The rising tide of Indian nationalism meant that the people of princely states now were keen to become a part of a united and integrated India rather than remain subjects of a princely state. The Congress too supported the people's wish and it fell upon Patel to get the princes to agree. He did so magnificently, using every trick available, whether it was sweet talk or coercion; the rulers buckled and Patel earned the eternal gratitude of the entire nation.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to consider in-chambers on Tuesday a batch of pleas seeking review of its judgment which held that states are constitutionally empowered to make sub-classifications within the Scheduled Castes, which form a socially heterogeneous class, for granting reservation.
The Congress party has alleged that approximately 23 lakh women's names have been removed from the voter list in Bihar, particularly in constituencies with close contests in the 2020 elections. They claim this is a deliberate act of 'vote theft' orchestrated by the ruling party through the Election Commission.
Union Minister and Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas leader Chirag Paswan is planning to convene a meeting of Scheduled Caste MPs of different parties as he works to mobilise support ahead of his party filing a review plea in the Supreme Court against its judgment allowing sub-categorisation of reservation within the community.
'Government supplied public services are less likely to be found in neighbourhoods with high numbers of Scheduled Castes and Muslims.'
The law ministry said 78 per cent of high court judges appointed between 2018 and 2022 belonged to the upper caste.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has announced that his government will introduce a new stringent law to prevent religious conversion of tribal people, and possibly others. He also advocated for the delisting of tribals, removing them from the Scheduled Tribe category if they convert to another religion, saying it will prevent proselytisation.
'Bihar's caste survey has bolstered the Opposition parties, but one shouldn't forget that the BJP is also trying to present itself as a party that cares for the OBCs more than other parties,' points out Sanjay Kumar.
On Wednesday, the Bihar Cabinet in a meeting chaired by the chief minister passed a resolution on asking the Centre to include the provision in the 9th Schedule of the Constitution, Siddharth said.
The Justice John Michael D'Cunha Commission, appointed by the Karnataka Government, has deemed Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium "unsuitable and unsafe for mass gathering".
Former US National Security Advisor John Bolton says President Trump's personal relationship with Prime Minister Modi has deteriorated, potentially pushing India closer to Russia and China.
Batting for a fresh look at the reservation policy, Supreme Court judge Justice Pankaj Mithal on Thursday referred to a 1961 letter by Jawahar Lal Nehru in which the former prime minister lamented the habit of giving reservations and privileges to any caste or group.
The Union Cabinet, at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, held a detailed discussion on the Supreme Court judgement on the sub-categorisation of reservation for SCs and STs as granted in the Constitution.
The decision comes a day after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said a government-appointed committee scrutinised 1.72 crore old documents (including those of Nizam-era) and among them, 11,530 records were found where Kunbi caste was mentioned.
'Prashant Kishor is a businessman before he is a politician, and given that the expected average turnout for JSP candidates is 5,000 to 6,000 votes and since Bihar has a significant number of seats where the margin between the winner and runner-up falls within that range he will capitalise on exactly that to showcase his presence.'
'It is good for us if the JMM contests. That will divide the Opposition and give us the upper hand.'
The Supreme Court of India has formed a National Task Force (NTF) to address the growing concern of student suicides in higher educational institutions. The court took note of the recurring cases and directed Delhi Police to register FIRs on the complaints of families of two students who died by suicide at IIT Delhi in 2023. The NTF, chaired by former apex court judge Justice S Ravindra Bhat, will prepare a comprehensive report, including the identification of causes leading to suicides, analysis of existing regulations, and recommendations for strengthening protections. The NTF will also have the authority to conduct surprise inspections of higher educational institutions and make further recommendations to ensure a holistic approach to addressing mental health concerns and eliminating suicides.
'Earlier, we used to talk about a deficit economy. There is a deficit in democracy' 'If you read superficially Gandhi and Ambedkar and Nehru, some misconceptions and misunderstanding come to mind, as if they were at loggerheads and they differed radically in their views' 'India is one nation. There is only one citizenship. No citizenship for South India and no citizenship for North India and another for the Northeast'
Delhi University has condemned Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's unannounced visit to its North Campus, calling it a breach of institutional protocol and a disruption of student governance operations. Gandhi, who is also the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, interacted with students from Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) at the DU's North Campus, focusing on issues of representation, equality and academic justice. The university criticised the visit for disrupting the functioning of a key student body, the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU). The RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which holds several posts in the DUSU, also issued a statement criticising Gandhi's visit.
The SBIF Asha Scholarship Programme for Overseas Education 2024-25 aims to provide financial assistance to meritorious students from low-income families across India, ensuring the continuity of their education.
Aam Aadmi Party's Gopal Italia on Monday won from Gujarat's Visavadar assembly constituency and his party also retained Punjab's Ludhiana West seat while the Congress-led United Democratic Front wrested Nilambur from the ruling Left Democratic Front in Kerala, according to results of assembly bypolls in four states.
