Cricketer Shikhar Dhawan on Monday condoled the passing of 26-year-old Tarun Kumar, who was killed during classes between two families from different communities in JJ colony in West Delhi’s Uttam Nagar during Holi celebrations last week.. Cricketer Shikhar Dhawan (R) said it is heartbreaking that something as small as a child throwing a water balloon during Holi could escalate into such violence. (PTI/Instagram). The issue erupted over an 11-year-old girl throwing water-filled balloons at people while celebrating Holi. One of the balloons hit a Muslim woman, who objected to the celebration method. What started as an argument soon snowballed into a violent clash, with both sides assaulting each other, HT reported earlier.. At least four people, three from the Hindu family of the minor girl, were injured. Tarun Kumar succumbed to his injuries on the morning after Holi, with his family alleging that he was “waylaid” by neighbours who assaulted him with bats, sticks and stones.. Cricketer Shikhar Dhawan took to X and said, “Deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Tarun Kumar in Uttam Nagar. It’s heartbreaking that something as small as a child throwing a water balloon during Holi could escalate into such violence.”. Dhawan said that humanity should never stoop to such a level. “Prayers for his family and hope the culprits face the strictest punishment,” he added.. Protests after Tarun Kumar’s death. Protests erupted in Uttam Nagar after Tarun Kumar’s death, with agitators setting ablaze vehicles on the site.. ALSO READ | Seven more people arrested, minor apprehended for Holi clash in Uttam Nagar. The deceased’s family members and neighbours had also protested outside the Uttam Nagar police station, along with members of a Hindu political outfit. Some protestors even allegedly tried to attack the Muslim family’s house, prompting police intervention.. What Tarun Kumar’s family said. Tarun Kumar’s uncle, Ramesh, said the 11-year-old girl was throwing balloons at family members, but one burst on the ground, splashing a woman’s burqa.. “I apologised and even made the 11-year-old apologise. What else could we have done? They first beat us. I suffered heavy injuries on my head, chest and hands. Doctors put eight stitches, and I am still in pain. Tarun came half an hour later, and before he could even park his bike, they jumped at him and attacked him,” Ramesh stated.. CM meets Kumar’s family. Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta met Tarun Kumar’s family and assured them that instructions have been given to ensure the strictest legal action against those responsible.. “The sorrow of Tarun’s family is extremely profound and unbearable. Ensuring justice for them is our utmost priority. Clear instructions have been issued to ensure the harshest and swiftest legal action against all those involved in this heinous crime,” the CM wrote in a post on X.. ALSO READ | Neighbours for 5 decades, families that clashed on Holi have history of fights: Cops probing Del 

 The Madhya Pradesh high court has cancelled Opposition Congress lawmaker Mukesh Malhotra’s election from the Vijaypur assembly seat, calling his failure to declare criminal cases in his election affidavit a corrupt practice under the Representation of People Act.. The Madhya Pradesh high court said BJP’s Ramniwas Rawat will take Mukesh Malhotra’s place in the assembly. (Getty Images/iStockphoto). Justice GS Ahluwalia of the court’s Gwalior bench on Monday said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s Ramniwas Rawat, who lost to Malhotra in a December 2024 by-poll, will take his place in the assembly. The order will take effect after 14 days, allowing Malhotra time to file an appeal in the Supreme Court.. In 2023, Rawat won the Vijaypur assembly seat on a Congress ticket before resigning to join the BJP. In the by-election in December 2024, Rawat lost to Malhotra by 7,364 votes.. Rawat moved the high court, saying that Malhotra had not disclosed two criminal cases in the election affidavit. The court said that Malhotra deliberately and knowingly suppressed this information, misleading the electorate.. “…such suppression has materially created an impediment in the free exercise of electoral rights, and has deprived the voters to make an informed and advised choice and therefore, this act of suppression has resulted in direct or indirect interference with free exercise of right to vote by the electorate and since, it was within the knowledge of the Malhotra about the pending cases and whether charges have been framed or not, therefore, this act of Malhotra amounts to undue influence, necessitating the declaration of his result as null and void,” the court said.. The court said that failing to provide such information deliberately constituted a corrupt practice. “…it is not necessary for this court to consider whether suppression on the part of Malhotra has materially affected the election result or not, because it has to be presumed, and such a question does not arise. Thus, Malhotra is held guilty of corrupt practice.”. The court declared Rawat as elected as he secured second highest votes. It directed the Election Commission of India and the returning officer to complete the formalities in this regard.. Congress leader Umang Singhar said they respect the court’s decision. “The Congress will appeal this decision in the Supreme Court after consulting with lawyers and understanding the legal aspects. The people of Vijaypur gave the Congress their mandate. The people are still with us. We hope that we will receive justice from the Supreme Court.”. BJP spokesperson Hitesh Bajpai said the Congress hid the criminal cases against Malhotra to mislead the innocent tribal electorate, but now the court has cleared everything. 

