Ahead of the Indo-Pak talks under the Indus Waters Treaty in Lahore, India today stuck to its stand that Pakistan needs to walk away from terrorism for any government-level dialogue to take place. 

Just In: One soldier lost his life in ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Poonch area of Jammu and Kashmir

As news of the exit polls appeared on the television channels, Akhilesh Yadav told the BBC that the Samajwadi Party was willing to back the Bahujan Samaj Party in the event of a hung assembly in UP.

Voting in the month-long fiercely fought elections for five states ended yesterday. The results for the five states -- Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand -- will be declared on Saturday, March 11.

Uttar Pradesh voted in seven phases and saw a three-way battle between the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance, the BJP and Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party. So far, all the exit polls give the BJP a win, followed by the SP-Cong combine and the BSP. 

Punjab saw a tough fight between the Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party and incumbent Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP alliance. The exit poll figures, so far, have given the Congress a lead. The SAD, riddled with charges of nepotism and corruption has been decimated -- an average of between 5 to 7 seats.

In Manipur too, it seems a saffron win, with the BJP ending the 15-year-long rule of Congress's Okram Ibobi Singh.

The BJP seems to be a shoo in for Uttarakhand too, where it will unseat the ruling Congress government of Chief Minister Harish Rawat.


In Goa, where the BJP is in power, the party will retain its seat. The fight in Goa is between the Congress, AAP and an alliance of MGP, Shiv Sena and Goa Suraksha Manch for the 40-member House.  The exit poll figures are as follows:


Punjab: The India Today-Axis My India: Congress is the winner with between 62 to 71 seats. Akali Dal-BJP combine gets just 4 to 7 seats, while the AAP a close second with between 42-51 seats. Total seats 117.

India News exit polls: SAD decimated with just 7 seats, Cong and AAP share 55 each.

Even as most of the exit polls predict complete majority to the BJP, ABP News-CSDS forecasts hung assembly in Uttar Pradesh.

First reactions on the exit polls: BJP's Subramanian Swamy: If Exit Polls are correct then it means that Hindutva with Namo have delivered four of the five states for BJP!!

NDTV-India News-MRC exit poll figures:

Uttar Pradesh: BJP (185), SP+Congress (120), BSP 90, Others: 8 out of a total of 403.

All 85 fishermen, who are in custody of the Sri Lankan Government, would be released soon, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday.


"The Government of Sri Lanka has informed the High Commission of India in Colombo that all 85 Indian fishermen, currently in custody, will be released. We understand that the instructions in this regard to the concerned authorities in Sri Lanka have been issued. We are awaiting further orders within Sri Lanka in this regard," MEA official spokesperson Gopal Baglay told the media in Delhi.


With regards to the killing of an Indian fishermen allegedly by the Sri Lankan Navy, Bagley said that the High Commission has reached to "the highest possible levels in Colombo" and was assured of "thorough investigation" into the matter.


Responding to the claims of suspected shooting by the Sri Lankan Navy, Bagley said, "The Sri Lankan Government and the navy have maintained that there has been no firing from their side. However, they have agreed to thoroughly investigate the matter. We should await the result of the investigation."


A group of Indian fishermen, who were fishing between Danushkodi and Katchatheevu off the Tamil Nadu coast, were allegedly fired upon by the Sri Lankan Navy in which one fisherman was killed.

Lucknow terror attack update: The Uttar Pradesh ATS has arrested two more suspects in connection with the Lucknow terror operation, says ADG (Law and Order) Daljit Chaudhary. One of the arrested persons is a former Indian Air Force employee, the ADG said.  The two suspects - Azhar and Ghouse Mohammad Khan - were arrested in Kanpur.

On Wednesday, the Uttar Pradesh Police said the youth killed in an anti-terror operation in Lucknow and his five arrested associates were "self radicalised" and were trying to build an Islamic State Khorasan module in the city. Two of the terror suspects, Mohammad Faisal Khan and Fakhre Alam, were arrested from their native places in Kanpur and Etawah.

Saifullah was allegedly one of nine members of a newly-formed terror cell. Saifullah was killed in a hideout in Lucknow after a 12-hour operation. Though commandos tried to capture him alive, he refused to surrender. After he was shot, an ISIS flag and a train timetable were discovered near him; investigators say he and other members of his group - "self-radicalised" and "self-proclaimed as an ISIS cell" according to the Uttar Pradesh police - carried out a bombing this week on a train in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh in which nine people were injured.


Saifullah's father refused to accept his body yesterday at their home in Kanpur, denouncing him as a traitor. "One who could not belong to the country, how can he belong to me?" said Sartaj Mohammed, who works at a small leather factory.


Though the UP police has said that the group with allegedly nine members had no external support, other officials including some in the National Investigation Agency, which is handling the case, say there are signs of a handler that guided them, most likely from outside India, through chat rooms and phone calls.


