'The jurisprudence of a modern secular State has to be strictly rational.' 'Rather than aastha and aqeedah, our jurisprudence as well as the executive and legislature have to act in accordance with Constitutional rationality,' argues Mohammad Sajjad.
Aadhaar-related schemes and the Aadhaar Act exist on the assumption that Right to Privacy is not a Fundamental Right.
'It is a matter of regret that the BJP and PDP refused to take the Pandits aboard in this government.' 'The present government is following a policy of soft secessionism.'
India are favoured to extend their dominance while West Indies face insurmountable odds to draw parity, in the second One-day International, in Visakhapatnam, on Wednesday.
India and Japan have a shared interest in countervailing China's hegemonic ambitions in Asia. Although neither has an interest in forming an overt anti-China alliance, Tokyo and New Delhi feel increasingly obligated to work together to find ways to guard against a muscular Beijing's power sliding into arrogance, says Brahma Chellaney.
Budget forces last minute change in finance minister's plans.
With seven wins in a row, Team India has had it relatively easy when it comes to making to the last four. The defending champions are up against hosts Australia next. Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com, looking at the lighter side of things, believes it is Shikhar Dhawan who holds the key.
'The unique achievements have been made by engineers from small towns who have had a non elite upbringing and who have grown with the programme,' says R Aravamudan, one of the pioneers of the Indian space programme.
'The domination of American foreign policy by the military poses some hidden dangers for us.' 'We must factor in that the Pakistani military and the US military have close ties going back three generations.' 'Pakistan will find sympathetic ears in the Pentagon against India as the bogey man.' 'This will be further milked to the maximum by raising the ante in Kashmir through its proxies,' warns Colonel Anil A Athale.
Mughal Garden opens for public from February 13.
A modern day prince and princess are getting married in Bengaluru this weekend.
'Young IFS officers today would take it for granted that they represent a major country with strengths and capabilities.' 'They will be aware that India is seen as one of the 10 significant countries in the world and therefore their voice will be heard whether on climate change or regime change,' says Ambassador B S Prakash.
Liberian leader Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was on Thursday conferred the coveted Indira Gandhi peace prize by President Pranab Mukherjee who said India will continue to support the African nation in its pursuit of stability and economic growth.
Vaihayasi Pande Daniel discovers Ross Island where the clock can never be turned back.
Amit Shah's meticulous planning and Modi's charisma will turn the tide in the BJP's favour, says Nazarwala.
The Board rued that its efforts to resolve the concerns of the founders - who together own about 12.75 per cent stake in Infosys - over the course of a year through a dialogue have not been successful.
Looking to keep their winning run intact, table-toppers Rajasthan Royals face a stern SunRisers Hyderabad test in their fourth match of the Indian Premier League in Visakhapatnam on Thursday.
The year is coming to an end and overall, it's been one hell of a year! We have had our share of ups and downs and we look forward to a better 2020. While we count down the days to the new year, let's also reflect on those who gave us strength to stand up in what we believe, the courageous who didn't bow down and the ones with gumption who inspired us to be better. We, Rediff.com, have selected 26 personalities, who we think are worthy of the title -- HERO OF THE YEAR -- and we want you, dear readers, to choose your hero!
'Yogi Adityanath will prove to be the most popular and effective chief minister, overseeing a regime of peace and justice, harsh on wrongdoers and rabble rousers, encouraging those who work for India,' says Tarun Vijay.
Stepping up his offensive against the Congress, he asked the party to "repent" for what it has not done in the last 60 years.
Sheela Bhatt meets Bharti Patel, a truly exceptional mother of our times whose son Dr Vikram Patel was recently ranked among Time magazine's 100 most influential people of 2015, to find out her recipe for a remarkable upbringing.
India's spinners were thwarted by a splendid display of ultra-defensive batting by England before the hosts took control dismissing rival skipper Alastair Cook on an engrossing fourth day of the second Test in Visakhapatnam.
'An elephant has to behave like an elephant and not shy away from confronting the jackals,' argues Colonel (Dr) Anil A Athale.
'My aim is that the message from our ancient texts reach the younger generation of Indians.' 'The trouble is that our literature is in Sanskrit and scientists don't know the language. And the people who know Sanskrit they don't know science.'
Bodh Gaya emerged as a centre that encouraged a continuous dialogue of civilisation, it has enabled India to re-forge her age old linkages with countries, who derived inspiration from Buddha's message of compassion. It is this dialogue that was sought to be interrupted by the dastardly attack, says Dr Anirban Ganguly.
'In the time I have been an Indiawallah, I have seen three US Presidential visits to India, nuclear sanctions, nuclear cooperation, a border conflict with Pakistan, the growth of IT services, a government losing a confidence vote, and so much more,' Rick Rossow, the new Wadhwani Chair in US-India Policy Studies tells Rediff.com's Aziz Haniffa.
"It would be my hope that people understand why this particular transaction is important for us," the EAM said in Washington, DC.
Vasudevan Jagadeesh (40) and Manprit Juneja (43) put on an unbeaten 78-run partnership to help India 'A' end Day 2 in the second and final unofficial 'Test' against New Zealand 'A' on 94 for 2 at the Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy stadium in Visakhapatnam on Tuesday.
How will the Modi Sarkar's likely return affect other nations?
'Putting Yogi Adityanath in the CM's seat two years before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls is something to be read carefully.' 'Opposition parties would be dishonest themselves and unfair to secular people if they failed to unite and work as a single force to defeat the BJP.'
Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing his government of "extraordinarily large" interference in academic institutions.
Asia's oldest and largest cattle fair may soon lose its star attraction.
'The moment the BJP loses a state, it announces some policy which never takes off.'
On the morning of February 15, ISRO will hurl into space using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle three Indian satellites and 101 small foreign satellites. No other country has ever tried to hit a century in a single mission.
'What does Bhagwat think his militia will do once it is at the border?' 'What does Bhagwat imagine his Sangh followers will do that will protect Mother India?' asks Aakar Patel.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who envisioned Make In India last September was at his eloquent best as he made a fervent plea to global businesses to come Make In India.
A round-up of Ranji Trophy matches played across India on Tuesday
India has a long way to go to catch up with Thailand let alone the US.
Why do we need a cure here for peculiarly Western diseases when we don't have those diseases, and which the West itself is not trying to cure, asks Debashis Basu.
'They don't always agree with our governments, their teachers or their parents, but it is the conviction of their ideas, and their determination to share them with the world that, I believe, is one of the greatest sources of hope for our planet.' 'The colonisation of space, understanding the very building blocks of matter and the universe, utilising our understanding of the human genome to conquer disease -- these are the tasks waiting for a fellowship of minds to realise new triumphs in our collective destiny.'