'Opposition to the idea of a state flag has come from the small thinking pseudo-nationalists, who are the ones pushing Hindi-Hindu-Hindustan.' 'Identifying India wrongly as a one language, one religion nation,' says Aakar Patel.
Times when the 62-year-old BJP MP from Nawada has triggered a row with his highly-volatile remarks.
Four days after a scuffle between intoxicated young men on Diwali night in Trilokpuri's Block 20 spiralled into a diffused communal riot that resulted in scores of injuries, dozens of arrests, and the incineration of at least one Muslim-owned shop, the violence appears to have abated but tension and suspicion persist.
We bring you a collection of some of the best photographs taken this week by ace Reuters photographers.
The DMK has Stalin and Stalin alone as the key campaigner. The rest of them all, including half-sister Kanimozhi, are tied down to their own constituencies while those like party treasurer and former minister S Duraimurugan, to those of their children's constituencies.
Today, it is modish to be part of a yoga class, to post stories on Instagram while striking an impressively complex asana in a bralette and crop-top paired with neon yoga pants, to bond over green tea and yoga bars after a strenuous session at the studio and have subscriptions to yoga studios, not ashrams, says Manavi Kapur.
'It was the first document he had seen that asked him about his past in such detail; it was the only interest this country (America) had shown in his origins, and it was most inconvenient. To get ahead, he had to find out where he had come from.'
'We can make all the noise we want to about being a tolerant society, but the reality is in front of us.'
Long queues outside grocery stores, inflated prices, difficulty in getting important items -- these were some of the problems encountered by people in the National Capital Region (NCR).
About 90% of divorce cases end as a fight about alimony.
Bharati Dutt witnessed life-changing events that shaped India on the threshold of freedom. Her memories are an account of how ordinary Indians saw India change.
US Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, newly elected co-chair of the influential Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-Americans, discusses her vision for US-India ties with Rediff.com's Monali Sarkar.
'Prior to Pulwama, the BJP appeared to be on the defensive, uncertain of its stop-and-go development programmes, fearful of growing discontent among agriculturists and unemployed youth, and nervous of gathering steam among Opposition parties across regional and caste alliances,' says Sunil Sethi.
The 'Shatrughan Sinha of the South' plunges into politics.
If doing business in India is a problem for even the richest, most educated scion of a business house, it is unlikely to be a breeze for the average rural Indian woman.
'If this is the India you're talking about, where there is no space for minorities, where you have hate, where people can enter universities and beat students up, let me be anti-national.' 'I'll carry that as a badge of honour.'
The argument that there is nothing wrong in barring illiterates from contesting elections is extremely flawed, when by the same yardstick many sitting MLAs and MPs would not be eligible to contest even panchayat polls, says Devanik Saha.
Minister of State for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Ansari believes a national debate on a Uniform Civil Code is a must. 'The need of the hour is to debate this issue at length in order to create a consensus,' Ansari tells Rediff.com, adding, 'Such a debate must take place at the grassroot level. We must understand all the divergent viewpoints before any draft can be prepared.'
Amid tight security, the 137th edition of Lord Jagannath's rathyatra began in Ahmedabad on Sunday morning from the ancient Jagannath Temple in Jamalpur area.
'It smells like a case to silence my voice at this important time in the #metoo movement but in the larger context it could be a ploy to muddy the waters and sabotage the entire movement altogether.'
'Triple talaq and polygamy are likely to be the next ground on which Hindutva will assert itself.' 'And, as with other issues where this has happened, we must anticipate trouble.'
Jeetu alias Fauji of Mahav village is a named accused in the case, Inspector General (Crime) S K Bhagat told reporters in Lucknow when asked about his alleged involvement in the mob violence.
