The Election Commission of India on Sunday announced the schedule for by-elections to assembly seats across six states, with voting set to be held in two phases in April.. Election commission announces bypoll dates for six states (Representative/AFP). Polling in Goa, Karnataka, Nagaland and Tripura will take place on April 9, while Gujarat and Maharashtra will vote on April 23. Counting of votes for all by-elections will be conducted on May 4, the poll body said.. Goa, Karnataka, Nagaland, Tripura. • Notification: 16 March 2026. • Last Date for Nominations: 23 March 2026. • Scrutiny: 24 March 2026. • Withdrawal: 26 March 2026. • Polling: 9 April 2026. Gujarat and Maharashtra. • Notification: 30 March 2026. • Last Date for Nominations: 6 April 2026. • Scrutiny: 7 April 2026. • Withdrawal: 9 April 2026. • Polling: 23 April 2026. Counting for all by-polls. • 4 May 2026. Completion of Election Process. 6 May 2026 

 Hours before the Election Commission’s announcement of the poll schedule on Sunday, Union home minister Amit Shah said the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government in Assam will return to power with a record mandate in the upcoming assembly elections.. Union home minister Amit Shah said the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government in Assam will return to power with a record mandate in the upcoming assembly elections. (PTI). Shah, who was on a two-day visit to the state beginning Saturday, addressed a gathering of the BJP’s youth workers in Guwahati. “Nearly 125,000 youths from 31,400 polling booths from across Assam are present in the meeting today… The outcome of any election can be gauged from the gathering of any party’s youth workers,” he said.. “The Maha Kumbh of youths in Guwahati today makes it clear that in the coming election the government led by Himanta Biswa Sarma will come to power. I can easily predict that BJP will achieve a record majority in this election,” he added.. Also Read: Students should be able to study medicine in India, needn’t go abroad: Amit Shah. Voting to elect 126 new members of the Assam assembly is expected to take place in the first half of next month, and the BJP, which came to power in 2016 and 2021, is trying to retain power for a third consecutive term.. Five years ago, the party secured 60 seats and formed the government with the support of allies Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and United Peoples Party Liberal (UPPL).. “Anyone who sees today’s gathering can easily presume what will be the status of parties opposing us in the next election,” Shah said, listing the state government’s achievements in the past five years, including providing 165,000 government jobs against a promise of 100,000 made in 2021.. “Did anyone have to pay any bribe or secure recommendation from any leaders to get jobs and not a single court case (alleging irregularities in appointments) was filed. This is an indication of how BJP runs governments,” he added.. Shah accused past Congress governments of not respecting Assam’s language, heritage and culture and of failing to curb terror outfits. He highlighted how peace deals with various armed groups in the past five years led to the surrender of arms by over 10,800 youths and brought peace across the state after decades.. He blamed the Congress for encouraging illegal infiltrators for vote bank politics and assured that once the BJP returns to power in Assam for the third time, they will be detained and deported not just from the state but from every corner of the country.. “Can Congress act against illegal infiltrators? Only BJP can make Assam infiltrator-free. Congress had legalised, formalised and normalised illegal infiltrators, but we have taken a resolve to throw them out,” said Shah while lauding the state government for evicting illegal settlers from 49,500 acres of encroached government and forest land. 

 A day after he was released from the Jodhpur jail in Rajasthan, Ladakhi activist Sonam Wangchuk was all set for a hospital visit, his wife Gitanjali Angmo said on Sunday.. Sonam Wangchuk and Gitanjali Angmo in a photo she shared on social media. (X/@GitanjaliAngmo). “After a long time had a free flowing chat with [him] without glancing at the scary clock every now and then to make the most of the fleeting 60 minutes as in jail!” Ango posted on X, along with their pictures.. “Taking him for a health checkup as per the strong recommendations of our family doctor. He will be under medical observation for 36 hours in a good hospital!” she further wrote.. Arrested after statehood-demand protests in Leh turned violent last September, Wangchuk was detained under the National Security Act (NSA) until he was released on Saturday, after the central government decided to revoke the NSA detention.. Angmo made another X post just before this, explaining the conditions under which the couple met in jail through the six months he was there.. “Writing the final letter to the jail superintendent yesterday seeking permission to meet and inform [Sonam Wangchuk] of his release. While I thank Jodhpur for all the love and support, I am glad that [his] ordeal of being inside the jail for 170 days and my ordeal of making 2 trips a week every week for just a 60 minute meeting over the past 5 months has finally ended!” she wrote.. Also read | Activist Sonam Wangchuk out of jail 6 months after Ladakh protest: Why govt revoked NSA, what it said earlier. The Ministry of Home Affairs, in a press statement, said the government remains committed to fostering an environment of peace, stability, and mutual trust in Ladakh so as to facilitate constructive and meaningful dialogue with all stakeholders, and that the decision to revoke Wangchuk’s detention has been taken in furtherance of this objective “and after due consideration”.. The MHA pointed out that the “prevailing atmosphere of bandhs and protests has been detrimental to the peace-loving character” of Ladakh, and adversely affected various sections, including students, job aspirants, businesses, tour operators, tourists, and thus the economy.. His release was widely welcomed by political leaders, local representatives, and community members in Ladakh, who described it as a personal victory for Wangchuk and a positive step for the region.. Congress MP Jairam Ramesh criticised the Centre’s handling of Wangchuk’s detention, saying the government’s decision to revoke it “exposes” PM Narendra Modi-led BJP regime.. In a post on X, Ramesh wrote, “The INC had condemned the arrest of Sonam Wangchuk on completely bogus grounds six months back. Now the Modi Govt has done a total U-turn. It stands fully exposed. It should apologise to not only Mr. Wangchuk and his family, but to the people of Ladakh as well. It should also immediately release all those who were detained for staging peaceful and democratic protests. 

