Holi or the festival of colours was celebrated with great fervour across the country on Thursday.

Celebrations began the previous night with Holika Dahan — a bonfire that symbolises the victory of good over evil. The festival also marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring.

However, this time several political leaders like Rajnath Singh, VK Singh, SS Ahluwalia, Arvind Kejriwal and Mamata Banerjee have refrained from celebrating Holi to pay respect to the 40 security personnel who died in a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama on February 14.

Here are some pictures that captured the mood of the country on Thursday:

Devotees walk around a bonfire during a ritual called Holika Dahan in Ahmedabad on Wednesday night. | Credit: Reuters
People celebrate Holi in Pushkar, Rajasthan, on Thursday. | Credit: AFP
Devotees take part in Holi celebrations inside a temple in Nandgaon village of Uttar Pradesh. | Credit: Reuters
Devotees raise their coloured hands as they offers prayers at a temple in Ahmedabad. | Credit: Reuters
A child covered in colours during Holi celebrations in Mumbai. | Credit: Reuters
Students with their faces smeared in colours dance as they celebrate Holi on a university campus in Chandigarh. | Credit: Reuters
Revellers throw colours during Holi celebrations in Mumbai on Thursday. | Credit: AFP