Varanasi, Benares, Kashi. The same city by different names. Where the spiritual meets the political this election season in India – a confluence of faith and power. Narendra Modi’s advent in this city of temples as a star candidate in 2014 saw his power surge in New Delhi when he became prime minister. Brand Modi remains bigger than his party, ...

Photo: Electoral commission agents start counting the votes in Wednesday May 8, 2019 general elections in Johannesburg, South Africa. Johannesburg, May 9 : South Africans voted Wednesday in presidential and parliamentary elections, with signs of a relatively low turnout and voters saying they were disillusioned by widespread corruption and unemployment. Despite the demise of apartheid 25 years ago, South Africa ...

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have named their newborn son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Introducing him to the cameras earlier in the day, Meghan said: “He has the sweetest temperament, he’s really calm. He’s been the dream.” As they laughed, Prince Harry said: “I don’t know who he gets that from.”The announcement came after the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh ...

Photo: Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong smiles after a press conference with Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad in Putrajaya, Malaysia, Tuesday, April 9, 2019.  Singapore, May 9 : Singapore reportedly has passed a law criminalizing publication of fake news and allowing the government to block and order the removal of such content. The Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Bill ...

Seoul, May 9 : North Korea has described its firing of rocket artillery and an apparent short-range ballistic missile over the weekend as a regular and defensive military exercise and ridiculed South Korea for criticizing the launches. Pyongyang’s state media on Thursday carried a statement by an unnamed military spokesman who called Seoul’s criticism a “cock-and-bull story.” Seoul’s presidential Blue ...

Asian shares were mostly lower Thursday amid investor jitters ahead of the latest round of trade talks between the U.S. and China. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 was down 1.3% in early trading to 21,333.22. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.4% to 6,291.60. South Korea’s Kospi dropped 1.0% to 2,145.82. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 1.6% to 28,549.70, while the Shanghai Composite ...

Photo: Vice President Mike Pence speaks at the Federalist Society’s annual Executive Branch Review Conference, Wednesday, May 8, 2019, in Washington. Washington, May 9 : Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday that the Trump administration intends to challenge the right of federal district courts to issue rulings blocking nationwide policies, arguing that such injunctions are obstructing President Donald Trump’s agenda ...

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have appeared in front of selected media cradling their two-day-old son at St George’s Hall at Windsor Castle. The couple gushed over their newborn son, who was born Monday morning at 5:26 a.m weighing 7lbs 3oz. “He has the sweetest temperament, he’s really calm,” the Duchess of Sussex said.Harry and Meghan are expected to ...

Photo: A Pakistani Christian woman, listens to officials at a prison in Sheikhupura near Lahore, Pakistan. Islamabad, May 8 : Pakistani media say Aasia Bibi, a Christian woman acquitted of blasphemy after spending eight years on death row, has left Pakistan for Canada to be reunited with her daughters. Wilson Chawdhry of the British Pakistani Christian Association told The Associated ...

Photo: workers wrap fibreglass next to the robot arms at a factory in Jiujiang in central China’s Jiangxi province. Beijing, May 8 : China’s exports fell unexpectedly in April, adding to pressure on Beijing ahead of negotiations on ending a tariff war with Washington over Chinese technology ambitions. Wednesday’s announcement of trade data came after President Donald Trump sent global ...