With the emerging results, Goa may have to go for hung assembly as the Bhartiya Janata Party and the Indian National Congress have a neck-to-neck fight.

Here are the Goa Election Counting Results 2017 live:  

Goa  Assembly election results 2017:

The Aam Aadmi Party, which was aiming to expand its national footprint, hasn’t opened its account in Goa.

Winners list : 

Congress’ Digvijaya Singh has called for a party meet to discuss alliances with MGP, GFP

03:20 pm: Former minister Sudin Dhavlikar wins from the Marcaim seat by a margin of 13,680 votes, defeating BJP's Pradeep Sheth.

02:40 pm: BJP’ Sidharth Kuncalienker wins in Panaji by 919 votes defeating Atanasio aka Babush Monserrate, a sitting MLA from the United Goan’s Party (UGP) who was accused of raping a Nepali girl in 2016.

02:35 pm:Tourism minister Dilip Parulekar loses in Saligao to Goa Forward Party's Jayesh Salgaonkar, by a margin of 2137 votes. He is the third sitting minister to have lost his seat, along with CM Parsekar.

02:00 pm: INC’s former CM, Digambar Kamat beat BJP’s Sharad Raiturkar by 4,176 votes in Margao.

12:20 pm: Premanand Nanoskar (Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party) loses to Godinho (BJP).

12:10 pm: Nationalist Congress Party leader Churchill Alemao wins in Benaulim, beating independent candidate Caetano Silva. That's NCP first win in Goa Assembly election 2017 race.

12:08 pm: Congress’ Francisco Silveira wins from St Andre, beating BJP’s Ramrao Wagh by 5,070 votes. However, in Maem, Praveen Zantye of BJP beat INC’s Santosh Kumar Sawant by almost 5,000 votes.

12:05 pm: Deputy CM Francis D'Souza wins from Mapusa constituency by a margin of over 6,000 votes.

12:04 pm: Former Goa CM and Leader of Opposition, Congress’ Pratapsingh wins in Poriem, beating BJP’s Vishwajit Krishnarao Rane.

Kumar Vishwas assures Victory in Punjab, Goa (Early statement)

AAP leader Kumar Vishwas had spoken about a confident victory in Punjab and creating ‘alternative politics’ in Goa. “Despite being a three to four-year-old party, we have decisively changed Indian politics,” he said.

He is touted as one of the most popular young actors in Bollywood, but Varun Dhawan believes it is hard for the new generation to achieve the kind of stardom Aamir, Salman and Shah Rukh Khan enjoy.

The 29-year-old actor says due to extreme exposure on social media there is no "mystery" about the celebrities and the people are constantly looking for change.

"The kind of stardom Salman, Shah Rukh, Aamir or even Akshay and Ajay enjoy is hard to achieve now. I feel it is partly because of the social media. The mystery is not there anymore. There is a lot of exposure. Today people don't have patience, they move on very fast," Varun told.

The star says these days the actors have to compete not only with their Bollywood contemporaries, but also with Hollywood stars.

"We are not only competing with people in Bollywood.

Audience today is enjoying global cinema and it makes it more difficult to make a mark. I am also trying to work very hard.

Things are going good as of now, but I don't want to take success or failure too seriously and just keep working." 

The actor says he does gain something as a performer after every project, but prefers to get back to basics as soon as possible.

"I find it difficult to judge my growth as an actor because every time I feel I have learned something, I try to relearn and go back to the basics. I don't want to be 'the know-it-all'. There is no fun in it as the fun is in discovering and being raw." 

Varun also believes studying filmmaking and acting enhances an actor's skills while performing.

"Studying acting and doing classes helps. Watching films and reading about acting also helps. Actors can be good if they are rich in experiences. To go out and experience life and emotions is very important." 

Varun also has plans to direct in future, but is currently happy with the amount of work he has as an actor.

"I understand the filmmaking technically. I wouldn't rule out directing someday. But right now, my hands are full with acting and it is a hands-on profession and very difficult. My passion for acting right now is too high to look at anything else," he says.

Varun has two major projects- "Judwaa 2" with father David Dhawan and an intense film with Shoojit Sircar.

