Express daily briefing: Aaditya Thackeray says ‘Sena will have a CM’, Dhoni has no plans to retire, claims his friend; and more

Sonbhadra killings: Before tractors rolled in with guns, pradhan targeted tillers

In the land dispute case in Ghorawal area of Sonbhadra district, where 10 persons were killed two days ago, it has emerged that gram pradhan Yagya Dutt, the arrested main accused, and his family had been targeting the Gond tillers of the land long before the incident. Ram Raj, who has been pursuing a case against the pradhan and his family, claimed he has been threatened for two years.

Pakistani Commanding Officer urged Indian Brigadier for bodies – ‘for paltan’s izzat’

Twenty years after Kargil, Retired Brig M P S Bajwa, the Commander of 192 Mountain Brigade, recounts the wireless communication between him and Pakistan Army’s Lt Col Mustafa in which the latter made a request to hand over four bodies of Pakistani soldiers. Mustafa had referred to the “izzat of the paltan” (honour of the battalion) while making the request.

Opinion: That’s right, blame it on Hindi

Every language, culture has its history of oppression. But it is also in the infinite plurality of language that tensions of identity, of politics, are resolved, writes Mrinal Pande. Read her opinion column here.

‘Sena will have a CM’: Aaditya Thackeray ahead of Maha assembly polls

Shiv Sena leader and Yuva Sena chief Aaditya Thackeray, who is on a statewide ‘Jan Ashirawad Yatra’, tells Vishwas Waghmode that the next Chief Minister of Maharashtra will be from the Sena — an understanding reached by BJP president Amit Shah and Sena chief Uddhar Thackeray. Click to read the full interview.

Blacklist fear forces Pakistan to shut 20 terror camps in PoK

The fear of being blacklisted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in October has forced Pakistan to shut down 20 terror camps inside Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) this year, top intelligence sources have said.

Iran seizure of British vessel further roils Gulf region 

Iran seized at least one British oil tanker in a vital Persian Gulf waterway Friday, escalating tensions with the West. The development came a day after the US said it downed an Iranian drone menacing a US warship in the region. Moreover, government data shows there have been no reports of infiltration and cross-border action on the Line of Control this summer.

And finally… 

M S Dhoni has no plans to retire, his close friend and business partner Arun Pandey claims, adding that Team India desperately requires his services right now.