Ghulam Mohammed Vastanvi, the first Gujarati rector of the Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband in Uttar Pradesh, is finding himself in the eye of the storm, barely 10 days after he appointed to the post. The Muslim community across the country has been up in arms against Vastanvi after his remark on 'prosperity of Narendra Modi's Gujarat'.
No plaque marks the historic meeting place of the fathers of two nations. And no history textbook tells us about that first meeting and their mutual admiration, common ethos and comradeship.
The firebrand MNS leader also alleged that the BJP-led governments at the Centre and state wanted "riots to break out in the country".
Since 2014, India has left its moorings as a pluralist, modern, secular State because that is how the BJP wants it to be, notes Aakar Patel.
Experts believe that under-reporting is likely to cause an underestimation of the spread of the disease.
Kokilaben, the Ambani family matriarch, has launched her memoirs, paying tribute to her legendary husband.
The government did not tell us why our economy had imploded. The prime minister simply stopped speaking on the subject, asserts Aakar Patel.
Out of a small shed in Mumbai he started taking up printing orders for visiting cards. Today, his business has a turnover of over Rs 50 crore.
If the BJP falls sizeably short of the 115 mark -- the seats it won in 2012 -- it will be hard to deny the party hasn't suffered a telling reverse.
Kanti Bhatt, respected Gujarati author and journalist, passed into the ages on August 4, 2019, at the age of 88. In tribute, we reproduce an article his wife Sheela Bhatt wrote about him 19 years ago.
'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.
'With English the most rapidly growing medium of instruction in India's schools and accounting now for more than one-sixth of the total (next only to Hindi, which accounts for a half), India is not about to turn its face away from a language that has global currency,' notes T N Ninan.<
Britain favours closer engagement with Gujarat and its Chief Minister Narendra Modi to realize the country's wide-ranging objectives in the state, Prime Minister David Cameron has said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the upcoming assembly election is a fight between trust on development and dynastic politics.
'My boss was a woman. Not any woman, she was a demanding, rude and foul-mouthed creature whom I liked immediately,' says Aakar Patel.
'The home minister of India has given his assurance to the MP of Lakshadweep.'
Travelling across tribal Dahod to an about-to-be-born township near Ahmedabad, Sheela Bhatt examines the 'Modi effect' and how it will play out in the polls in the prime ministerial candidate's home state.Travelling across tribal Dahod to an about-to-be-born-township near Ahmedabad, Sheela Bhatt examines the 'Modi effect' and how it will play out at the polls on the prime ministerial candidate's home state.
'The media, particularly the national media and especially the English media, do not report these stories any longer.' 'They have no interest in crime or human interest stories that do not concern the wealthy,' says Aakar Patel.
Rarely have we seen such intoxication over power, which ignores the cries of those dying, notes Jyoti Punwani.
Narendra Modi on Saturday accused Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde of giving media statements instead of acting against Dawood Ibrahim, but the Congress brushed aside the criticism.
God bless Ritesh Batra, raves Sukanya Verma.
Why did Kamal Haasan name the leaders he did?
'This influence of anchors like Arnab Goswami is mostly negative because their focus is on issues that concern upper class anxieties.' 'Those that affect the majority of people, hundreds of millions of Indians, like health, primary education and nutrition, are not discussed,' says Aakar Patel.
President Pranab Mukherjee presented five Padma Vibhushan, eight Padma Bhushan and forty-three Padma Shri awards at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
'The principles on which a modern Republic should be governed are changing and taking dangerous turns,' warns Uddalok Bhattacharya.
National award winner Chaitanya Tamhane tells us the story behind his film, Court.
She has inadvertently been drawn in the political slugfest by Narendra Modi's rivals to target him, but decades of separation from Gujarat chief minister has not embittered Jashodaben, who fasts and prays for her husband to become the prime minister.
'Gandhi turned his life into a counter-intuitive experiment in old ideas like non-violence and swadeshi.' 'He offered numerous universal ideas that talk to the human condition.' 'His ability to take risks was outstanding,' says Sopan Joshi, explaining why the Mahatma's ideas are as relevant as ever.
'Manto is the only writer to grasp what the project of Pakistan would eventually mean,' says Aakar Patel, who has translated a collection of Saadat Hasan Manto's essays in a just-released book Why I Write.
Dr Raghuram Rajan's departure holds lessons for all, be it sections of the media, politicians or the people themselves. We need to learn how to value and retain talent. At the same time the talented must realise that talent alone does not ensure the top job, says Sanjeev Nayyar.
"What I said was if we had Rafale at the time (of aerial dogfight), then none of our fighter jets would have gone down and none of theirs saved," he added.
'Nobody laughed during the shooting. There were fights, swearing and what not. Tempers were high but the unit and the actors stayed on, and finally, the film was made. But it was like riding a wild horse!' Kundan Shah's last interview.
'Muslims have been exploited for 65 years. They have been reduced to a community of committees and commissions. Nothing happens. Since 1947 they are worse than Dalits.' 'Muslims voted en-bloc once upon a time. Not now. Muslims are fragmented everywhere. They have the same choices as the Hindus in that area.' 'Muslims are not alienated. The alienation is between the haves and have-nots. Poverty in India has both Hindus and Muslims.'
Glimpses into Bedi's formative days as the precocious 'Kinni' before her eventual transformation into the 'tough-as-nails' figure of the no-nonsense IPS officer, is the subject of a comic book on the life of the top cop which was released in 12 languages on Saturday.
'Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train will not begin to address any of the many problems Indian Railways faces.'
'Katekar kya hai? Wardi ke neeche ek insaan hai.' 'System me pissa hua aadmi hai.'
India witnessed religiously motivated killings, arrests, riots and coerced religious conversions and the police in some cases failed to respond effectively to communal violence, according to the US State Department report on International Religious Freedom.
Maharashtra's beef ban has led to heated arguments on social media, but when a protest against the ban was held in Mumbai, only a few thousands turned up. Perhaps it is easier to outrage online than join an actual protest, says Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
After five decades of existence, the Shiv Sena's support base seems to be shifting towards the rural electorate but there it has to contend with the network of Sharad Pawar and the BJP.
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