IBTimes

The announcement comes amid scrutiny of the Election Commission, while a separate July 29 letter by two Election Commissioners to the Cabinet Secretary has been clarified as concerning a senior Deputy Election Commissioner, not Kuma

Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Vicky Kaushal and Sanjay Leela Bhansali were spotted together ahead of Love & War. During their photo session, a paparazzo repeatedly called out to Ranbir, to which Ranbir said, Bahot bol raha hai tu ha. (You Are Talking Too Much).

Anjali Arora's Mahakavya Shri Ramayan Katha has sparked fresh social media reactions after a poster showed a vanar character wearing spectacles, with netizens joking about the modern eyewear in the Treta Yuga setting. The film had already faced backlash over Anjali's casting as Mata Sita

A disciple of spiritual leader Premanand Maharaj, identified as Deepak Lodhi alias Rasik Dulari Sharan, died after falling from the fourth floor of an ashram in Vrindavan. Police suspect suicide and are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death.

CJP's Ashutosh Ranka was detained with several activists in Guwahati ahead of the group's regional volunteers' meeting. While being taken away, Ranka alleged Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was scared of CJP exposing school conditions and raised concerns over land, forests and water in Kaziranga.

On Saturday, September 26, 2026, Alia Bhatt, who looked spectacular in an ivory lace saree with scalloped edges and sequin work all over, walked alongside Vicky Kaushal. The star-studded night saw the presence of Bollywood stars, including Shabana Azmi, Boney Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Shalini Passi, Sonali Bendre, Khushi Kapoor and others.

China has called for respect for the sovereignty and security of Gulf countries while urging an end to threats, sanctions and the blockade against Cuba. The remarks by Vice President Han Zheng at the UNGA came shortly after the Trump-Xi meeting in Washington, highlighting continuing differences between Beijing and Washington.

TMC MLA Kunal Ghosh's car was allegedly attacked with eggs and stones by a group in West Bengal's Hooghly while he was travelling to Mamata Banerjee's rally. The vehicle's rear windshield was damaged, forcing Ghosh to return to Kolkata. Ghosh and TMC leaders blamed BJP workers, while police are investigating the incident.

ECI also eased hearing rules by allowing online participation in certain cases. Meanwhile, Karnataka Congress leaders and workers protested in Bengaluru, demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar's resignation and alleging irregularities in electoral rolls. The allegations made by Congress were not independently verified.

Bigg Boss 20 host Salman Khan questioned Rhiti Tiwari over her conduct after the Diss Battle controversy involving Uditi Singh. In the Weekend Ka Vaar promo, Salman said nobody knew Rhiti before the show and noted that people could credit her entry to father Manoj Tiwari.

India's foreign exchange reserves fell $14.9 billion to $765.9 billion in the week ended September 18, marking their sharpest weekly decline since November 2024. The drop was driven mainly by lower foreign currency assets, including a $10.9 billion dollar sale by the RBI and revaluation losses

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India can achieve more than 10 per cent economic growth by embracing technology and innovation across sectors, while stressing greater efforts from all stakeholders to realise the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision

MrBeast attended a Mumbai event for Ramayana with Ranbir Kapoor, Sai Pallavi, Ravie Dubey, Namit Malhotra and Nitesh Tiwari. Ranbir prompted MrBeast to say Jai Shri Ram and later explained Lord Ram's story and his sacrifice for his father's promise and duties.

Bank employees across India will begin a three-day strike from September 28 to demand a five-day workweek and better work-life balance. The UFBU has also warned of an indefinite strike from October 26 if their demands remain unresolved.

Vicky Kaushal has unveiled his first looks from Sanjay Leela Bhansali's much-awaited Love & War, showing the actor in two contrasting avatars. In one poster, Vicky is seen smoking a cigarette with an intense, rugged look, while the second shows him sitting in a pool holding flowers.

In the 87-second clip shared by Mr. Trump on Truth Social on Friday (September 25, 2026), Mr. Sharif refers to Operation Sindoor launched by India last May to avenge the Pahalgam terror attack as external aggression and credits Pakistan's Army Chief Asim Munir for his courageous leadership.

