A close friend of Maharashtra resident Shraddha Walkar, who was killed allegedly by her live-in partner Aaftab Poonawala in Delhi, has said there could be a "big conspiracy" behind her murder, while another friend claimed she had once called him saying Poonawala would kill her.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said Union Home Minister Amit Shah's firmness helped in the smooth transition of power in the state earlier this year as the Bharatiya Janata Party countered "betrayal by the Shiv Sena".

Planet Earth welcomed its 8th billion inhabitant on Tuesday, a remarkable milestone for humanity that is set to propel India to become the world's most populous country next year, surpassing China amid rising global challenges.

The Congress on Tuesday slammed Union Minister Kiren Rijiju for his fresh attack on Jawaharlal Nehru, saying that instead of wasting time authoring "fraudulent" pieces on the country's first prime minister, he should focus on rectifying a legal system that frees those convicted of murder and gang rape.

The Congress on Tuesday criticised the LDF move to carry out a march to the Raj Bhavan here in protest against Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan's actions regarding universities and bills passed by the state legislature, saying it is creating "anarchy" in the state.

Eight students of a business school here were arrested in connection with an alleged incident of ragging, including a student being beaten up, which assumed a communal colour after a video of it had gone viral.

Madhya Pradesh Culture Minister Usha Thakur has demanded that rapists be publicly hanged and their funeral should not be allowed in a bid to deter people from committing such crimes.

The BJP on Tuesday named Raghuraj Singh Shakya, a former MP, as its candidate for the Lok Sabha bypoll to Mainpuri against Samajwadi Party's Dimple Yadav.