Sources say that the group complies with the pattern of ISIS cells busted in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, who were indoctrinated online, largely self-funded, and told to organize weapons on their own to attack local targets.


Image: UP ADG says Ghouse Mohammad Khan has been an airman for a long time.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh ATS arrests two more suspects in connection with the Lucknow terror operation: ADG UP police.

"Unka shukriya. Yeh sandesh purey India ke liye hona chahiye. Humare mantri chotey-chotey logon ko izzat dete hain. I thank the home minister. The message is meant for everyone in India. The minister respects even small people like us," says Mohammed Sartaj, slain militant Saifullah's father.  


Home Minister Rajnath Singh said in Parliament today that the government was proud of Mohammed Sartaj. "I express sympathy for the father and I am sure the House joins me," Rajnath said in Lok Sabha while briefing the House over the Tuesday's Lucknow terror encounter. The minister said that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) will be probing the Lucknow encounter.


Image: Mohammad Sartaj, Saifullah's father. He has refused to accept his son's body saying what his son did was "not in the country's interest". "We will not accept the body of an anti-national," he had said.

Maiden press briefing of the new MEA spokesperson Gopal Baglay. Baglay was a Joint Secretary in the Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran division of the Ministry of External Affairs, before he officially took charge as spokesperson of MEA on February 27 from Vikas Swarup.

The AAP government in Delhi has made sanitary napkins cheaper and we are rooting for Mr Kejriwal.

The Delhi government has cut taxes on sanitary napkins from 12.5 per cent to 5 per cent. Citing the government's concern for hygiene of women, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia made the announcement in the budget for 2017-18.


While sanitary napkins costing Rs 20 have been made tax free, those priced above will attract a reduced tax of 5 per cent."Sanitary napkins up to Rs 20 will be tax free. In case of their cost being above Rs 20, the government proposes to reduce the tax rate from 12.5 per cent to just 5 per cent keeping in view the concern about hygiene of women," Sisodia said in Delhi Assembly.


The Delhi government runs "Kishori Yojana" for female students enrolled in government schools under which sanitary napkins are provided free of cost to over seven lakh girls studying in classes VI to XII.


Representational image.

The Maternity Benefit Bill being taken up for discussion and voting in Lok Sabha. Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya making opening remarks.

The Maternity Benefit Bill raises period of paid leave from 12 weeks to 26 weeks for pregnant women. It also requires organisations with more than 50 employees to provide creche facilities.


The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2016, which was passed by the Rajya Sabha in August last year, provides for increasing maternity benefit from 12 weeks to 26 weeks for two children and is aimed at benefiting about 1.8 million women in the organised sector.

What is being done now is that Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya will be moving the Bill to amend the Maternity Benefit Act. The amended Act will be applicable to all establishments employing 10 or more people. Once the amendments to the Act are passed and notified, India will jump to the third position in terms of the number of weeks for maternity leave after Canada (50) and Norway (44).

The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, protects the employment of women during the time of her maternity and entitles her full paid absence from work, to take care for her child.

In August last year, when the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2016, was passed in the upper house, some members had sought norms for paternity leave also so that parents can share the responsibility of raising children. Dattatreya had said in the Rajya Sabha that the very purpose of the bill was to increase participation of women, which was decreasing day by day.

The central government has already amended its service rule and is providing 26 weeks maternity leave to its employees.


Representational pic. A file picture of actress Kareena Kappor when she was pregnant.

Iraq's Defence Ministry says a twin suicide bombing targeting a village wedding north of Baghdad has killed at least 20 people. The ministry says two suicide bombers walked into the wedding party in al-Hajaj village, near the city of Tikrit yesterday evening. It says up to 13 people were wounded. Tikrit is about 130 kilometers, or 80 miles, from Baghdad.

The bullet-riddled body of an armyman was found in the Draba belt of Poonch district today, with the police saying the jawan died under "suspicious circumstances".

Delhi Lt Governor Anil Baijal has rejected the AAP government's decision to give Rs 1 crore compensation to the family of ex-serviceman Ram Kishen Grewal who had committed suicide over the OROP issue last year. Sources said that Baijal, on March 6, rejected the decision of the Delhi Cabinet which had also granted martyr status to Grewal.


Last year, the army veteran had committed suicide in the national capital demanding immediate implementation of One Rank One Pension (OROP).


"The Lt Governor has turned down the proposal sent by the Delhi Cabinet for his approval, saying it is not in line with compensation policy to provide ex-gratia to servicemen," sources said.


In his note to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Baijal said that as mentioned in the Cabinet decision, Grewal had consumed poison on November 1, 2016 during a protest for the implementation of OROP.


