International
Pink ball Test, Day 1: Sri Lanka bowl out India for 252 despite Shreyas Iyer’s brilliant 92

India were bowled out for 252 in their first inning by Sri Lanka at dinner break despite a brilliant innings by Shreyas Iyer (92 off 98) on the opening day of the second and final Test (pink ball game) at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, here on Saturday.
Resuming the second session at 93/4, runs came quickly for India as Rishabh Pant played some attacking shots. With seven boundaries, Pant raced to 39 off 26 balls before being cleaned up by Embuldeniya.
Ravindra Jadeja (4), who came to bat next didn’t last long as Embuldeniya scalped another wicket. R Ashwin then joined Shreyas Iyer at the crease and helped the hosts regain stability by forging a handy 35-run stand for the seventh wicket.
Just as it was looking like the Iyer-Ashwin partnership was taking India to a strong position, De Silva gave Sri Lanka the breakthrough, removing Ashwin for 13. However, Iyer continued to hammer boundaries at the other end and got to his fifty despite not getting much support from the next batters — Axar Patel (9), Mohammed Shami (5).
With India at 229-9, Iyer decided to go all-out and smashed a few towering sixes and moved closer to his century. He was dismissed for 92 eventually, missing his century by just eight runs.
Praveen Jayawickrama (3/81), Lasith Embuldeniya (3/94), Dhananjaya de Silva (2/32) and Suranga Lakmal (1/12) were the wicket-takers for Sri Lanka.
Earlier in the day, India won the toss and opted to bat first but the hosts got off to a poor start as Mayank Agarwal was run-out on 4. In the second over of the innings, there was an appeal for a leg-before against Agarwal that was turned down. The Indian batters thought they could sneak in a run and Mayank ran down the pitch.
However, there was some confusion from Rohit at the other end and the Sri Lankans took full advantage and ran Agarwal out. Hanuma Vihari then joined Rohit Sharma at the crease. The duo added 19 runs for the second wicket before Lasith Embuldeniya dismissed Rohit for 15.
On a flighted delivery, Rohit lunged into the forward defence and got an outside edge as Dhananjaya de Silva stayed low to take a good catch, leaving India in trouble at 29-2 after 9.3 overs.
However, Virat Kohli, who got loud cheers at his IPL home ground, and Vihari steadied the India innings. Vihari punished the short balls bowled by and stitched a handy 47 runs stand for the third wicket before Vihari fell to Jayawickrama on 31. Soon, Kohli was also trapped in front of the wicket on 23 by Dhananjaya de Silva before the Tea break.
Brief scores: India 252 all out in 59.1 overs (Shreyas Iyer 92, Rishabh Pant 39; Praveen Jayawickrama 3/81) vs Sri Lanka
International
UNSC asks all countries to cooperate in bringing Pahalgam terrorists, backers to justice

United Nations, April 26: The Security Council has “condemned in the strongest terms” the Pahalgam terrorist attack and urged all countries to cooperate in bringing all those involved in the massacre, to justice.
The members of the Security Council “stressed that those responsible for these killings should be held accountable, and urged all States, in accordance with their obligations under international law and relevant Security Council resolutions, to cooperate actively with all relevant authorities in this regard”, Council President Jerome Bonnafont said in a Press statement on Friday.
A front organisation of the Pakistan-based terrorist group Laskhar-e-Tayiba has owned responsibility for the attack.
The statement issued by France’s Permanent Representative Bonnafont who is the Council president for this month, took a broad view of those involved in the massacre by including the financiers and sponsors.
“The members of the Security Council underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors of this reprehensible act of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice”, the statement said.
Pakistan, which is on the Council as an elected member, went along with the other members in endorsing the statement, committing itself – at least on paper – to bringing those involved to justice.
A Press statement expresses the consensus of the Council and carries moral authority, while not being legally binding like a resolution.
The statement also shot down the attempts by some in Pakistan to give terrorist attacks a veneer of justification.
“The members of the Security Council reiterated that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed”, it said.
The Council members “reaffirmed the need for all States to combat by all means, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and other obligations under international law, including international human rights law, international refugee law and international humanitarian law, threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts”, the statement added.
Earlier, the spokesperson for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hinted that a diplomatic effort by him may be afoot.
Asked by a reporter, if Guterres would speak to leaders of India and Pakistan, Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that he hoped to have something to share on that later.
Reiterating the condemnation of the terrorist attacks, Dujarric said, “We again urge both the Government of India and the Government of Pakistan to exercise maximum restraint to ensure the situation does not deteriorate further.”
When a reporter asserted that the possibility that “two nuclear countries” might “go to war” was getting insufficient attention, Dujarric said, “I don’t agree with your comment. We are paying very close attention to the situation between India and Pakistan.”
International
Wagah-Attari border closure leaves several families in limbo