 Restaurants across various parts of the country have reported shortage in the supply of commercial cooking gas, with the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) on Monday urging the Centre to intervene, saying any disruption to LPG cylinder supply will lead to a “catastrophic closure” of restaurants.. The association pointed out that a March 5 order issued by the Centre directing public sector oil marketing companies to ensure LPG is supplied to domestic consumers, has impacted the deliveries of commercial gas cylinders to restaurants. (Praful Gangurde/Hindustan Times). The development comes amid rising energy costs and supply constraints caused by the ongoing conflict in West Asia.. “The restaurant industry is predominantly dependent on commercial LPG for its operations. Any disruption therein will lead to a catastrophic closure of majority of restaurants,” NRAI, which represents around half a million restaurants across the country, said in a letter to the Union petroleum and natural gas ministry.. The association pointed out that a March 5 order issued by the Centre directing public sector oil marketing companies to ensure LPG is supplied to domestic consumers, has impacted the deliveries of commercial gas cylinders to restaurants.. In Bengaluru, hotel and restaurant operations are likely to be affected from Tuesday, following an abrupt halt in the supply of commercial gas cylinders, the Bangalore Hotels Association (BHA) said on Monday.. “Since the gas supply has stopped, the hotels will be closed from tomorrow,” the BHA said in a release.. Noting that the supply of commercial gas cylinders stopped on Monday, it said, since the hotel industry is an essential service, common people, students, and medical professionals, who rely on the hotels for daily meals, will be affected.. In Gurugram, several restaurants have reported disruption in the supply of commercial LPG cylinders, forcing eateries to consider alternative arrangements such as domestic cylinders or electric cooking equipment.. Rohit Arora, manager of a restaurant in Sector 29, said the establishment currently has enough stock for a few days. “Our vendor informed us that commercial LPG deliveries have been paused temporarily. We have backup cylinders that can last about three days. If the situation continues, we may have to shift to residential cylinders or reduce menu items,” he added.. In Pune, the civic body has temporarily closed the city’s gas crematoriums following restrictions on the use of LPG components such as propane and butane.. The Pune Municipal Corporation cited the Centre’s March 5 order, directing that available propane and butane be prioritised for domestic LPG supply across the country, for its decision to keep its gas crematoriums closed from March 5 until further orders.. LPG cylinder booking period increased from 21 to 25 days. Meanwhile, the minimum waiting period for booking a domestic LPG cylinder refill increased from 21 days to 25 

 Union minister for coal and mines G Kishan Reddy on Monday asked the Telangana government to enter into a power purchase agreement (PPA) with National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) in the wake of rapidly increasing power demand in the state, which crossed 18,000 MW mark last week.. G Kishan Reddy (ANI). In a letter addressed to chief minister A Revanth Reddy, Kishan Reddy said the second phase of 3×800 MW thermal power plant of NTPC, coming up at Ramagundam in Peddapalli district would help meet Telangana’s growing electricity demand while ensuring supply of quality power at a lower cost.. Telangana recorded peak electricity demand of 18,139 MW, registered at 11.01 am on March 3, which was the highest peak demand ever recorded in the history of Telangana, state deputy chief minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, who holds the portfolio of energy, said in a statement.. Vikramarka said Telangana was emerging as a state with high electricity consumption density due to rapid expansion in IT, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, and irrigation sectors. Earlier, the state had recorded a peak demand of 15,623 MW on March 8, 2024 and 17,162 MW on March 20, 2025.. “Telangana is not only meeting current demand but is also fully prepared for upcoming summer peak requirements with advance planning. A robust grid system, forward-looking strategy, and coordinated operations are our strengths,” the deputy chief minister said.. Referring to Vikramarka’s statement, Kishan