"This specific case does not fall within the parameters of the scheme for grant of ex-gratia payment i.e death occurring in the discharge of official duty.


"Therefore, while I fully sympathise with the family of Subedar (Retd) Late Ram Kishen Grewal, I'm not able to agree to the proposal for payment of ex-gratia relief in this case," Baijal said in the note.


He said the position was also explained to the chief minister during his meeting with him earlier this month. This is the first proposal of the Delhi government shot down by Baijal after he cleared a slew of files that were stuck with the LG office during Najeeb Jung's tenure. The move may trigger a tussle between the AAP dispensation and the LG office.

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The Reserve Bank (RBI) will soon issue Rs 10 denomination notes with enhanced security features for circulation.


The RBI has said the banknotes in the Mahatma Gandhi series-2005 are to carry inset letter 'L' on both number panels, bearing the signature of Governor Urjit Patel.


The year of printing, 2017, will be on the reverse of the note. Among other features, numerals on both the panels will be in ascending size from left to right.


The first three alpha-numeric characters (prefix) will remain constant in size."All the banknotes in the denomination of Rs 10 issued by the Bank in the past will continue to be legal tender,' the central bank said in a notification.

"The myth of Britain's gifts to India. Apologists for empire like to claim that the British brought democracy, the rule of law and trains to India. Isn't it a bit rich to oppress, torture and imprison a people for 200 years, then take credit for benefits that were entirely accidental," writes Shashi Tharoor for the Guardian. Do read

Polling in RK Nagar constituency to be held on April 12th, counting on 17th April, 2017. Seat lies vacant after former Tamil Nadu CM J Jayalalithaa's demise.

Two Lashkar militants and a civilian have been killed in an encounter in Awantipora area of Pulwama district in Kashmir, say officials. CNN News 18 reports that the civilian died in clashes between villagers and security forces even as the encounter rages on.

One Lashkar terrorist, Ganai, was killed in an encounter in Padgampora village area in south Kashmir's Pulwama district, this morning, while the other terrorist was killed hours later.


The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) confirmed the deaths, but says there is unconfirmed presence of four-five terrorists in the area. The security forces in Jammu and Kashmir have launched a cordon and search operation in the Padgampora area after they suspected the presence of terrorists in the area.

Happening in parliament now: Discussion on the Lucknow terror ops, race attacks against Indians in the US.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh speaking in Lok Sabha on the Lucknow  terror ops commended slain militant Saifullah Khan's father and urged Parliamentarians to express their sympathy.

Highlights of what the HM said...

-- ATS UP gheraoed the home in which Saifullah was staying. He fired on ATS and after 12 hours the team entered and shot him.

-- When cops went to Saifullahs father, he said, if he was against the country, how can he be my son? Saifullah's father refused to take his body. The country is proud of his father.  Poora sadan Saifullah ke pita ke prati sahanubhuti vyakt karega, aur main bhi karta hoon. (Saifullah's father had said we are Indians, a traitor can't be our son.)

The Congress issues a notice on US hate crimes. Mallikarjuna Kharge says, "The PM and ministers were silent on the racial attacks in US. NDA doesn't have any strategy. The PM tweets on every other issue, why doesn't he talk on this issue? Why is he silent? He should make a statement today. Such incidents (on attacks on Indians in USA) have increased after the new US President has taken charge."

Hawaii becomes first state to sue to stop President Donald Trump's revised travel ban.


LG Anil Baijal declined Delhi govt proposal to give 1 crore compensation to family of veteran who committed suicide over OROP.

The Supreme Court dismisses real estate baron Gopal Ansal's plea against his jail term in the Uphaar fire tragedy case. Ansal, who was to surrender today, gets time till March 20 to do so.


Gopal Ansal had sought relief that he should not be asked to serve the one-year jail term like his elder brother Sushil Ansal. Both the brothers were found guilty in the 1997 Uphaar cinema fire case in which 59 people were killed.

Senior Supreme Court lawyer Ram Jethmalani, who is Gopal Ansal's lawyer has sought relief that his client be granted liberty not to surrender till the hearing of his appeal. Now that his appeal has been heard, Gopal Ansal will head to jail.

A bench, in a 2:1 majority verdict on February 9, had granted relief to 76-year-old Sushil Ansal considering his "advanced age-related complications" by awarding him the jail term already undergone and had asked younger sibling Gopal to surrender in four weeks to serve remaining one-year jail term in the 20-year-old case.

Senior advocate K T S Tulsi, appearing for the Association for Victims of Uphaar Tragedy led by Neelam Krishnamoorthy, had opposed the plea, saying the review pleas of the CBI and the association have already been decided and "there cannot be a review of the review judgement".

59 persons had died of asphyxia in the Uphaar cinema during the screening of Hindi movie 'Border' on June 13, 1997.