Islamabad, April 25: Pakistan and India’s decision to shut down the Wagah-Attari border crossing after the deadly Pahalgam terror attack has forced several citizens from both countries to cut short their visit and rush back home.
On Thursday, after both countries announced closure of border crossing and gave a deadline for citizens to leave for their respective countries, at least 28 Pakistanis nationals returned from India while 105 Indian citizens in Pakistan crossed over into India.
A Hindu family from Balochistan’s Sibi was reportedly denied entry into India after the closure of border crossing.
“We were on our way to Indore in Madhya Pradesh to attend a wedding. Seven members of our family were excited to join our relatives in India and take part in the celebrations. But upon reaching Wagah, we learned that the border had been sealed. We will spend the night at Dera Sahib in Lahore and head back home tomorrow,” said Akshay Kumar.
Meanwhile, a Sikh family from India, in Pakistan to attend a wedding, decided to leave for India immediately.
“We had come to Pakistan for a wedding. While the ceremony took place, several important rituals remained. Once we heard the border was closed, we decided to return immediately,” said Raminder Singh, an Indian national.
A Hindu family from Ghotki in Pakistan’s Sindh province, now residing in New Delhi, was visiting Pakistan for the last two months to meet their relatives. However, they are now unsure about getting permission to return to India.
“There are five of us, including my young son and daughter, uncle and aunt. We all hold Pakistani passports and were granted No Obligation to Return to India (NORI) certificate by India. But uncertainty looms now, said a family member named Indira.
“Families with cross-border ties often bear the brunt of rising tensions between the two neighbours. With tensions between Pakistan and India once again on the rise, human connections across borders are becoming the first casualty,” said Asif Memood, a Lahore-based journalist.
“The closure of the Wagah-Attari border has left many families in limbo, uncertain when they will next reunite with their loved ones,” he added.
International
Murder of Hindu leader: India slams Bangladesh, says killing follows pattern of systematic persecution of Hindu minorities

New Delhi, April 19: India on Saturday issued a sharp condemnation of the abduction and brutal killing of Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a prominent Hindu community leader in northern Bangladesh, calling it part of a “pattern of systematic persecution” of minorities under the country’s interim government.
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal voiced India’s grave concern, stating that the incident reflects an alarming trend of targetted violence against Hindus and other minority groups in Bangladesh.
“We have noted with distress the abduction and brutal killing of Shri Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a Hindu minority leader in Bangladesh. This killing follows a pattern of systematic persecution of Hindu minorities under the interim government, even as the perpetrators of previous such events roam with impunity,” Jaiswal said in a post on social media platform X.
He added, “We condemn this incident and once again remind the interim government to live up to its responsibility of protecting all minorities, including Hindus, without inventing excuses or making distinctions.”
India has previously expressed similar concerns over rising attacks on minorities in Bangladesh, but this latest incident has drawn particular attention due to Roy’s prominence in the Hindu community.
Roy, who served as the Vice-President of the Biral unit of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, was abducted from his residence in Dinajpur district on Thursday evening. According to police and family accounts, he received a phone call around 4:30 p.m., after which four unidentified men arrived on motorcycles and forcibly took him to Narabari village. He was reportedly assaulted and later found unconscious. He was rushed to a hospital in Dinajpur, where he was declared dead on arrival. His wife, Shantana Roy believes the attackers used the call to confirm his location before carrying out the abduction.
Opposition leaders in India also slammed the shocking incident in the neighbouring country.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge highlighted that religious minorities, especially Hindus, are being persecuted in Bangladesh.
“Attacks on other religious minorities are also continuing. Recently, the Chief Advisor of Bangladesh made a very condemnable and disappointing comment about the northeastern states of India. The persecution of religious minorities in Bangladesh, human rights violations, and the attempt to erase the memories of the 1971 Liberation War are efforts to weaken the relationship between India and Bangladesh. From 1971 till today, India has always wished for peace and prosperity for all the people of Bangladesh. This is in the best interest of the subcontinent,” he said.
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