A rare glimpse into Anand Bhavan and Swaraj Bhavan, where the seeds of Indian Independence were sown. Kind courtesy: Architectural Digest India.
'One is happy. The moment one starts criticising the BJP, ED, IT and CBI comes to one's house.'
Despite best efforts to protect Rahul Gandhi, doubts will persist about his ability to take charge. It has been privately acknowledged for some time now by Congress insiders that Rahul Gandhi just does not have what it takes to lead the party. 'The Nehru-Gandhi family is the only brand we have today. And till we can find an alternative, we will not abandon the family,' a senior Congress leader tells Rediff.com
Nehru's birth anniversary brings to light an old biography, which is perhaps the best-written work on him, says historian Ramachandra Guha.
For a constituency that has voted for the Nehru family time and again, little has changed on the ground. The people of Amethi tell Swarupa Dutt/Rediff.com that they will vote for the Congress, but teach Rahul a lesson.
In a security breach for Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Allahabad, activists of Samajwadi Party's youth wing on Monday tried to stop his car and clamber on to the vehicle when he was on his way to the ancestral house of the Nehrus.
'Indira Gandhi was a great influence on Sonia Gandhi. Like her mother-in-law, Sonia is a very good listener. She dresses very much like her mother-in-law. She maintains her figure.' K Natwar Singh pays tribute to Indira Gandhi.
'... while leaving the dirty work he orders to his subordinates.'
It cannot be that only in this case the CBI has developed a spine, refusing to heed the advice of its political masters.' 'There is something that does not meet the eye here,' notes Virendra Kapoor.
In the coming days, the Congress may be run by a trimurti of Sonia, Rahul and Priyanka, with Rahul holding the primary position both in Parliament and in the party and Sonia and Priyanka helping him out as and when required.
After the Chauri Chaura incident, Gandhi decided to withdraw the Non-Cooperation Movement.
Economist and author Devaki Jain mourns the loss of her good friend, Girish Karnad.
Rasheed Kidwai unearths little-known stories from the Dadasaheb Phalke awardee's past as Amitabh Bachchan celebrates 50 years in the movies this month.
'His prowess in Aikido -- a Japanese martial art that focuses on harmony with the opponent to peacefully resolve conflicts -- gives Rahul Gandhi an advantage that fanatical adversaries lack,' says Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
Even as the BJP dithers over what it needs to do, the Congress has stolen a lead by projecting its chief ministerial candidate -- Priyanka Vadra nee Gandhi, says Nazarwala, the man who called the 2012 UP assembly elections right.
'India, by virtue of its gigantic population and geography, stands at the very front line of this climate catastrophe.' 'But this is a threat that our easily distracted national mind is ill-equipped to think about, let alone plan for,' says Rahul Jacob.
Syed Firdaus Ashraf wonders why no one objects to jokes about Rahul Gandhi, but are upset when Lata Mangeshkar and Sachin Tendulkar are mocked.
'If only Cariappa/Thimayya/Chaudhari/Manekshaw were given a free hand, there'll be no PoK, the Chinese would have been taught a lesson, 1965 would have slain the Pak demon and in 1971 just another fortnight's fighting after Bangladesh and West Pakistan would have been occupied.' 'No authoritative military account suggests anything remotely like any of these...' '...Chronologies, names, even periods get mixed up, but, never mind, because the point -- strong Army denied by cowardly Congress -- is made.' 'This is where Modi is coming from,' points out Shekhar Gupta.
'Modi is a symbol of Asia Rising; and, for the first time in decades, a non-white has the potential to be the most compelling global leader.'
M R Venkatesh, chartered accountant turned political commentator tells Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com that Modi's war is not against the opposition parties or the Congress but against the bureaucracy and the establishment.
ACN Nambiar's life was extraordinary and intricately linked to momentous turns in history. Having lived in Europe for five decades, he was witness to and entangled with what we today -- with the benefit of hindsight -- call recent history.
On the occasion of the first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru's 125th birth anniversary, Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com visits his residence of 16 years, and comes away marvelling at his enduring legacy.
'We saw how vigorous democracy was when it dislodged authoritarianism under Indira Gandhi. We saw its vigour again when it voted Mr Modi out of humble origins as prime minister. It was Nehru who laid that foundation for India and what is worrying today is Modi's rather imperial style of functioning,' says writer Nayantara Sahgal.
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