An angry mob beat a police officer to death outside a mosque in Indian-administered Kashmir, police said Friday, as tensions ran high in the volatile Himalayan region. Witnesses said the mob attacked Mohammad Ayub Pandith late Thursday after he fired his pistol when confronted by worshippers at the mosque in the main city of Srinagar … Read more
Opposition parties Thursday picked a former parliament speaker from India’s lowest Dalit caste as their presidential candidate, pitting her against the ruling party’s hot favourite Ram Nath Kovind — also from the marginalised community. Following hours-long negotiations led by the main Congress party, 72-year-old Meira Kumar was named as the opposition’s nominee for the presidential … Read more
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the United States later this month to meet President Donald Trump for the first time. India’s foreign ministry said on Monday that the two leaders will discuss bilateral relations on June 26 in Washington. ‘Their discussions will provide a new direction for deeper bilateral engagement on issues of mutual … Read more
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet US President Donald Trump in Washington this month, India’s foreign ministry said Monday, as the world’s two-largest democracies diverge on tackling climate change. In a statement the ministry said the two leaders would meet on June 26 for the first time after Modi arrives in Washington for a two-day … Read more
At least five farmers are dead after shots were fired during a protest in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is unclear who opened fire during the rally in Mandsaur district on Tuesday. Protesters say it was police. The state’s home minister, Bhupendra Singh, denied this, telling local media “there was no firing … Read more
Indian paramilitary forces killed four attackers who tried to storm their camp in the disputed Kashmir region early Monday. The gunmen lobbed grenades and fired automatic weapons outside the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp in Indian-administered Kashmir before dawn, a spokesman said. “They tried to storm the camp, but they were not even allowed … Read more
India’s most powerful homegrown rocket to date is set to launch Monday, another milestone for its indigenous space programme that one day hopes to put a man into orbit. The 43-metre (140-foot) rocket is scheduled to lift off just before 5:30 pm (1200 GMT) from the southern island of Sriharikota, one of two sites used … Read more
India’s growth slowed to 7.1 percent last year, according to official data released Wednesday, weaker than analysts expected but still the fastest rate of any major economy. GDP growth for the 12 months ended March 31 was well below a revised figure of eight percent for the previous year, and follows the government’s shock move … Read more
An Indian court Tuesday charged a minister and two senior leaders from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party with criminal conspiracy over the destruction of a mosque in 1992 that triggered deadly religious riots. The trio were accused of inciting a Hindu mob to destroy the 16th-century Babri mosque in the city of Ayodhya, which ignited … Read more
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek to repair India’s drifting partnership with Russia when he meets President Vladimir Putin this week, amid wariness over Moscow’s renewed interest in New Delhi’s backyard, analysts say. The two leaders will look to stem a decline in trade between the once robust economic partners and resolve tensions over their … Read more
An Indian woman who said she was forced to marry a Pakistani at gunpoint returned to India on Thursday after a court ordered her release. Uzma Ahmad was reunited with her family at the Wagah border crossing near Amritsar in northern Punjab state before heading to New Delhi where she called on Foreign Minister Sushma … Read more
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will depart Monday for a four-nation tour of Europe that will include strategic talks with historic ally Russia and with key trading partner Germany. Modi will first be hosted by Chancellor Angela Merkel at Germany’s official state guest house in Brandenburg, where the two leaders will jointly address a meeting … Read more
India’s cabinet on Wednesday approved a long-awaited policy to boost local manufacturing of high-tech defence equipment and cut down reliance on expensive imports. Under the new Strategic Partnership model, the government will pick Indian companies to tie up with foreign organisations to manufacture fighter jets, armoured vehicles, helicopters and submarines locally. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s … Read more
India has redrafted a law to allow politicians to be forcibly removed from official homes within three days of leaving office, to end the practice of squatting by powerful figures. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet approved an amendment to an existing law Wednesday permitting authorities to use force to remove former ministers, lawmakers and retired … Read more
India’s environment minister Anil Madhav Dave died Thursday at the age of 60 in New Delhi, shocking colleagues who remembered him as a nature lover committed to conservation. Dave complained of discomfort in the morning and was rushed from his home to the state-run All India Institute of Medical Sciences where he passed away. The … Read more
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas began a three-day visit to India on Monday with a tour of an IT facility that is helping Ramallah build a high-end tech hub. Abbas, who arrived late Sunday, will hold talks on the Middle East peace process, among other issues, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in coming days. But his … Read more
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas landed in New Delhi late Sunday for a three-day visit looking to strengthen ties with India ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic trip to Israel. Abbas arrived with a delegation for his third state visit to India, where he will hold key talks on bilateral, regional and international issues, including … Read more
Sri Lanka has taken the unusual step of clearing thousands of wasps from a tea plantation to ensure Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not stung during his upcoming visit. Police in Hatton, 125 kilometres (78 miles) east of Colombo, hired a private company to remove the wasps from its picturesque tea fields which Modi … Read more
Fat wads of bank notes move across counters in Old Delhi’s gold and diamond district in one of many challenges to six months of Indian government efforts to suffocate the black market. Cash has been king in the musty narrow streets of Chandni Chowk since the jewellery market was set up by Emperor Shah Jahan … Read more
India’s top court Monday ordered that a key opposition leader and influential former minister stand trial on historic corruption charges that saw him disqualified from parliament. Lalu Prasad Yadav was banished from India’s lower house in 2013 after he was convicted of defrauding a scheme to help farmers, but other charges stemming from the same … Read more