Talking about "Judwaa 2" the actor says, "We have shot for a week for 'Judawaa 2' and it was easy-breezy. But it is different to be with David Dhawan on the set than at home.

"He is my father and more than that he is a renowned filmmaker. He knows his game perfectly. He is tougher on the sets. I fully get my share of scoldings and probably the most than all other actors." 

The actor didn't give out any details about his movie with Shoojit and said the project is "unusual" and he feels lucky to be working with a filmmaker.

He is touted as one of the most popular young actors in Bollywood, but Varun Dhawan believes it is hard for the new generation to achieve the kind of stardom Aamir, Salman and Shah Rukh Khan enjoy.

The 29-year-old actor says due to extreme exposure on social media there is no "mystery" about the celebrities and the people are constantly looking for change.

"The kind of stardom Salman, Shah Rukh, Aamir or even Akshay and Ajay enjoy is hard to achieve now. I feel it is partly because of the social media. The mystery is not there anymore. There is a lot of exposure. Today people don't have patience, they move on very fast," Varun told.

The star says these days the actors have to compete not only with their Bollywood contemporaries, but also with Hollywood stars.

"We are not only competing with people in Bollywood.

Audience today is enjoying global cinema and it makes it more difficult to make a mark. I am also trying to work very hard.

Things are going good as of now, but I don't want to take success or failure too seriously and just keep working." 

The actor says he does gain something as a performer after every project, but prefers to get back to basics as soon as possible.

"I find it difficult to judge my growth as an actor because every time I feel I have learned something, I try to relearn and go back to the basics. I don't want to be 'the know-it-all'. There is no fun in it as the fun is in discovering and being raw." 

Varun also believes studying filmmaking and acting enhances an actor's skills while performing.

"Studying acting and doing classes helps. Watching films and reading about acting also helps. Actors can be good if they are rich in experiences. To go out and experience life and emotions is very important." 

Varun also has plans to direct in future, but is currently happy with the amount of work he has as an actor.

"I understand the filmmaking technically. I wouldn't rule out directing someday. But right now, my hands are full with acting and it is a hands-on profession and very difficult. My passion for acting right now is too high to look at anything else," he says.

Varun has two major projects- "Judwaa 2" with father David Dhawan and an intense film with Shoojit Sircar.

Talking about "Judwaa 2" the actor says, "We have shot for a week for 'Judawaa 2' and it was easy-breezy. But it is different to be with David Dhawan on the set than at home.

"He is my father and more than that he is a renowned filmmaker. He knows his game perfectly. He is tougher on the sets. I fully get my share of scoldings and probably the most than all other actors." 

The actor didn't give out any details about his movie with Shoojit and said the project is "unusual" and he feels lucky to be working with a filmmaker.

A highly-contentions 97th minute penalty from Paulo Dybala sealed the Juventus-AC Milan game at the Juventus Stadium on Friday night, with the Old Lady trumping their arch-rivals 2-1 in a hotly contested game which saw the visitors play the closing stages with a man less.

With defender Giorgio Chiellini injured, Juve manager Massmiliano Allegri was forced to reshuffle his starting XI somewhat, with Mehdi Benatia slotting in the centre of defence to replace the Italian.
To complicate matters somewhat, winger Juan Cuadrado was suspended for the tie, so full-back Dani Alves was pushed up to support the likes of Dybala, Marko Pjaca and Gonzalo Higuain in attack.

Milan made a few changes of their own, as Vincenzo Montella opted to start Lucas Ocampos in place of Suso on the left wing to support the in-form Carlos Barca and mercurial Gerald Deulofeu.

And as expected, the home side dominated proceedings with Dybala at the heart of almost every move, but Milan’s young goalkeeper Gianlugi Donnarumma was proving hard to beat. In fact, Milan were fortunate not to concede an early penalty when centre back Christian Zapata’s trailing leg caught Dybala in the box but the referee chose to play advantage instead of pointing to the spot.

Juve weren't to be denied for long, however, opening the scoring via an unlikely source in Benatia. In fact, the opener had saw two defenders heavily involved. Dani Alves’ left-footed flick went over the Milan defence and right into Benatia’s path, who took a touch before blasting a volley from close range in the 30th minute.

