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According to a police officer, the second accused allegedly conducted recce along with the one who attacked devotees. The attack took place inside the oldest Guru Ram Das inn near the community kitchen. The Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) that manages the Sikh worship place said that the accused, out of the blue, used a rod and started attacking the devotees.

An unidentified person reportedly armed with a rod injured five devotees in an alleged attack on the premises of the Golden Temple in Amritsar on Friday. According to the reports, the condition of one Sikh youth from Bathinda is reportedly serious and is currently undergoing treatment in the emergency wing of the Sri Guru Ram Das Institute of Medical Sciences & Research in Amritsar. 

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who is also the Gorakshpeethadhiswar, started Holi celebration at the Gorakhnath temple on Friday, the state government said in a statement.

He visited the Gorakhnath temple mela ground, where Holika (demon king's sister) was burnt, worshipped the bhasm (ash) amid chanting of Vedic mantras, and performed aarti. After this ritual, seers and devotees applied tilak on Adityanath with this ash and took his blessings, the statement said.

Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district have detained two timber smugglers here under the Public Safety Act, and removed the divisional forest officer and range officer from their positions as part of a crackdown on smuggling, officials said on Friday.

Dola Purnima was celebrated with a festive fervour across Odisha on Friday.

The state will, however, celebrate the festival of colours a day after Holi as per the tradition.

Dola Purnima is celebrated on a full moon day in the month of Falguna, marking the onset of spring.

The festival of colours was celebrated peacefully with traditional fervour in this district amid tight security arrangements in view of Holi and the Friday prayers of the Muslims falling on the same day.

The traditional 'chaupaai kaa juloos' (procession) was also taken out in Sambhal city on the occasion of Holi, officials said.

Sambhal has been tense after riots broke out on November 24 last year following a survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid, a Mughal-era mosque here. Four people were killed and several including police personnel were injured in the clashes.

A Shiv Sena leader was shot dead here late on Thursday night while a boy was also injured in the attack, police said.

"The deceased, Mangat Rai alias Manga, was the Moga district president of Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena," a police official said.

The incident occurred when Manga (52), who had stepped out of the house to buy groceries, was attacked by three unknown persons at around 10 pm.

The bullet initially missed Manga and hit a 12-year-old boy who was passing through the area, he said.

Three persons were killed and one was injured after a massive fire broke out in a 12-storey residential building in Gujarat’s Rajkot city on Friday morning, officials said.

About 40 residents stuck in the tower located in the 150 feet ring road area were rescued, they said.

“The fire broke out in a flat on the sixth floor of Atlantis Apartment around 9.30 am. It was caused due to a short circuit. Three persons have lost their lives in the fire while one injured person has been hospitalised,” said Assistant Commissioner of Police BJ Chaudhary.

No country and religion has such a rich tradition of festivals as Sanatan Dharma, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Friday on the occasion of Holi and asserted that India moves ahead through festivals.

Addressing the traditional "Narsingh Shobhayatra' in Gorakhpur, he stressed that Holi gives out the message of maintaining an "akhand" (intact) country through unity. "The vision of 'Ek Bharat, Shreshth Bharat' will be fulfilled," he stressed.

Holi, the festival of colours, was celebrated in Haryana, Punjab with great fervour on Friday as children threw balloons filled with colourful water, people smeared 'gulal' on each others' faces and distributed sweets to friends and relatives.

The Uttar Pradesh Police Recruitment and Promotion Board (UPPRPB) has announced the selection of 60,244 candidates for police constable posts under Direct Recruitment-2023.

The results were published on the UPPRPB’s website on Thursday.

The recruitment exam, initially held on February 17 and 18 last year, was cancelled due to allegations of a paper leak. The incident had also become a political issue during the general elections, prompting the state government to introduce strict security measures at the exam centres when it was held again in August.

Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to arrive in Assam's Jorhat on Friday night on a three-day visit to the Northeast, officials said.

After arriving in Jorhat, Shah will travel to the nearby town of Dergaon in the Golaghat district. He will stay the night at the Lachit Barphukan Police Academy in Deragaon, they said.

Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav says, "I extend my best wishes to the people of the state and the country on the occasion of Holi..."

BSF personnel deployed at Agartala-Akhaura (India-Bangladesh) border celebrates Holi.

"Sense of confidence across country," says Defence Minister Rajnath Singh as he celebrates Holi with the people.

Political leaders in Uttar Pradesh greeted people on the occasion of Holi on Friday with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath terming the festival a "messenger of unity".

Adityanath, who is in Gorakhpur, shared on X a photograph of him feeding a peacock.

In a post in Hindi on the platform, he said, "Best wishes to all of you on the festival of colours, joy, enthusiasm and excitement, Holi! The festival of Holi is the messenger of unity, which inspires us to walk on the path of amiability ('sadbhaav') with love and harmony ('sauhaard')." "I pray to Lord Shri Ram that this festival may fill the life of all of you with colours of happiness, prosperity and new enthusiasm," Adityanath said on X.

Wishing people on the festive occasion, Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, in a post on X, said, "Best wishes to the people of the entire country and the state for the 'Mahaparva' of Holi, filled with the excitement, joy and happiness of colours!" "May this holy festival ('paavan parv') decorated with a rainbow of colours bring new energy, immense joy and positivity in your life and fill your every day with happiness," Maurya said. Another deputy chief minister, Brajesh Pathak, also extended best wishes to all the people on the festive occasion.

BJP President J P Nadda on Friday extended his greetings to the nation on the occasion of Holi, wishing that the festival of colours brings enthusiasm, joy and happiness to people's lives.

Delhi Police has heightened security across the city in preparation for Holi festivities and the second Friday prayers of Ramzan.

According to officials, over 25,000 security personnel have been deployed to maintain law and order.

Patrolling has been intensified across all 15 police districts, with a special focus on residential areas and locations known for large Holi gatherings

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath joined devotees at the Gorakhnath Temple in Gorakhpur to celebrate the festival of Holi.

MEA official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, "We strongly reject the baseless allegations made by Pakistan. The whole world knows where the epicenter of global terrorism lies. Pakistan should look inwards instead of pointing fingers and shifting the blame for its own internal problems and failures on to others."

Delhi CM Rekha Gupta says, "I extend my greetings to the people of Delhi. We will fill the newer colours in the picture of Delhi..."

MEA official spokesperson's response to media queries regarding remarks made by the Pakistan side, "We strongly reject the baseless allegations made by Pakistan. The whole world knows where the epicenter of global terrorism lies. Pakistan should look inwards instead of pointing fingers and shifting the blame for its own internal problems and failures on to others."

Delhi BJP president Virendraa Sachdeva plays Holi with party workers by applying gulal at the BJP office.

Best wishes to all of you on the holy festival of colours, joy, enthusiasm and excitement, Holi!

The festival of Holi is the messenger of unity, which inspires us to walk on the path of harmony with love and cordiality.

I pray to Lord Shri Ram that this festival may fill the life of all of you with various colours of happiness, prosperity and new enthusiasm.

I wish you all a very Happy Holi. This festival filled with joy and happiness will infuse new enthusiasm and energy in everyone's life and will also deepen the colours of unity among the countrymen.

President Droupadi Murmu tweets, "Heartiest greetings to all countrymen on the auspicious occasion of Holi, the festival of colours. This festival of joy gives the message of unity, love and harmony. This festival is also a symbol of India's precious cultural heritage. On this auspicious occasion, let us all together pledge to fill the lives of all the children of Mother India with the colours of continuous progress, prosperity and happiness."