Gopal had filed the plea seeking modification of the February 9 verdict asking him to surrender for serving a year in jail.

He had sought a relief similar to the one given to his brother, claiming that he was 69-years old and would suffer irreparable damage to his health if sent to prison.


Image: Gopal Ansal

The second part of the Budget session has begun with the Congress serving notice on hate crimes against Indians in the US and other foreign countries.
Seeking a discussion on the issue, the Congress has given an adjournment notice in the Lok Sabha. The Rajya Sabha has been adjourned till tomorrow owing to the demise of a few sitting MPs. 

Home minister Rajnath Singh said incidents of hate crimes against Indians in the US are being taken very seriously by the Indian government. He said a statement will be made in Parliament next week.


This morning, just ahead of the session, PM Modi said the government was keen to get the pending bills cleared with priority being the GST Bill and hoped the session would be productive.


Rajnath Singh also said he wants to give a statement on the Lucknow encounter and would decided the the matter after seeing the situation in the House.


Image: PM Narendra Modi addressing the media outside Parliament House this morning.

The second half of the Budget session begins. TMC serves notice on linking the Aadhar card with accessibility to the mid-day meals in school. 

TMC protests in front of Gandhi statue at Parliament complex over the attacks on Indians in USA.

Congress has also issued a notice in Parliament on the hate crimes in the US.

"Why is Karan Johar trying to shame a woman for being a woman? What is this about the 'woman card' and the 'victim card'? This kind of talk is demeaning to all women, particularly the vulnerable because they are the ones who really need to use them.


"I can't speak for Karan Johar's understanding of nepotism. If he thinks that it is restricted to nephews, daughters and cousins, I have nothing to say. But, to say that he chose not to give me work is to mock an artiste. As importantly, his memory appears to be poor because we worked together in a movie (Ungli), which was produced by him. And quickly realised our sensibilities did not match."


Kangana Ranaut says it like it is in an interview to Mumbai Mirror where she responds to Karan Johar's attack at an event at the London School of Economics, that he was fed up with her playing the woman card.

Kangana had appeared on Johar's celebrity talk show Koffee With Karan, where she called him the 'flag-bearer of nepotism'. She also said Johar would be perfect to play the role of a 'stereotypical Bollywood biggie who is snooty and completely intolerant to outsiders, the flag-bearer of nepotism, the movie mafia' in her biopic if it is ever made.

During a session with Anupama Chopra at the London School of Economics, India Forum, Johar said, "You cannot be this victim at every given point of time, who has this sad story to tell about how she has been terrorised by 'bad Bollywood'. If it is that way, then leave.

He also said he had given her a platform to air her views and was gracious enough not to edit it out of the shoe. More of what Karan Johar said here.


Kangana responded to Karan's statement telling Mumbai Mirror, "I'm also at a loss to understand how he gave me a platform by inviting me to be on his show. I've been on several platforms before with several global icons. To say he helped me voice my opinions is to discredit me as an artiste and a public personality. And, I think, it should be added here that I was invited to be a part of the show in its fifth season."

Truce or does the war continue? Stay with us for more.

Authorities in Kashmir have suspended train services from Banihal to Srinagar as one of the railway stations is near the site of the ongoing Pulwama encounter.

To bring you up to speed, a Lashkar terrorist, Ganai, has been killed in an ongoing encounter in Padgampora village area in south Kashmir's Pulwama district. The Lashkar terrorist is believed to be from the Koel area of south Kashmir.

A second Lashkar terrorist has still to be neutralised.


The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Thursday said one terrorist was reportedly killed in the Pulwama encounter.

"A terrorist is reportedly killed in Pulwama encounter. The troops of 130 Bn CRPF, 55 RR and SOG Pulwama are involved in the operation," the CRPF said.

The CRPF further said that there is unconfirmed presence of four-five terrorists in Pulwama's Padgampora area.

The security forces in Jammu and Kashmir have launched a cordon and search operation in the Padgampora area after they suspected the presence of terrorists in the area.

Gunshots are also heard in the area.

The army and special operation group of Jammu and Kashmir's Awantipora has cordoned off the area.


Representational image.

Voting in the Alapur constituency of Ambedkar Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, is currently underway.

This is the only constituency in UP that is yet to vote.

The voting was postponed after Samajwadi Party candidate Chandrashekhar Kanaujia died of heart attack.

Voting was held yesterday in Uttar Pradesh for the final phase of Assembly elections, recording an over 60 percent voter turnout. The exit polls will be out at 5:30 pm today.

The counting of votes will take place on March 11

Re-polling is being held in 34 polling stations in Manipur that went to polls in the first phase of the two-phased state assembly elections.

An encounter has broken out between security forces and two terrorists after the latter were holed up in a house in the Avantipore area of Jammu-Kashmir.