Jamshedpur, May 3; PTI/GANASHAKTI: A BJP office in Jharkhand's Seraikela-Kharswan district was partially damaged in an IED blast triggered by suspected Maoists on Friday, police said.

No one was injured in the blast, they said. Four armed men came to the party office at Kharswan early Friday morning and dragged out two/three persons sleeping inside the building before planting an IED, said Superintendent of Police, Chandan Kumar Sinha.

Asked whether Maoists were involved in the incident, the SP said the way blast was triggered indicates the involvement of the Maoists.

New Delhi, May 2 (PTI) The Election Commission Thursday issued a show cause notice to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for his "Babur ki aulad" remark.

The EC pointed out that while addressing a rally in Sambhal in Uttar Pradesh on April 19, Adityanath had said "would you hand over the reins of the country to terrorists, to those who call themselves children of Babur (Babur ki aulad)...to those who oppose Bajrangbali".

Ahmedabad, May 2 (PTI) Food and beverages giant PepsiCo India said Thursday it will withdraw the cases it has filed against potato farmers in Gujarat for allegedly growing a variety of the tuber for which the company claims Plant Variety Protection (PVP) rights.

PepsiCo in April sued a few farmers for cultivating a potato variety grown exclusively for its popular Lay's potato chips, leading to an outcry and protests.

Ranchi, May 3 (PTI) BJP president Amit Shahs three election rallies in Jharkhand on Friday have been cancelled due to the cyclonic storm Fani which slammed the coast of neighbouring Odisha, a party leader said here.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das, Bihar Health Minister Mangal Pandey and Ajsu party president and former deputy chief minister Sudesh Mahto will address the rallies, BJP Jharkhand unit Spokesman Pradip Sinha said here.

CARACAS, May 2. /TASS/:  More than 300 people were injured in clashes that followed protest demonstrations in Venezuela on Tuesday and Wednesday, head of the Foro Penal non-governmental organization Alfredo Romero tweeted on Thursday.

"Four people were killed, 240 were detained, and more than 300 were injured (including gunshot wounds and other) during demonstrations held form April 30 to May 1," Romero wrote.

According to Romero, two people were killed in the capital district and two others in the Aragua State. Two of the victims were minors.

Kabul, May 3 (AFP) A huge peace meeting aimed at finding an exit from Afghanistan's war is due to finish Friday in Kabul, with leading politicians expected to announce visions for a much-needed breakthrough.

This week's "loya jirga", or grand assembly, saw about 3,200 religious and tribal leaders, politicians and representatives gather under tight security to try to find common ground and discuss possible conditions for a peace deal with the Taliban.

TASHKENT, May 3. /TASS/: Russia is in favor of creating a drug-free world based on strict and full compliance with the conventions on narcotic drugs, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a ministerial meeting of the parties to the Memorandum of Understanding on Sub-Regional Drug Control Cooperation on Friday.

Mumbai, May 2 (PTI) The Election Commission has asked the MNS to submit details of expenses incurred on its president Raj Thackeray's election rallies, an official said Thursday.

Though the MNS is not contesting the Lok Sabha elections, Thackeray held at least ten rallies in Maharashtra last month, attacking the BJP governments at the Centre and the state and asking people not to vote for the saffron party.

3 May 2019; DW: Scandinavian airline SAS announced late on Thursday that management had reached a deal with pilot unions to end a weeklong strike that forced some 4,000 flights to be canceled and stranded over 380,000 passengers.

"I can with relief inform our customers and our staff that we now can put this conflict behind us. We have tonight signed a new collective agreement with our four pilot unions," said CEO Rickard Gustafson.

PORT FOURCHON, La. (AP) — The Trump administration moved Thursday to give oil and gas companies more flexibility in meeting safety requirements imposed after the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon explosion, which killed nearly a dozen people and was the worst offshore oil disaster in U.S. history.

The revised rules, which govern safety standards at offshore wells, come as the administration pushes to expand drilling off the U.S. coast, although court challenges and opposition from many coastal states have slowed its efforts.

KAJANG, Malaysia (AP) — The Vietnamese woman who was tried for the killing of the estranged half brother of North Korea’s leader was released from a Malaysian prison and was planning to return home later Friday, her lawyer and an embassy translator said.

Doan Thi Huong’s release likely closes the case, since four North Koreans named as co-conspirators in the 2017 slaying are not in custody. Malaysian officials never officially accused North Korea and made it clear they didn’t want the trial politicized.

MOSCOW, May 3. /TASS/: Austria’s OMV oil and gas company has earmarked 44 mln euro to finance the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in the first quarter of 2019, the company said.