While the Bianconeri continued to dominate possession, they failed to create any clear-cut chances after that in the first half and as half-time approached, tried to push for a decisive second.
And the Rossoneri exploited the fact that Juve had so many players in their half two minutes before the interval, with a rapid counter-attack to level the tie.

Deulofeu’s searing pace on the left wing proved to be too much for the backtracking Juve defence and when he slipped in Bacca, the Colombian calmly poked home to score his fourth goal in three games. Replays suggested the forward was marginally offside, but the goal stood and the teams went in level after a pulsating 45 minutes.

Post the interval, Juve started to assert their dominance as they went in search of a second goal but Donnarumma was in inspired form.He saved Mirajlem Pjanic’s free kick without much fuss and then later Sami Khedira’s rasping shot from inside the box to keep his side in the game.

Juve winger Pjaca had a chance to win the game for the hosts but selfishly chose to shoot from a narrow angle when in fact the could have laid it off for Higuain to tap in from inside six-yards.

Milan had few chances in the second half, reduced to pot shots from distance and things started to unravel for them when Jose Sosa was sent off for a scything challenge on Kwadwo Asamoah in the 93rd minute. 

The hosts smelt blood and started to amp up the pressure and their tactics paid off when referee Davide Massa awarded them a 96th minute penalty. Stephen Lichsteiner’s cross was adjudged to have struck Mattia De Sciglio’s arm and despite vociferous protests from the visitors who claimed it was unintentional, the decision stood. 
Dybala stepped up and scored a textbook spot-kick, winning the game with virtually the last kick of the game and despite Donnarumma guessing the direction, for once the keeper could not do anything. 

Juventus stretch their lead at the top of the Serie A table to 11 points ahead of Roma, who have played a game less. While there are plenty of games left in the season, it is extremely likely the title will stay in Turin for the sixth consecutive season.

For Milan, a draw would probably have been a fair result and they remain in seventh place, seven points behind Napoli, who occupy the final Champions League spot. There are encouraging signs for Montella’s men and qualifying for the Champions League might be difficult to accomplish, they can definitely qualify for the Europa League.

A highly-contentions 97th minute penalty from Paulo Dybala sealed the Juventus-AC Milan game at the Juventus Stadium on Friday night, with the Old Lady trumping their arch-rivals 2-1 in a hotly contested game which saw the visitors play the closing stages with a man less.

With defender Giorgio Chiellini injured, Juve manager Massmiliano Allegri was forced to reshuffle his starting XI somewhat, with Mehdi Benatia slotting in the centre of defence to replace the Italian.
To complicate matters somewhat, winger Juan Cuadrado was suspended for the tie, so full-back Dani Alves was pushed up to support the likes of Dybala, Marko Pjaca and Gonzalo Higuain in attack.

Milan made a few changes of their own, as Vincenzo Montella opted to start Lucas Ocampos in place of Suso on the left wing to support the in-form Carlos Barca and mercurial Gerald Deulofeu.

And as expected, the home side dominated proceedings with Dybala at the heart of almost every move, but Milan’s young goalkeeper Gianlugi Donnarumma was proving hard to beat. In fact, Milan were fortunate not to concede an early penalty when centre back Christian Zapata’s trailing leg caught Dybala in the box but the referee chose to play advantage instead of pointing to the spot.

Juve weren't to be denied for long, however, opening the scoring via an unlikely source in Benatia. In fact, the opener had saw two defenders heavily involved. Dani Alves’ left-footed flick went over the Milan defence and right into Benatia’s path, who took a touch before blasting a volley from close range in the 30th minute.

While the Bianconeri continued to dominate possession, they failed to create any clear-cut chances after that in the first half and as half-time approached, tried to push for a decisive second.
And the Rossoneri exploited the fact that Juve had so many players in their half two minutes before the interval, with a rapid counter-attack to level the tie.

Deulofeu’s searing pace on the left wing proved to be too much for the backtracking Juve defence and when he slipped in Bacca, the Colombian calmly poked home to score his fourth goal in three games. Replays suggested the forward was marginally offside, but the goal stood and the teams went in level after a pulsating 45 minutes.