Reddy said in his letter that the electricity demand was expected to rise further in the coming years. He said the deputy chief minister himself had acknowledged the need to add 5,000 – 6,000 MW of thermal power generation capacity to maintain grid stability in line with national energy goals. “The demand could reach nearly one lakh MW by 2047,” the Union minister pointed out.. He recalled that as part of the first phase of the planned 4,000-MW thermal power project at NTPC, Ramagundam, had already established two thermal power units with a combined capacity of 2×800 MW (1,600 MW) at a cost of about ₹12,000 crore using advanced ultra-supercritical technology. The project was dedicated to the nation in 2023 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said.. Following the completion of phase-I, NTPC has initiated steps to implement phase-II, which proposes three additional units of 800 MW each, adding 2,400 MW of generation capacity. As in the first phase, 85% of the power generated from phase-II will be supplied exclusively to Telangana, he said.. He requested the chief minister to facilitate a PPA between the Telangana government and NTPC for the 3×800 MW Phase-II project at Ramagundam.. Kishan Reddy said the NTPC has extensive national experience in establishing thermal power projects at low cost using advanced ultra-supercritical technology. “If NTPC is given adequate flexibility to secure coal supplies for the full 5×800 MW project, the company is ready to produce electricity at compet 

 The Supreme Court on Monday accepted the Union government’s proposal to allow retiring tribunal members and heads to continue for another six months as a stop-gap arrangement, even as the Centre said it was contemplating a law to govern future tribunal appointments.. Supreme Court okays 6-month extension for retiring members of tribunals. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant passed the order on a bunch of petitions filed by bar associations of various tribunals, raising concerns over the large number of vacancies threatening to make these forums defunct.. Attorney general R Venkataramani, appearing for the Centre, told the court that a new law is being contemplation and will be introduced in Parliament during the ongoing monsoon session. To ensure the functioning of tribunals is not impacted, he proposed a one-time measure to allow all retiring heads and members of tribunals to get an extension of tenure till September 8.. “We have taken stock of all tribunals to come out with this working arrangement. A bill is in contemplation and is likely to be introduced in the monsoon session. Till then, everybody appointed under the TRA (Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021) will continue,” he said.. In November last year, the top court struck down key provisions of the TRA, including the uniform four-year tenure for tribunal members and the minimum entry age of 50 years — measures the court found arbitrary and damaging to judicial independence.. “In view of the decision, in principle, having been taken to extend the tenure of presently serving chairpersons or members till September 8, 2026 or until they attain maximum age prescribed under TRA 2021, we permit the Government of India to proceed accordingly,” the bench, also comprising justice Joymalya Bagchi, said.. The court said increasing tenure is not sufficient as the legislative policy should include a mechanism to assess the performance of tribunal members. “Why should extension be given when there is no mechanism to assess their performance. On one hand, you cannot have tribunals functioning under government control since there will be interference. You also cannot put them under the judiciary’s control either,” it added.. On February 26, the court underscored the continuing dysfunction within tribunals and flagged instances where technical members were allegedly not writing judgments, leaving judicial members to shoulder the burden. “There should be an immediate mechanism to make these members accountable. If they are capable, they must continue to perform,” the bench noted, asking the Centre to devise a solution.. The bar association of the central administrative tribunal (CAT), represented by senior advocate Sanjay Jain, said that in 2026, about 31 members will be retiring. He said the past judgments of the court have said that a member should be given a secure tenure of five years. He added that a six-month extension was not a solution as there was growing uncert