Boxer Vijender Singh took heroin 12 times and it has been established that he took it from drug dealers Anoop Singh Kahlon and Rocky, Punjab Police said on Sunday night.

Former Chief Justice of Delhi high court Rajendra Sachar today expressed regret that the Centre  has not implemented his recommendations regarding minorities till date.        

Two advocates of the Allahabad high court have petitioned the President, urging him to grant pardon to Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt, who was recently sentenced to five years in prison by the Supreme Court in the Arms Act case.        

The situation in the silk town of Sualkuchi in Assam's Kamrup Rural district remained tense but calm today, with the indefinite curfew relaxed for three hours during the day.        

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit turned 75 today, with a number of senior Congress leaders including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh greeting her on the occasion.        

Maharashtra Governor K Sankaranarayanan has forwarded expelled Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh's letter, seeking pardon for Bollywood actor SanjayDutt, to the state home department on March 28, a Raj Bhavan spokesperson said today.        

In the backdrop of several leaders raking up the issue of a Third Front ahead of the general elections due next year, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today said it was too early to discuss such a proposal.        

IPL organisers should take an appropriate decision on holding the tournament in Maharashtra, given the prevalent drought in the state, Leader of Opposition in state Legislative Council Vinod Tawde said today.       

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today said the law will take its own course regarding the dowry torture case, in which former minister Raghunath Mohanty and some his family members are accused.        

South Africa's anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela remained in hospital on Easter today, after being admitted for a recurrence of pneumonia four days ago, but doctors said the former president was making steady progress.        

Olympic medallist Vijender Singh had spoken to alleged narcotics dealer Anoop Singh Kahlon on the phone nearly 80 times and they knew each other well, according to the boxer's call records, which were scanned by the Punjab police.

Amid nationwide violence in Bangladesh over 1971 war crimes trial of fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami leaders, the country's human rights body has criticised the government for taking inadequate steps to protect Hindus from recent attacks, as the minority community demanded more security.        

Congress today appointed Ashok Choudhary, a young Dalit leader , considered close to Rahul Gandhi, as the new PCC chief of Bihar, two and a half years after Mehboob Ali Qaiser resigned from the post following the drubbing in the last assembly elections.        

Dismissing claims that the Congress is misusing the CBI to target its opponents, Minister of State for Home Affairs R P N Singh today said the central agency was impartial and even the ruling party leaders were not spared during its probe.        

Former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf, who returned to the country after four years of self-imposed exile in Dubai and London, has said that he felt "a little insulted and humiliated" while standing before a judge in a Karachi court, where he appeared to seek the extension of his pre-arrest bail in a series of cases. 

Chinese defence forces, shedding their reticent style of functioning, are highlighting their military activities since the change of leadership in the nation, a move analysts say is intended to send a strong message to China's neighbours.        

Asian American students perform better than all other ethnic groups when it comes to science and math, with males in particular scoring better, a new US study has found.        

Amid reports that Maoists have called a 48-hour bandh in Jharkhand and Bihar from April 6 to protest against the killing of their cadres, the police today said all measures would be taken to ensure that normal life is not disturbed during the period.        

The just concluded BRICS summit in Durban has yielded "tangible fruits" and brought about unity among major emerging economies. It has also injected fresh impetus into the development of the cooperation mechanism, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said today.        

Former prime minister H D Deve Gowda-led JD-S today said the party would announce its list of candidates for the May 5 Karnataka assembly elections by the second week of April.        

Three days after suffering severe head and lung injuries in a fight outside a Christchurch bar, New Zealand cricketer Jesse Ryder has been moved out of the Intensive Care Unit. He has reassured his well-wishers about his well-being by saying, "I am okay".     

The massive landslide that engulfed a gold mine in Tibet was the result of an "aggressive expansion" of the colliery in which fewer Tibetans are employed, Tibet's government-in-exile has alleged, as rescuers today found more bodies of the 83 miners buried in the avalanche.        

Madhya Pradesh led major states of the country in respect of growth rate in 2012-13, and dislodged Bihar from the top position, the state government has said, citing estimates released by the Central Statistics Office.

Former US president Jimmy Carter has offered the services of his organisation to Nepal during the upcoming Constituent Assembly elections and mooted the possibility of sending observers for the polls.        

Strongly favouring the learning of English to succeed in the modern world, Union Minister of State for HRD Sashi Tharoor has said denial of opportunity to children to study the language would destroy their future.        