Post the interval, Juve started to assert their dominance as they went in search of a second goal but Donnarumma was in inspired form.He saved Mirajlem Pjanic’s free kick without much fuss and then later Sami Khedira’s rasping shot from inside the box to keep his side in the game.

Juve winger Pjaca had a chance to win the game for the hosts but selfishly chose to shoot from a narrow angle when in fact the could have laid it off for Higuain to tap in from inside six-yards.

Milan had few chances in the second half, reduced to pot shots from distance and things started to unravel for them when Jose Sosa was sent off for a scything challenge on Kwadwo Asamoah in the 93rd minute. 

The hosts smelt blood and started to amp up the pressure and their tactics paid off when referee Davide Massa awarded them a 96th minute penalty. Stephen Lichsteiner’s cross was adjudged to have struck Mattia De Sciglio’s arm and despite vociferous protests from the visitors who claimed it was unintentional, the decision stood. 
Dybala stepped up and scored a textbook spot-kick, winning the game with virtually the last kick of the game and despite Donnarumma guessing the direction, for once the keeper could not do anything. 

Juventus stretch their lead at the top of the Serie A table to 11 points ahead of Roma, who have played a game less. While there are plenty of games left in the season, it is extremely likely the title will stay in Turin for the sixth consecutive season.

For Milan, a draw would probably have been a fair result and they remain in seventh place, seven points behind Napoli, who occupy the final Champions League spot. There are encouraging signs for Montella’s men and qualifying for the Champions League might be difficult to accomplish, they can definitely qualify for the Europa League.

Counting of votes started in Uttar Pradesh at 8 am on Saturday. As reflected in most of the exit polls, BJP is leading by huge margin with the SP-Congress alliance trailing behind it. Here are the live updates. 

Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: 

11.25 am: Massive celebrations at BJP's head office in Delhi. Party workers chant BJP, Modi slogans.

11.10 am: BJP crosses 300 mark. Leaders hail historic win. 

11.00 am: BJP's Suresh Rana trailing BSP's Abdul Waris Khan in Thana Bhawan seat in Shamli by over 5000 votes.

10.25 am: SP leader Shivpal Yadav leading by 5,742 votes in Jaswant Nagar (Etawah) over his nearest rival Manish Yadav Batre of BJP.

10.15 am: BJP's Garima Singh leads in Amethi (UP). The demonetisation drive may not have damaged the voters' confidence on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 

9.46 am: BJP crosses the half mark with 203 seats. The party is leading in western UP.

Preet Bharara, a high-profile Indian-American federal prosecutor who had an Indian diplomat arrested, has been asked to quit by US President Donald Trump's administration in a sweeping ouster of hold-overs from the previous administration.

Bharara and 45 other federal prosecutors, who were appointed by former President Barack Obama, were told on Friday by Attorney General Jeff Sessions to submit their resignations.

Nicknamed the "Sheriff of Wall Street", his jurisdiction covered New York's financial district putting him in the limelight as he prosecuted more than 100 finance executives for criminal activities like stock trading irregularities using insider information.

They included several Indians like Rajat Gupta, the former head of the consulting company McKinsey and a Goldman Sachs director, who served two years in jail for colluding with the Sri Lankan-American hedge fund operator Raj Rajaratnam in a stock market scam using insider information.

Even though Bharara could be reappointed, his inclusion in the list of all the other Obama appointees came as a surprise because after a meeting with Trump in November he told reporters that he had been asked to stay on as federal prosecutor or US district attorney.

It was not clear if his resignation would be accepted immediately or if he would be asked to stay on to complete some pending prosecutions.

Chuck Schumer, a senior Democratic Party Senator who had reportedly recommended to Trump to keep on Bharara, said in a statement that his ouster could jeopardise on-going cases.

The Senate has to approve the appointment of the federal prosecutors, who are political appointees. Their deputies, who are usually career government lawyers, will temporarily hold the fort, according to Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores

Bharara has also prosecuted several New York politicians for corruption. The senior-most among them is State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat, who was given a 12-year sentence for corruption.