When you think of Indian Maharajas of yore what is the one thing that comes to mind? Jewels! And that is exactly what the world will witness at Christie's, New York during its upcoming auction -- "Maharajas and Mughal Magnificence". The "unprecedented group" of objects is from The Al Thani Collection of the royal family of Qatar. It is expected to see competitive bidding from across the globe. As per Christie's, this collection is poised to be the most valuable auction of jewellery and jewelled objects. The current record is held by The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor, which totals $144 million (Rs 1,003 crore). Mughal emperor Shah Jahan's jade hilted dagger, the priceless jewels of the Nizams of Hyderabad, and a string of pearls belonging to Rajmata Gayatri Devi of Jaipur are among the 400 royal artefacts that would be auctioned on Wednesday. Here's a glimpse of the astounding jewels that will be auctioned.
Is Minister of Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi opening another minefield with the introduction of mandatory pre-nuptial agreement before marriage or will this proposed legislation help streamline the dissolution process of a marriage given the spiralling divorce rates in our country? Rashme Sehgal speaks to lawyers on the issue.
Sharat Pradhan secures exclusive access to the Justice Vishnu Sahai report and discovers it blames two BJP MLAs, a former BSP MP and his cohorts, local intelligence officials and the media for the horrific Muzaffarnagar riots of 2013, but attributes no blame to the Samajwadi Party government in the state.
'Why has the phrase gone missing from Modi's vocabulary?' asks Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'John Lasseter gave me such good advice. He said the reason why he wanted me to tell the story was because it was about my dad and me. He said if it is a father and son story, it will relate universally.' Star Pixar animator Sanjay Patel tells Aseem Chhabra/Rediff.com the back story behind his new film, Sanjay's Super Team, which features Hanuman, Vishnu and Durga as superheroes.
He is among the contenders for the top job in the event the BJP gets fewer seats in 2019. That may have something to do with him picking up the cudgels for Sushma Swaraj when many in the party kept mum, says Aditi Phadnis.
The Hindutva brigade's silence on the rape may possibly be explained that this incident is an intra-Hindu affair for them. What is even more intriguing is that vocal gender activists have preferred to almost ignore the incident. Why? Is it because homosexual rape does not involve the woman either as victim or as aggressor, asks Mohammad Sajjad.
In a boost to gender equality campaign, the Bombay high court on Wednesday observed that if men are allowed in a place of worship then women should also be permitted as no law prevents them from doing so.
'Revelations about his assaults on young women mean that his reputation and all that he has stood for is in tatters for all time,' says Aakar Patel.
Her book is less of a Hindutva-loving diatribe against the Dynasty than its detractors suggest, but it is still hard to agree with much of what she writes, says Vir Sanghvi on Tavleen Singh's latest book.
'Muslims, like people of all other faiths, are quite comfortable with the idea of nationalism and democracy today. But are they following Islam in its spirit? That is a different question.'
'This is the first Bollywood film which is about 4 women not falling in love with the same guy.'
Jamida K is the first Indian Muslim woman to lead the Friday prayer.
The vast Udupi-Chickmagalur parliamentary constituency, which belonged to the Bharatiya Janata Party in the years 1998, 1999, 2004 and 2009, slipped out of its hands in 2012. While the Hindu factor may or may not work in its favour here, the party remains sure of a win. Vicky Nanjappa gives you an inside view of who is who in the political fray in this region
'Our priority is how to reduce the waiting time for people for darshan.'
The Kambli family has been crafting the idol for Mumbai's most famous Ganesha pandal, Lalbaugcha Raja, since 1935.
'I did not ask their religion when I rescued them and they did not ask my religion when I helped them get onto the boat.' 'The moment I came out of my house on this mission, I am an Indian, I am a human being,' says Mohamed Yunus, who helped save hundreds of people on the flooded streets of Chennai.
'The government know very well how to pass a bill in the Rajya Sabha with consensus.' 'They got consensus from Opposition parties on the 10 percent reservation for economically weaker sections.' 'In instant triple talaq, the BJP wanted to take sole credit.' 'They wanted to take credit and see that other parties suffer (political) loss.' 'Therefore, the bill got stuck.'
