Indian Sub-continent

Islamabad, Mar 28 (PTI) Pakistan on Thursday clarified that it has no plan to resume trade relations with India which has been "non-existent" since 2019 after the Indian government abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

The clarification from Pakistan's Foreign Office comes days after the new Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said in London that Pakistan will seriously consider restoring trade ties with India that have remained suspended since August 2019.

New Delhi, Mar 28 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's wife Sunita Kejriwal on Thursday claimed he is not keeping well and is being "harassed a lot".

Kejriwal has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case linked to the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy. Earlier on Thursday, a court here extended the chief minister's ED custody till April 1.

New Delhi, Mar 28 (PTI) The government's fiscal deficit at Rs 15 lakh crore touched 86.5 per cent of the revised annual target at the end of February, according to official data released on Thursday.

In the corresponding period last year, the fiscal deficit or gap between the expenditure and revenue was 82.8 per cent of Revised Estimates (RE) of the Union Budget 2022-23.

For 2023-24, the government's fiscal deficit is estimated at Rs 17.35 lakh crore or 5.8 per cent of the GDP.

New Delhi, Mar 28 (PTI) Amid a lingering border row in eastern Ladakh, top diplomats of India and China held a fresh round of talks and both sides agreed to "maintain regular contact" through diplomatic and military channels, with no indication of any breakthrough.

Islamabad, Mar 25 (PTI) A Pakistani court on Monday ordered authorities to present jailed former premier Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi on April 4 during the hearing of their appeal seeking bail in different cases.

District and Session Court judge Tahir Abbas Sipra heard the case on the plea filed by the couple seeking bail in the cases about the forgery of receipts for Toshakhana gifts, while Khan had also filed a petition to seek bail in a May 9 violence case as well.

Malappuram (Kerala), Mar 25 (PTI) Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday said the slogans 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' and 'Jai Hind' were first raised by two Muslims and asked whether the Sangh Parivar would be ready to abandon them.

Reaching out to the minority community in this Muslim-dominated north Kerala district, the veteran CPI(M) leader said Muslim rulers, cultural icons and officials had played a significant role in the country's history and independence movement.

Lahore, Mar 23 (PTI) Observing the 93rd death anniversary of independence war heroes -- Bhagat Singh, Raj Guru and Sukh Dev -- here on Saturday, their supporters and followers demanded to reopen the case to ensure justice to them like it was done in the case of former prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

British rulers on March 23, 1931, hanged Bhagat Singh along with Raj Guru and Sukh Dev at Shadman Chowk here after trying them under the charge of hatching a conspiracy against the regime.

Islamabad, Mar 24 (PTI) Pakistan will “seriously” consider restoring trade ties with India that remained suspended since August 2019, Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar has said, indicating a potential shift in diplomatic stance towards the neighbouring nation.

Dar made these remarks during a press conference in London following his participation in the Nuclear Energy Summit in Brussels, Geo News reported.

He highlighted the eagerness of cash-strapped Pakistan's business community to resume trade activities with India.

Colombo, Mar 24 (PTI) Sri Lanka’s former President Maithripala Sirisena will face police questioning on Monday on his recent remarks on the 2019 Easter Sunday suicide bombings that he was "aware” of the masterminds of the attacks that killed 270 people, including 11 Indians.

Sirisena, 72, was president between 2015 January and 2019 November. He had previously denied any knowledge of the attacks. Police chief Deshabandu Tennakoon told reporters on Sunday that Sirisena’s statement would be recorded on Monday.

Singapore, Mar 24 (PTI) Russia is a country with which India has always had a positive relationship and both countries have taken extra care to look after each other's interests, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Sunday, as he dismissed the notion that Moscow is drifting towards China.

Interacting with the Indian community in Singapore, Jaishankar said India should look at its relationship with Russia or any other country from its perspective.