The Hindu Crossword 8176 Solutions - by Vinod & Rajagopal

Across
1 Alluring substitution of leader by Conservative becomes noisy (9) CLAMOROUS (Alluring=GLAMOROUS, leader=1st letter of Glamourous=G,Conservative=C=>Replace G with C => CLAMOROUS)
5 Loud Muse, mad, blows a fuse (5) FUMES (ana. F(loud)+MUSE)
8 After a bit of time, French composer is to go on a journey (6) TRAVEL (a bit of time=T, French composer=RAVEL => T+RAVEL)
9 Benchmarks fashioned by Rita and Eric (8) CRITERIA (ana. RITA+ERIC)
11 Innkeeper, new around the south (4) HOST (new=HOT, south=S=>new around the south = HO(S)T)
12 Old storm trooper, British, confesses to murder around river (5,5) BROWN SHIRT (British=BR, confesses=OWNS, murder=HIT,river=R=>murder around river=HI(R)T=>BR+OWNS+HIRT)
14 Transparent material, maybe, for a good girl (5) GLASS (good=G, girl=LASS => GLASS)
15 Part of limb, leg, dislocated on coarse gravel (7) SHINGLE (Part of limb=SHIN,leg, dislocated=ana. LEG=GLE => SHIN+GLE)
16 "Bullfighter" — a drama to be rewritten (7) MATADOR (ana. DRAMA TO)
17 Relating to birth in Africa (5) NATAL (a place in Africa)
19 Fix, with elegance, a source of digital lustre (4,6) NAIL POLISH (Fix=NAIL, elegance=POLISH, digital refers to digit or finger)
20 Peak of achievement of fighter pilot around center of Denmark (4) ACME (fighter pilot=ACE, center of Denmark=M=>fighter pilot around center of Denmark = AC(M)E)
22 Love poem composed by a grim lad (8) MADRIGAL (ana. A GRIM LAD)
23 Vitality of a born cat (snow leopard) (6) BOUNCE (born=B, snow leopard=OUNCE => B+OUNCE)
24 Sound result of a plucked string (5) TWANG (Direct)
25 Famous battleground of W.W.II with a name that is all new (2,7) EL ALAMEIN (ana. A NAME+IE(that is)+ALL)

Down
1 Popular girl has caught a bit of a cold (6) CATCHY (girl=CATHY, a bit of cold=C=>girl has caught a bit of a cold=CAT(C)HY)
2 Forster work that turned Asia against dope (1,7,2,5) A PASSAGE TO INDIA (ana. ASIA AGAINST DOPE)
3 British order youth leader to do as told (4) OBEY (British order=OBE(Order of the British Empire), youth leader=Y => OBE+Y)
4 Bad temper shown by woman when she is teased about RSS (12) SHREWISHNESS (ana. WHEN SHE IS+RSS)
5 Believers in things having magical power get singular, shiftiest treatment (10) FETISHISTS (ana. I(singular)+SHIFTIEST)
6 Permit for a union but not really for a match with excessive freedom (8,7) MARRIAGE LICENCE (Cryptic Defn.)
7 Frighten a celebrity, then left off (7) STARTLE (It appears there's a typo here. Should be 'let off' instead of 'left off'. celebrity=STAR, let off=ana. LET=TLE => STAR+TLE)
10 Official announcement in the papers regarding rent agreement (5,7) PRESS RELEASE (papers=PRESS, regarding=RE, rent agreement=LEASE => PRESS RE+LEASE)
13 Workers call about quiet gymnastic feat (10) HANDSPRING (Workers=HANDS, call=RING, quiet=P=>Workers call about quiet=HANDS(P)RING)
16 Misuse ammunition (ignoring last three) and effect a release from slavery (7) MANUMIT (ana. AMMUNITION-ION)
18 Some deride meaninglessly to lower the dignity (6) DEMEAN (Container=>deriDE MEANnglessly)
21 A bit of music written up by a physician (4) CODA (a=A, physician=DOC=>written up by a physician=reverse of ADOC)