Experts say the state's economy is grappling with hidden debt, rising welfare costs, and lack of transparency.
Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai also said that the central government has not enumerated caste-wise population other than SCs and STs in census since Independence.
A court in Kerala has sentenced a man to life imprisonment for brutally raping and physically assaulting a 19-year-old COVID-19 patient belonging to the Dalit community. The incident occurred in 2020 while the woman was being transported to a treatment center. The accused, Noufal, was also ordered to pay a fine of Rs 2,12,000. The court found him guilty after a trial that involved examining 55 witnesses, reviewing 83 documents, and inspecting 12 material exhibits. The investigation was led by R Binu, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) in Adoor at the time.
Amit Shah seemingly encouraging AIADMK dissident Sengottaiyan after party boss Edappadi K Palaniswami had removed his one-time mentor from all party posts has not gone down well with party cadres. They are now ready to buy Team EPS' theory that the BJP and Amit Shah are out to liquidate the AIADMK, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The reservation policy requires a fresh relook and new methods are needed for the uplift of people belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC), Schedule Tribes (ST) and Other Backward Classes (OBC), Supreme Court judge Justice Pankaj Mithal said on Thursday.
Madhuri shines brighter than the stars...Kalki goes retro... Neha's bravest shoot....
Political watchers say the caste survey report was made public to play the OBC-EBC card and stall the BJP's campaign to win most of Bihar's 40 Lok Sabha seats.
A handwritten feedback letter purportedly written by BRS leader K Kavitha to her father and former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, highlighting both the negative and positive aspects of the party's recent meeting, has sparked discussions in Telangana's political circles. While the authenticity of the letter has not been confirmed, Kavitha's letter suggests that the party might be aligning with the BJP. She also criticized KCR for his silence on key issues such as 42 per cent reservation for backward classes, Scheduled Castes categorisation, and omission of Urdu from his address at the BRS Silver Jubilee event.
'This is going to generate a new debate on reservation because the quota for Economically Weaker Sections is 10%, and that is for nearly 16% of the population.' 'For 16% you are giving 10%. This is set to raise eyebrows among the OBCs after the caste survey.'
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat was unable to end its 18-year jinx in Visavadar as it lost the bypolls to Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party despite a strong campaign.
A seven-judge Constitution bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices BR Gavai, Vikram Nath, Bela Trivedi, Pankaj Mithal, Manoj Misra and Satish Chandra Sharma said there is no error apparent on the face of the record.
A suspended police sub-inspector from Beed, Maharashtra, India, has alleged that he was offered money to carry out an "encounter" of Walmik Karad, an accused in the murder case of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh. The suspended cop, Ranjeet Kasle, claims he mentioned the names of the individuals who made the offer in a local police station diary. However, a senior police official from Beed has dismissed Kasle's claims as baseless and demanded proof. Kasle was suspended earlier while serving as a sub-inspector in the local cyber crime department. Deshmukh, the sarpanch of Massajog village, was abducted and killed last December allegedly for attempting to stop extortion targeting an energy company. Karad is among eight individuals arrested in connection with the murder and charged under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). The state Crime Investigation Department (CID) filed a chargesheet in the case last month. Kasle's claims come amidst ongoing investigations into the custodial death of Badlapur sexual assault case accused Akshay Shinde. Kasle has demanded a central government SIT to investigate Shinde's death, believing it will reveal the truth.
Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna has recommended Justice Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai as the next CJI. Justice Gavai, the second most senior Supreme Court judge, will become the 52nd CJI on May 14, 2024, after CJI Khanna's retirement on May 13. Justice Gavai has served on several important Constitution benches and has been a part of landmark verdicts, including the one upholding the Centre's decision to abrogate provisions of Article 370.
Justice Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai was on Wednesday sworn in as the 52nd Chief Justice of India.
The Supreme Court on Thursday said the executive and the legislature would decide whether persons, who had availed quota benefits and were in a position to compete with others, were to be excluded from reservation.
The order says that Wankhede belongs to Mahar caste, which is a Scheduled Caste (SC).
The Supreme Court on Monday came to the rescue of a Dalit youth, who had lost his seat in IIT Dhanbad after missing the deadline to deposit a fee, by asking the institute to admit him to the BTech course.
The caste survey in Bihar was conducted in two rounds between January 7-21, and April 15-May 15.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced reservation for Muslims in supplying goods and services up to a value of Rs 1 crore to various government departments, corporations and institutions in the state budget for 2025-26. The budget also increased the value limit of government contracts in which Muslims can avail reservation to Rs 2 crore. The reservation to Muslims under 2B category is in addition to the Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, and Castes coming under Category-1, Category-2A. The budget also included various welfare schemes for minorities, including Rs 50,000 to support simple marriages and Rs 1,000 crore under the Chief Minister's Minority Colony Development Programme.
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