Sharif on Friday used the UN General Assembly podium to credit US President Donald Trump for his imely intervention in the 2025 conflict with India, as he again raked up the Kashmir issue

Mushtaq Khan was laid to rest in Mumbai on Friday. Actors Rajat Bedi and Ali Khan attended his funeral, while his son Mohsin remembered the late actor's final moments. Only a handful of celebs attended his last rites; many mainstream celebs skipped

US President Donald Trump has reportedly rejected Iran's seven-day ceasefire proposal, with the Wall Street Journal saying he expects US bombing of Iran to resume after November's midterm elections. Tehran's plan sought to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restart nuclear talks.

The guest list included OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Apple executive chairman Tim Cook, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. The gathering came as Washington and Beijing continue to navigate issues involving trade, technology, semiconductors and artificial intelligence.

Police erected barricades to stop protesters during marches towards the Election Commission office and detained them before taking them away in buses. Members of the Students' Federation of India (SFI), Indian Youth Congress and other groups were among those detained.

He also held up a pager to recall the 2024 Hezbollah communications-device explosions, while claiming Israel had weakened the group's leadership and arsenal. Netanyahu criticised his opponents, including New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and defended Israel's actions against Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran

Alia Bhatt's first look from Sanjay Leela Bhansali's much-awaited Love & War has been unveiled. The actress appears as a glamorous retro cabaret dancer, dressed in a striking red sequin co-ord set and a dramatic feather hair accessory.

Sidharth Malhotra and Tamannaah Bhatia's The Vvaan received mixed responses from moviegoers. While some praised its visuals, regional roots and supernatural storyline, others appreciated the performances of Sidharth and Tamannaah

Avoiding activities such as haircuts, shaving and nail trimming is therefore seen as a way of maintaining a restrained and respectful lifestyle during the period.

A six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted to probe the alleged sexual assault, illegal termination of pregnancy and death of a 12-year-old tribal girl and her stillborn child in Kishtwar's Chatroo. Meanwhile, the Tribal Gujjar Bakarwal Welfare Foundation has demanded protection for the victim's family and strict action against those allegedly attempting to hush up the case.

The JERC's decision to raise electricity tariffs in Jammu and Kashmir by an average 6.83 per cent from September 1 has triggered a political storm, with opposition parties accusing the National Conference government of betraying its promise of 200 units of free electricity. BJP, Apni Party, Peoples Conference and PDP leaders have criticised the hike, while trade bodies have warned that it could add to the financial burden on consumers and further strain the region's economy.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha took an apparent swipe at former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti over her past remarks on the Tricolour, saying the national flag is today being held high with pride across Jammu and Kashmir. He also called for a united societal effort to combat terrorism, narco-terrorism, substance abuse and corruption.

The BJP faced another embarrassment in Jammu and Kashmir after police registered an extortion and fraud case against Pulwama Kisan Morcha vice-president Aijaz Ahmed Shah. The development comes days after the party suspended its Pulwama district president Showkat Gayoor following an extortion case against him.

Jammu and Kashmir has 5,138 unaudited functional cooperative societies, accounting for more than 56 per cent of the UT's total functional cooperatives, according to data presented in the Lok Sabha. The Ministry of Cooperation said only 3,994 of 9,132 functional societies in J&K have been audited.

Jammu and Kashmir's cultivable land increased from 10.74 lakh hectares in 2020-21 to 10.97 lakh hectares in 2024-25, registering a rise of 23,000 hectares, according to data tabled in the Lok Sabha. The figures also show that the average monthly income of an agricultural household in J&K was Rs 18,918, significantly higher than the national average of Rs 10,218.

Ganderbal Police have uncovered an alleged conspiracy to falsely implicate a poultry businessman in a drug case, with his wife's alleged former lover suspected of orchestrating the plot. Police intercepted a courier from Kanpur containing cocaine, charas and diclofenac tablets and have detained a suspect from Srinagar. The roles of the woman, her alleged lover and other suspected conspirators are under investigation.

J&K Police have issued a public advisory cautioning citizens that scammers are exploiting AI-powered deepfake and morphing tools to misuse publicly shared photos, videos, reels, and voice clips creating fake identities and impersonation scams that appear alarmingly authentic. The advisory urges the public to limit exposure of personal content, use masked copies of sensitive documents like Aadhaar, enable two-factor authentication, and report suspicious accounts or DMs promptly.

Counter-Intelligence Kashmir arrested Siraj Nabi Parray of Budgam for allegedly running a social media account glorifying terrorists and inciting youth toward terrorism. In a parallel pre-dawn operation, J&K Police's Counter-Intelligence Wing raided locations in Baramulla, Shopian, Anantnag, Kupwara and Bandipora.