Investigations involving New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio and close aides of Governor Andrew Cuomo by Bharara's office were in progress.

Bharara, whose full name is Preetinder Singh Bharara, was born in Firozpur, Punjab, in 1968 and immigrated to the US as a child.

He sparked a diplomatic stand-off between India and the US in 2013 when he had Devyani Khobragade, a Dalit Indian diplomat, arrested over allegations that she had made a false statement in the visa application for her maid.

Other diplomats accused of similar offences were not similarly treated by Bharara and the humiliating action against Khobragade, the Deputy Consul General in New York, evoked protests in India and retaliatory action by the government against US diplomats.

India's strong action in support of a Dalit foreign service officer surprised the US government and media establishments and the then-Secretary of State John Kerry expressed regret for the incident.

The matter was taken out of Bharara's hands and diplomatically resolved and she was allowed to leave the US without prosecution.

Among his high-profile cases against banks, Citibank paid a $158 million fine to settle a case Bharara brought against it for misleading the government about loans. In another case, Citbank made a $7 billion payment to the government after Bharara began investigating its Mexican unit.

JP Morgan Chase was made to forfeit $7 billion for failing to inform authorities about a massive investment fraud by a client.

Sailing on the Modi wave, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) scored its biggest ever assembly election win in Uttarakhand while the ruling Congress was completely decimated.

In a major humiliation, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost both the seats of Haridwar (Rural) and Kichha. Rawat’s daughter Anupama was the election in-charge in Haridwar (Rural) and his loss has only added to the woes of the Congress.

Most of the Rawat cabinet minister-including forest minister Dinesh Aggarwal, education minister Mantri Prasad Naithani, health minister Surinder Negi- lost. The Congress headquarters in Dehradun wore a deserted look while the BJP office became hub of all the action. BJP supporters began cracking crackers and distributing sweets as the party took an unprecedented lead.  

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat met Uttarakhand Governor K.K Paul in Dehradun on Saturday and submitted his resignation. Accepting the resignation, Uttarakhand Governor has asked Rawat to work as acting Chief Minister till the formation of the new government. 

At 65 per cent, Haridwar reported the maximum voting followed by 63 per cent in Uttarkashi when polls were conducted peacefully in 69 of the 70 constituencies on Feb 15. 

As per the trends available for all the 70 seats at 6.30 pm: 

The majority mark in the state is 36. Uttarakhand voted on February 15 to elect a 70-member house.

Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Yadav on Saturday said the SP-Congress alliance will win with a huge margin.

"It will be a big win for us. People have supported us," Yadav told reporters.

Asked about Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's statement that he was open to alliances to keep the BJP out of Uttar Pradesh, Shivpal Yadav said: "Wait for sometime. You'll get to know."

Congress is leading the initial trends in Punjab but the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is not too far behind as counting of votes for the 117 Assembly seats in Punjab began at 8 a.m. on Saturday.
As per initial trends, while Captain Amarinder Singh-led Congress was leading on 26 seats, the AAP on 13 and the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bhartiya Janta Party (SAD-BJP) on four seats.
Of the prominent candidates, chief minister Parkash Singh Badal (SAD) and Navjot Singh Sindhu (Congress) were leading from Lambi and Amritsar (east) respectively.
The Election Commission (EC) has set up 54 counting centres in 27 locations in Punjab. Exit poll results on Thursday forecast a close fight in Punjab between the Congress and Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi
Party (AAP). Going by initial trends, the SAD-BJP combine is in for a drubbing in the state.

FBI Director James Comey is expected to testify on Russian interference in the US Presidential election, a senior official said.

Comey will testify before the House Intelligence Committee on March 20, Greg Brower, assistant director for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Office of Congressional Affairs, told The Hill magazine. 

However, it remains unclear whether Comey will appear during the public component or in a closed-door session. 

Brower cautioned that the director would be unable to provide many new details about the bureau's assessment of Russian interference on the 2016 Presidential election. 

The intelligence community in December released a declassified version of its assessment that Russia attempted to intervene in the US election specifically for the purpose of helping President Donald Trump win the White House. 

