Top news of the day: India condoles Khamenei’s death; Bihar CM Nitish Kumar files nomination for Rajya Sabha, and more

India offers condolences over Khamenei’s killing; Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri visits Iran Embassy

India on Thursday (March 5, 2026) condoled the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri signing the condolence book at the Iranian Embassy on behalf of the government of India. Mr. Misri also conveyed New Delhi’s message of sympathy to the Iranian Ambassador.

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar files nomination for Rajya Sabha

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and BJP president Nitin Nabin were among five NDA candidates who filed their nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha polls on Thursday (March 5, 2026). The other candidates include BJP State general secretary Shivesh Kumar, JD(U)’s Ram Nath Thakur and RLM’s Upendra Kushwaha. Congress’ Sachin Pilot among other opposition leaders have questioned Mr. Kumar’s move, alleging that the decision may have been made under pressure.

Raisina Dialogue 2026: U.S. foreign policy is to advance our national interests, says Christopher Landau

U.S. President Donald Trump wants to be the President of peace, especially since the international system hasn’t been able to achieve that, said Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau at the Raisina Dialogue underway in New Delhi on Thursday (March 5, 2026).

Charter flight arranged for West Indies team to return home

A charter flight has been arranged for the West Indies team to return home after the Caribbean side remained stranded in the city for more than four days due to international airspace restrictions triggered by the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran. The West Indies, who were knocked out of the T20 World Cup after losing to India in the Super Eight match on Sunday (March 1, 2026) at Kolkata, were not able to fly back home as flight operations through parts of the Gulf region were disrupted.

Prayers at any spot not religious right: HC; says no to namaz near Mumbai airport citing security

Security overrides religion, the Bombay High Court said on Thursday (March 5, 2026) while refusing any relief to taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers seeking to offer namaz at the site of a now-demolished temporary shed near the city airport during Ramzan. A Bench of Justices B.P. Colabawalla and Firdosh Pooniwalla noted that while Ramzan was an integral part of Islam.

West Asia conflict: Dubai’s Emirates announces partial resumption of flights

Dubai-based Emirates on Thursday (March 5, 2026) announced resumption of a “reduced flight schedule” with more than 100 flights on March 5-6 for the first time since the Iran-Israel airstrikes commenced on February 28, 2026. This is an expansion from the earlier “exceptional flights” it had been running, signalling a gradual return to normalcy.

Amit Shah unveils mascots, soft launches four digital tools to power Census 2027

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday (March 5, 2026) soft launched four digital tools that will drive the country’s first fully digital Census, with the first phase starting April 1.

CJI Surya Kant meets Bhutan king in Thimphu, offers support in digitalisation of judicial processes

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Thursday (March 5, 2026) met the King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, in Thimphu and offered comprehensive support for technical assistance and development of best practices in the digitisation and digitalisation of judicial processes in the Himalayan nation.

Baramati plane crash: Maharashtra CID questions VSR Ventures owner

The Maharashtra Crime Investigation Department (CID) on Thursday (March 5, 2025) questioned V.K. Singh, owner of VSR Ventures, which operated the aircraft involved in the Baramati crash that killed Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, a CID officer said.

Minuteman III: ‘doomsday’ missile of U.S. amid escalating war tensions with Iran

The United States has carried out a test launch of the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), often referred to as the “doomsday missile”, at a time when tensions with Iran remain high.

Meta AI glasses showed bank info, naked people, and porn to overseas workers: report

An investigation by the Swedish news outlets Svenska Dagbladet (SvD) and Göteborgs-Posten (GP) is expected to put regulators on alert after it was reported that Meta’s contract workers saw extremely private and graphic content captured by wearers of Meta’s AI smart glasses.