In the midst of a raging row over the conversions in Agra by Hindutva outfits, the Bharatiya Janata Party chief Amit Shah on Friday favoured a strong law to stop forcible conversions.
An entirely new lexicon of political jibes emerged during the elections
The seasons in 2012 and 2013 went by with hardly any property launches, mainly due to an economic slowdown and a need to clear the backlog
'If you bowl a no ball and get a wicket off that no ball, then there is no one else to blame.'
Confronting a slowdown in growth, China says it will only increase its defence budget by 7.6% this year, against the anticipated rise of between 20% and 30%. 'It is difficult to explain the reduction in the Chinese defence budget,' says Claude Arpi. 'Is there a hidden budget? Possibly!'
Delayed project delivery and unrealistically high real estate prices, which developers are unwilling to lower despite piled up inventories, have adversely hit the sector.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Bihar counterpart Nitish Kumr on Thursday jointly attacked the Centre calling it "anti-poor and anti-farmer" and asserted that the people will give it a "befitting reply".
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday cautioned against "commodifying" yoga, saying using it as some sort of business will do great damage to this world heritage.
Nobody is clear what 'minimum government maximum governance' means.
'That Mad Men is currently the best-written show and quite unlike anything else out there is an understatement.'
Simanta Roy Buck finds out why Indian-American singer-songwriter Zoya Mohan bought a one-way ticket to Mumbai.
NDA government has shunned populism.
When I met him last year for his 75th birthday, he seemed frail. There was a sense of urgency. I will miss Stephen. His passing fills me with sadness.
Mehta was known to be outspoken and had an unerring instinct for what would be read
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presented the Union Budget.
With the state going to polls soon, Akhilesh Yadav needs to step out of his father's shadow and come into his own as the state's CM.
'If chutzpah nationalists brought the Babri Masjid down, chutzpah secularists did precious little to stop it from being torn down.' 'If chutzpah nationalists ensured carnage in Gujarat, chutzpah secularists allowed Muzaffarnagar to become their next hunting ground.' 'Chutzpah secularists readily banned SIMI, but dragged their feet when it came to banning the Bajrang Dal.'
Often when I meet a new Indian friend, who is not aware of my background, he exclaims: "So many years in India! but why, why? I can't understand! My dream is to go to the States or Europe and you are living in 'this' country!" Claude Arpi, who was born a Frenchman, looks back on his 40 years in India.
PepsiCo India's new CEO admits to being an ardent follower of the world's management gurus and they clearly mould his outlook.
No-Punchline humour reminds us how in our daily lives, we all are by turns 'The Corrupt Politician we criticise,' 'The Chauvinist Male we frown upon,' 'The Rule Breaker we deride through our Facebook posts,' 'The Communal Virus we so easily lampoon' and 'The Bad Artist we spoof.' In a land where the aforesaid prototypes are our major sources of 'funny,' is there an audience for the NPL kind of humour, asks Sreehari Nair.
Here's the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the nation where he announced the demonetisation of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes with effect from midnight on November 8-9.
Malls, retail stores are being hit by online sales and are struggling this festive season.
The truth is not that Chandrababu Naidu's centre-right policies led to his defeat but rather almost the reverse: his defeat, and for that matter that of the NDA at the Centre, was widely -- but falsely -- interpreted as a rejection of their economic policies, rather than put down to bad luck and conventional anti-incumbency., say Vivek Dehejia and Rupa Subramanya.
'A senior US diplomat last week asked me when things will go back to normal. I had to tell her that if normalcy meant getting back these perks, it is not going to happen for a very long time, if ever at all,' says Mohan Guruswamy. 'For the Indian public now is outraged that US diplomats have enjoyed all these winking at the rulebook.'
Most 20-somethings go through a phase of constant doubt -- Is this job right for me? Why I am still single? When will I buy my first car? Was my degree a waste of time?
Virender Kapoor's latest book discusses the Twelve Essential Abilities of Extraordinary People based on their star signs.
'Badlapur,' says Sreehari Nair, 'proves that sometimes there are more personal truths to be discovered in our trash cans than in our neatly arranged book-shelves.'
'So a number of people are drawn in along with members of their friends' circle or their relatives.' 'A number of individuals find that they have more in common with the 'imagined community' that they discover online as opposed to their own physical community and indeed, even the majority Muslim community elsewhere.'
'The present government's greatest weakness is its intolerance. Tolerance is the key tenet of democracy. How can any government stop someone from speaking one's mind?'
Budget proposals have set four goals to transform Indian Railways.
'Many sepoys fought with distinction, winning some of the first Victoria Crosses to be awarded to Indians; and indeed, as in any army fighting under such inhumane conditions -- standing in the freezing sludge, with shrapnel tearing through bodies and being subjected to gas attacks -- some buckled under pressure.'
"The poor will not suffer disproportionately due to bouts of sharp inflation, and the middle class will not see its savings eroded," Raghuram Rajan said.
Mahesh Rangarajan, director of the historic Nehru Memorial Museum and Library in New Delhi, tells Sheela Bhatt how the first prime minister will always remain relevant, and the efforts being made to keep his legacy alive.
The December elections in Delhi will be the first real test for the Aam Aadmi Party. Manavi Kapur spends a day shadowing its leader on his campaign
Sunday's results may be a bitter pill that the Congress has to swallow -- that its future cannot be hitched to Rahul unless he can resonate with the people, feels Saroj Nagi.
Indian economy about to take-off
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