Democrats, who have seen the classified version, have long hinted that if the public could see what they saw, there would be little doubt as to the level of Russia's involvement. 

The March 20 hearing comes as the top Democrat on the committee, Representative Adam Schiff, accused Comey of withholding information from lawmakers.

FBI Director James Comey is expected to testify on Russian interference in the US Presidential election, a senior official said.

Comey will testify before the House Intelligence Committee on March 20, Greg Brower, assistant director for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Office of Congressional Affairs, told The Hill magazine. 

However, it remains unclear whether Comey will appear during the public component or in a closed-door session. 

Brower cautioned that the director would be unable to provide many new details about the bureau's assessment of Russian interference on the 2016 Presidential election. 

The intelligence community in December released a declassified version of its assessment that Russia attempted to intervene in the US election specifically for the purpose of helping President Donald Trump win the White House. 

Democrats, who have seen the classified version, have long hinted that if the public could see what they saw, there would be little doubt as to the level of Russia's involvement. 

The March 20 hearing comes as the top Democrat on the committee, Representative Adam Schiff, accused Comey of withholding information from lawmakers.

Counting of votes for 70 seats in the hill state of Uttarakhand began on Saturday morning and as per the early trends, the BJP is leading by 21 seats followed by Congress with 9 seats.

At stake is the fate of 637 candidates, including 62 women.

Voting for 69 seats was held on February 15. Voting on one seat, Udham Singhnagar, took place on March 9 due to the death of a candidate.

Some 65 per cent of the 75.92 lakh voters exercised their franchise.

Both the ruling Congress and the BJP contested in all the 70 constituencies while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) fielded 69 candidates. Thirty-six seats are needed here for a majority.

Punjab Deputy Chief Minister and Shiromani Akali Dal President Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday trailed from the Jalalabad assembly seat.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Bhagwant Mann was leading, officials said. The other candidate in the race is Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu.
 

A migrant stunned residents in a Rome neighbourhood on Friday by offering his services as a street-sweeper, saying he wanted to integrate in the capital "honestly" and "without begging".

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I want to integrate honestly in your city without begging," read a notice put up by the migrant in Via Ramazzini in the residential Monteverde Nuovo district.

"From today, I will keep your streets clean. I just ask for a contribution of 50 euro cents for my labour. Bags, dustpans and brushes and other cleaning materials are also welcome!"

Some passers-by left the payment requested by the migrant, dropping it into a metal bowl placed beneath his notice.

Via Ramazzini is located close to a tent-camp for migrants run by the Italian Red Cross.

The Bharatiya Janata Paraty (BJP) on Saturday has taken a strong lead over its main rivals in Uttar Pradesh as millions of votes cast in the staggered assembly election are being counted.

BJP candidates are leading in 98 seats followed by 58 seats for the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance. Mayawati’s BSP is trailing by 38 seats.

Election Commission officials said the BJP was leading in most major cities including Allahabad, Lucknow and Kanpur.

In Amethi, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi's Lok Sabha constituency, the BJP's Garima Singh had forged ahead.

Uttar Pradesh voted in February-March to elect a new 403-member house.

In his meeting here with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, US President Donald Trump would ask for advice on Russia and Ukrainian crisis, a senior Trump administration official said on Friday.

"The president will be very interested in hearing the chancellor's views on her experience interacting with Putin," Xinhua quoted an official as saying. 

Apart from hearing Merkel's "insights into what it's like to deal with the Russians," the official said Trump would also ask for advice on how the United States could help resolve the Ukraine conflict.

Also, the two leaders are expected to discuss Germany's level of defence spending for the NATO alliance.

"The message from the administration so far have been strong and consistent, that all allies need to be making progress towards this two percent goal," said the official. 

"So I expect that will be definitely a topic of their conversation for the concrete plan to meet this commitment."

During his campaign and also after winning the presidency, Trump repeatedly blasted Merkel for making a "catastrophic mistake" with her open door policy on refugees, while Merkel did not shy away from criticising Trump in the wake of his travel ban order that sought to temporarily ban travellers from seven Muslim-majority countries in January.

Despite the past feud, the White House said the goal of the upcoming meeting would be to "have a very positive meeting."