The Central Vigilance Commission has been asked by the Central Information Commission to make public the action taken on a plea for a probe into a complaint by former Indian Airlines CMD Sunil Arora against the then civil aviation minister Praful Patel.        

Two people were killed and six others, including a former provincial legislator, injured in a bomb blast in Pakistan's restive northwest today, police said.        

Senior BJP leader Vinay Katiyar has criticised the appointment of Varun Gandhi in the BJP's Parliamentary Board.

For the first time in its 47-year history, the Border Security Force has appointed a non-IPS officer as its commander for the eastern theatre, which guards the Indo-Bangladesh border.        

The Comptroller and Auditor General has raised serious questions about the use of pre-fabricated steel frames imported from China for the construction of the 'Signature' bridge across Yamuna River in East Delhi, which is modelled on the famed London Bridge.        

Former telecom minister A Raja has defended the telecom ministry's decision -- to bypass the law ministry in seeking legal opinion of then Solicitor General GE Vahanvati directly on the 2G issue -- saying it was "perfectly permissible" to approach the law officer in certain cases.        

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has said that his government will not allow racism or religious extremism in the country and advised the Buddhist majority community to protect the rights of others.        

The Supreme Court will pronounce on Monday its verdict on Swiss pharma giant Novartis AG's plea for getting its blood cancer drug Glivec patented in India and restraining Indian companies from manufacturing generic drugs.        

Over 2,300 HIV-infected people registered with various Delhi hospitals have died in the past eight years. But authorities suspect the numbers could be much higher as another 3,000 who signed up with them are now untraceable and their status is not known.        

The country has just 5.33 per cent women in police forces despite growing demands for more representation in law enforcement agencies.        

Amid escalating tension in the Korean peninsula after recent aggressive statements by the North,the US has said it is in close touch with its South Korean allies and is prepared for any possible threat from Pyongyang.        

Narendra Modi has been made a part of the BJP Parliamentary Party after six years.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi was on Sunday named as a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party's Parliamentary Board.

BBC reports: American music producer and pioneer of digital recording, Phil Ramone, has died aged 72, his son has said.

Ramone is regarded as one of the most successful producers in history, winning 14 Grammy awards and working with stars such as Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Elton John and Paul McCartney.

He produced the first major commercial release on CD, Billy Joel's 1982 album 52nd Street.

NDTV reports: An 18-year-old college student in Delhi has alleged he was sexually assaulted by a young man he became friends with on Facebook, police said.

The Delhi University first-year student alleges his friend and two boys assaulted him in a car in Narela yesterday and filmed it on mobile phone.

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Claiming that Indians vote in droves like sheep and cattle, Press Council of India chief Justice Markandey Katju has said he would not vote as it was "meaningless" in a situation where democracy has been hijacked by feudal lords.   

"Ninety per cent Indians vote in droves like sheep and cattle. They are like a herd of cattle voting along caste and religious lines. This is the bitter truth. And because Indiansvote like livestock, there are so many criminals in Parliament," Katju told news channel Headlines Today.

North Korea's threatening rhetoric has reached a fever pitch, but the Pentagon and the South Korean government have said it's nothing new, reports CNN. 

"We have no indications at this point that it's anything more than warmongering rhetoric," a senior Washington defence official, requesting anonymity.

Travelling in trains is set to become costlier from next week as the hike in reservation fee and superfast charges announced in the Rail Budget come into effect from April 1.

Though Railways have not increased basic passenger fare, it has proposed to increase the reservation fee, superfast and Tatkal charges.

Cancellation and clerkage charges will also be hiked from the said date. While reservation fee for second and sleeper class has not been revised, AC classes will be dearer by Rs 15 to Rs 25 per ticket. Superfast charges have been increased by Rs 10 for sleeper and second class fare.

For AC classes, the hike is between Rs 15 and Rs 25. Tatkal fee has been increased by 10 per cent of the basic fare for second class and 30 per cent for all other AC classes.

DMK chief M Karunanidhi has condemned the arrest of a 70-year-old doctor in Chennai who stopped a police sub-inspector from entering the Intensive Care Unit  of a hospital with his shoes on, reports NDTV.

The policeman had gone to the Apollo Hospital ahead of Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's visit to meet media baron Sivanthi Adithan, who is admitted there. Dr Karunanidhi is the personal physician of Adithan. He was arrested a few days ago.

The DMK chief has demanded "action against those responsible" and "unconditional withdrawal of charges" against the doctor.

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