Expelled head of Veerashaiva Lingayat Panchamasali Guru Peetha of Harihar, Karnataka, Sri Vachanananda Swami was questioned for several hours on Thursday by a police team in connection with a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for allegedly sexually harassing a minor. The interrogation was led by Davangere Deputy Superintendent of Police BS Basavaraj.

Union Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Tokhan Sahu was seen riding a bicycle to his office following PM Narendra Modi's appeal to the nation to save fuel amid US-Iran war. Reiterating PM Modi's appeal, he said, "Considering the global situation, we...must conserve fuel, avoid unnecessary foreign travel...refrain from buying gold, and reduce the use of chemical-based fertilisers."

PM Narendra Modi's economic advisor, Sanjeev Sanyal, has emerged as a frontrunner for the post of West Bengal's Finance Minister, The Telegraph reported. He is likely to be inducted through the Nandigram seat, which CM Suvendu Adhikari vacated after winning from the Bhabanipur Assembly seat. Suvendu is overseeing the Finance Ministry for now, along with Home, Health, and others.

Kerala CM-designate VD Satheesan on Friday met outgoing CM Pinarayi Vijayan at his residence in Thiruvananthapuram. The meeting came as part of Satheesan's series of courtesy visits ahead of his swearing-in ceremony scheduled for May 18. Notably, senior Congress leadership chose Satheesan as the new Kerala CM, 10 days after the Congress-led UDF won 102 seats in the 140-member Assembly.

Tamil Nadu CM Vijay has called the Centre's decision to hike petrol and diesel prices by ₹3/litre "unacceptable". He said the price revision would increase input costs for small units and various sections of society would be impacted, calling for its rollback. Global oil prices are under strain following the closure of the Hormuz Strait amid ongoing US-Iran war.

Kerala CM-elect VD Satheesan visited residence of his late mentor G Karthikeyan on Friday and couldn't hold back his emotions. "A CM shouldn't cry like this," Karthikeyan's wife told Satheesan. "I'm someone who had actually moved away from student/youth politics. When I returned, it was he who insisted that I contest for the assembly in 1996 and 2001," Satheesan said.

Tamil Nadu CM Vijay removed white towel from his chair after climate activist Licypriya Kangujam urged him to end the "towel culture" on VIP chairs in India. "People already know that CMs are VIPs...This towel culture is being followed by ministers...and even small officers," she said. Your action proves you are listening to voices of common people, she later said.

Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis was seen travelling in an economy flight from Pune to Bengaluru instead of using state aircraft amid PM Narendra Modi's appeal to citizens to save fuel amid war. PM has called for cutting unnecessary petrol and diesel consumption, avoiding non-essential foreign travel, and using public transport. Fadnavis was earlier seen riding a motorcycle to Vidhan Bhavan.

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi reacted to the Madhya Pradesh High Court's ruling in favour of Hindu petitioners in the Bhojshala Temple-Kamal Maula Mosque case, saying it has "glaring similarities with Babri Masjid judgment". He added he hopes the Supreme Court will overturn the order and "set it right". He further alleged that the government and ASI were "hand-in-hand" with petitioners.

Actor and Rajya Sabha MP Kamal Haasan has appealed to the film industry calling for efficient filmmaking and judicious use of resources amid Prime Minister Narendra Modi's save fuel calls. Haasan urged filmmakers to avoid waste, poor planning, inflated entourage culture, unnecessary foreign travel, and production delays, saying that it was time for national interest over personal interest.