursday.

NTA had already set up NEET exam centres in the Valley for 5,750 aspirants. The remaining 3,500 aspirants had been demanding additional centres so that none of them needed to travel to centres outside the Valley.

"Four additional centres allotted now will accommodate the remaining 3,500 aspirants so that none of this year's NEET aspirants from the Valley have to travel outside to take the test", an official said here.

Sri Lanka's Catholic churches on Thursday suspended all public services until the security situation improves as the head of the church urged politicians to leave aside differences to rebuild the country struck by the Easter Sunday bombings that killed nearly 360 people.

Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, the head of the local Catholic church, said that Easter Sunday's attacks were coordinated by an organised group with powerful nations behind them and also noted that these attackers had no religion.

All Catholic churches were asked to stop public mass until the security situation improves, Cardinal Ranjith's office quoted him as saying.

More than 73,000 transgenders have been arrested for extorting money from railway passengers in the past four years, with over 20,000 alone in the last one year, the railway ministry has said in a reply to an RTI query.

The data assumes significance as passengers have complained of harassment by transgenders who often board trains and extort money from them. Some of these passengers also had to face abuses, in the worst cases of physical assault, incase they refused to give in to such demands, officials said.

The Railway Protection Force (RPF) has been regularly conducting special drives to check such instances, they said.

India has stressed Africa's right to representation among the ranks of the permanent members of the UN Security Council in an effort to bring in a sense of urgency to the long-stalled reform process.

"We must take action so that Africa is given a central and leading role in an internationally formed new order especially in a reformed and expanded Security Council and so that the Council reflects the world of today and not of 1945," Sanjay Rana, Joint Secretary in the External Affairs Ministry, said on Wednesday at the high-level meeting of the General Assembly on Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace.

The number of Indians killed in the massive Easter Sunday bombings rose to 11 on Thursday, as one more person succumbed to injuries, taking the total number of foreigners who died in the attack to 36, according to the Sri Lankan foreign ministry.

Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry, in a statement, said that as of Wednesday April 24, the number of foreign nationals who have been killed in the attack rose to 36.

Controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik on Thursday accused the Indian government of engaging in a "witch-hunt" and putting pressure on the Interpol to issue a red corner notice against him.

In a statement issued, Naik, who fled India in 2016, said he was aware of the "pressure the Indian government was applying on the Interpol" to issue a red corner notice against him.

"It's part of an elaborate witch-hunt. But having verified with a few member countries, I can confirm that there is no red corner notice against me as of date," he claimed.

"One of the Indian newspapers seems to have jumped the gun and reported internal deliberations of the Indian government which, as a matter of fact, have been going on for over two years now," he said.

Income Tax Dept raid underway on a location of former state minister and J&K People's Conference leader Imran Raza Ansari at Karan Nagar in Srinagar.

The rupee on Thursday slumped 22 paise to 70.08 against the US dollar in early trade on rising global crude prices and fresh demand for the American currency from importers.

However, the dollar's weakness against some currencies overseas and a higher opening of the domestic equity markets capped the rupee's losses, foprex dealer said.

Fresh dollar demand from banks and importers weighed on the Indian currency, they added.

Blast heard in Pugoda town, 40 km east of Sri Lanka capital Colombo, says Police and local residents. A minor explosion was reported on Thursday from a vacant plot of land in Pugoda on the outskirts of the Sri Lankan capital Colombo, police said.

The police however, did not provide any other details of the blast which comes four days after the serial Easter Sunday bombings that killed 359 people and injured hundreds others in the bloodiest day in Sri Lanka since the end of the civil war a decade ago, reports Xinhua news agency.

Despite muted trend in global markets, the key Indian equity market indices on Thursday opened higher ahead of F&O expiry.

The Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE, which had closed at 39,054.68 points on Wednesday, opened higher at 39,101.78 points. But minutes into trading, it was quoting at 39,014.53 points, down by 40.15 points, or 0.10 per cent.

At the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the broader Nifty 50, which had closed at 11,726.15 points on Wednesday, was quoting at 11,719.70 points, down by 6.45 points or 0.06 per cent.

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Vladivostok on Thursday for his first-ever talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the Kremlin press service said.

Kim's armoured train arrived in the city in Russia's Far East on Wednesday and the two were set for a meeting on an island off the coast.

Two terrorists have been neutralised in the exchange of fire with security forces in Bagender Mohalla of Bijbehara in South Kashmir's Anantnag district.

Incriminating material including arms and ammunition was recovered from the site of encounter in Bagender Mohalla of Bijbehara, Anantnag, where two terrorists were killed.