Live news updates: Case filed against Aseemanand’s acquittal

Samjhauta Express Case: A case has been filed against acquiittal of Aseemanand and four other accused of 2007 Samjhauta Blast

Former MLA and ex-state CPI-M Secretary Balwant Singh (82) passed away on Thursday at his residence here after a brief illness.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh expressed grief over the demise of the veteran CPI-M leader.

AMMK leader T.T.V. Dhinakaran on Thursday categorically refuted Madurai Aadheenam (Mutt) head Arunagiri Nathar's statement that talks being held for its merger with the ruling AIADMK.

In a tweet, Dhinakaran, who was sidelined and subsequently expelled from the AIADMK, termed Nathar's statement about the merger talks as baseless

In the first case of fratricidal firing in Jammu and Kashmir this year, a CRPF trooper shot dead three colleagues and then shot and seriously wounded himself in Udhampur district in Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Thursday.

Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Constable Ajit Singh opened fire at Head Constables Umeed Singh, Yogendra Sharma and Pokarmal inside their camp in Battal Ballian area on Wednesday night after a heated exchange of words, killing all three, a police officer said.

He then turned his gun on himself, but only succeeded in injuring himself.

A Pakistani anti-terrorism court on Thursday sentenced two more people to life imprisonment over the 2017 lynching of a university student accused of posting blasphemous content on Facebook.

Mashal Khan, a 23-year-old mass communications student at Mardan's Abdul Wali Khan University, was beaten and shot dead on April 13, 2017 by a mob that accused him of posting blasphemous content online, reports Efe news

Protests were held on Thursday in Srinagar city and Awantipora town of Jammu and Kashmir against the custodial death of the private school teacher this week.

National Conference leaders Ali Muhammad Sagar, Nasir Sogami and others took carried out a protest march from the Nawa-e-Subha party headquarters here demanding stern action against those responsible for the death of 28-year-old Rizwan Asad Pandit in police custody on Monday.

Visakhapatnam: Jana Sena President Pawan Kalyan files nomination papers for Gajuwaka Assembly Constituency at Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) in Gajuwaka

Bihar on Thursday celebrated Holi with fervour. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar celebrated only with dry colours but there were no festivities at the residence of RJD chief Lalu Prasad and his wife Rabri Devi.

Drenched in different colours, people in large numbers took to the streets since morning, splashing water and colour on one another. Many sang traditional Holi songs.

It was a low key affair at the Chief Minister's residence. Nitish Kumar met Janata Dal-United (JD-U) leaders and workers besides urging the people of the state to celebrate Holi with a spirit of love and brotherhood.

BJP MLA from Lakhimpur, Yogesh Verma was shot at during Holi festivities at the party office. He sustained bullet wounds on his leg. He is being treated at the hospital, he is out of danger. A case has been registered, investigation underway.

A huge explosion rocked a chemical plant in eastern China on Thursday, injuring at least 12 people and shattering the windows of nearby buildings, officials and state media said.

At least six people were killed and 23 others wounded after three blasts hit New Year celebrations near a shrine in the Afghan capital Kabul on Thursday, officials said.

Dharwad building collapse: Rescue operations continue for the third day; 7 people have died in the incident. Till now more than 60 people have been rescued.

Several people were feared killed or injured after three blasts hit New Year celebrations near a shrine in the Afghan capital Kabul on Thursday, witnesses said.

The bomb attacks came as Afghan security forces beefed up security across the country ahead of Nawroz Festival celebrations falling on Thursday which marks the Afghan New Year.

The four-day traditional Holi folk festival of Sujanpur in Himachal Pradesh, which traces its origin to the erstwhile Katoch ruler Sansar Chand, concluded amidst fanfare on Thursday, the organisers said.

However, politicians were conspicuously absent this time owing to the Model Code of Conduct that is in force for the Lok Sabha polls.

This time the Holi festivities began a day later on March 19 following the demise of Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on March 17.

AIADMK legislator R. Kanagaraj, representing the Sulur Assembly constituency in Tamil Nadu, died of heart attack on Thursday morning, said police.

Kanagaraj, 64, was at his residence when he passed away. He is survived by his wife, a son and daughter. Sulur is part of Coimbatore district.

Army soldier killed as Pakistani troops violate ceasefire along Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district, said officials.

Military style semi-automatic weapons (MSSA) and assault rifles are to be banned in New Zealand, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on Thursday, a week after 50 people were massacred in two mosques by an Australian man.

The New Zealand government has also moved to ban a number of accessories which can take lower capacity semi-automatic firearms to weapons of greater killing might, Xinhua news agency reported

Related parts used to convert those guns into MSSAs are also being banned, along with all high-capacity magazines.

Death toll rises to 7 in Dharwad building collapse. Till now more than 60 people have been rescued.

Three police personnel were injured in a grenade attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Sopore district. The attack comes barely days after a Special Police Officer was shot dead by terrorists outside her home in Shopian.