 New Delhi, The Supreme Court has directed the Centre to submit a comprehensive report on illegal constructions along the banks and flood plains of Ganga river and inform about the steps taken to remove encroachments.. SC directs Centre to submit comprehensive report on encroachments along Ganga. A bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan asked the Union government to place on record steps taken so far for implementation and execution of notification on rejuvenation, protection and management of Ganga.. “What are the impediments or hurdles coming in the way of the Authority in giving effect to the better and effective implementation of the notification, referred to above?. “What steps the Authority intends to take to protect the river Ganga passing through all the States, referred to above, and ensure that the river plains and banks are free of all encroachments? the bench said.. The top court issued notices to several Ganga basin states and said the issue required a broader examination beyond individual cases.. The matter is listed for next hearing on April 23.. During the hearing, advocate Akash Vashishtha, appearing for the petitioner, submitted there are large-scale encroachments all over the banks which require immediate attention and pointed out that some parts of these riverbanks are very rich in fresh water Dolphins.. The apex court also sought to know from the Centre what type of directions the Authority would like to seek from this Court to give meaningful effect to the notification to make the river plains and the banks of Ganga river absolutely free of all encroachments.. The top court was hearing a plea filed by Patna resident Ashok Kumar Sinha against the June 30, 2020 order of the NGT dismissing his plea against illegal constructions and permanent encroachments on the eco-fragile flood plains.. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. 

 Public discourse in India often reveals how fragile the understanding of foundational concepts can be. A recent controversy surrounding remarks made by Kirti Azad, a Member of Parliament from the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), offers a telling example.. India national cricket team visited a Hanuman temple after their triumphant victory in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final on March 8. (ANI Video Grab). Azad reportedly criticised members of India national cricket team for visiting a Hanuman temple after their triumphant victory in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final on March 8. His comment suggested that such a visit was somehow inconsistent with the secular ethos that India claims to uphold.. Kirti Azad’s comment was impulsive, ill-thought-out, shallow and condemnatory in a manner that displayed an unfortunate lack of understanding of the meaning of secularism in India. In doing so, he trivialised secularism itself by applying it in circumstances where it is not threatened.. To my mind, the reaction of the victorious players was entirely human. Sport, particularly cricket in India, is not just a game; it is an emotional spectacle that binds millions across caste, creed and region. When the national team wins a momentous global tournament, expressing gratitude to the divine for many Indians is instinctive. It is a gesture rooted not in exclusion but in humility — a recognition that human effort, however remarkable, often seeks a larger moral or spiritual anchorage.. To interpret such a gesture as an affront to secularism is to misunderstand both the players and the idea itself.. The word ‘secularism’ has travelled a long intellectual journey before entering the vocabulary of modern India. In its European origins, secularism emerged from centuries of conflict between Church and State. The aim was to limit the political power of organised religion and create a state that remained neutral in matters of faith. In many Western countries, this neutrality evolved into a strict separation: religion was confined to the private sphere, while public institutions remained rigorously non-religious.. India’s historical experience was fundamentally different. Here, religion was never monopolised by a single church-like institution, nor was political authority uniformly defined by theology. Instead, India evolved a civilisational ethos in which multiple faiths coexisted, interacted and enriched each other. The Indian understanding of secularism therefore did not emerge from hostility to religion but from a deep respect for pluralism.. The phrase often used to describe this ethos — sarva dharma sambhava, or equal respect for all faiths — captures this distinction elegantly. The Indian state does not demand that citizens abandon their religious identities in public life. Rather, it requires that the state itself treat all religions with fairness and impartiality.. Seen in this light, the visit of the cricketers to a Hanuman temple cannot reasona