'There were deep discussions within the Sangh Parivar before this decision was made.' 'They were convinced, and only then did the Modi government proceed with the caste census.'
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday accused the government of misleading the nation on the India-Pakistan conflict and demanded holding a special session of Parliament immediately, following Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan's acknowledgement of aircraft loss in the hostilities.
Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan on Saturday acknowledged losses of aircraft in India's recent military hostilities with Pakistan but dismissed as 'absolutely incorrect' Islamabad's claim of downing six Indian fighter jets.
Led by Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar MP Supriya Sule, Group 7 will engage with key countries in Africa -- Egypt, South Africa, Ethiopia -- and Qatar to present India's position on Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday slammed Rahul Gandhi for his 'surrender' barb at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying it is not only a grave insult to the armed forces and country but also no less than treason.
Rajat Patidar's astute captaincy has been apparent throughout this season, be it bowling changes or field placements, he has been spot on. Unlike other franchises where captaining big egos has not sat well with certain players, Patidar has commanded the respect of his senior India as well as international team-mates.
The next Census' findings will help identify the extent of India's ageing population and vulnerability levels.
'Three days after the Kargil War ended, the Vajpayee Government set up the Kargil Review Committee on July 29 1999. Its report was tabled in Parliament on February 23, 2000 although sections of it have remained classified -- as indeed they must'
A total of 750 pilgrims have been selected through a computerised draw for the upcoming Kailash Manasarovar Yatra in Tibet, marking the resumption of the pilgrimage after a five-year gap. The Yatra's resumption is seen as an attempt to normalize India-China relations, which were strained by the eastern Ladakh border standoff. The pilgrimage will begin in June and continue until August, with pilgrims traveling in five batches via the Lipulekh route and ten batches via the Nathu La route. The selection process was deemed "fair, computer-generated, random, gender-balanced" by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), which organized the pilgrimage.
Census exercise with caste enumeration will be carried out with the reference date of October 1, 2026, in snow-bound areas like Ladakh and of March 1, 2027, in the rest of the country, the Home Ministry announced on Wednesday.
Tensions between the Congress and its leader Shashi Tharoor escalated on Thursday with the party saying he was very much part of their family but had erred in claiming that surgical strikes against Pakistan were held for the first time in 2016.
Congress leader Uttam Kumar Reddy said the country wanted to know whether any aircraft were downed during the conflict, especially in the wake of the CDS' "admission".
The BJP on Saturday accused the Congress of repeatedly supplying "oxygen" to Pakistan, and slammed the opposition party for its leader Charanjit Singh Channi's remarks questioning the veracity of Balakot air strikes after the 2019 Pulwama terror attack. BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra alleged that the Congress is full of pro-Pakistan leaders who make statements against India's interests, and mocked the party for its letter that had advised its functionaries to toe the official line on the issue. Patra also criticized other Congress leaders for their comments on the Pulwama and Pahalgam terror attacks, accusing them of lowering the morale of the armed forces. He further slammed the Congress for claiming credit for the government's announcement of the caste census and said the party never carried out the exercise during its over 60-year stint in power.
Mahmudabad, head of the political science department at the private university, was arrested on Sunday after two FIRs were lodged on stringent charges, including endangering sovereignty and integrity, for his social media posts related to Operation Sindoor, police and his lawyer said.
Tharoor said his remarks were preceded by a reference to the several attacks that have taken place in recent years alone, during which previous Indian responses were both restrained and constrained by India's responsible respect for the LoC and the IB.
EPS' acceptance of Amit Shah's proposal for an electoral alliance with the BJP is being interpreted to mean how the AIADMK has signed up the NDA national leader as a junior partner. Not many have appreciated EPS for this strategic move that has now forced the BJP to play second fiddle to the AIADMK. This has meant that the BJP has buried its ambitions of capturing power in Tamil Nadu now, and is willing to wait until after the 2029 Lok Sabha polls, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'We've moved from thousands killed yearly in Jammu and Kashmir to 127 last year.' 'Cross-border terrorism in Kashmir is being solved. We are winning it.'
Started as a pilot project for Delhi, the new system will automatically convert into FIRs cyber financial crimes filed on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP) and helpline number 1930, initially above the threshold limit of Rs 10 lakh, he said.
'...by saying since you have come say everything against your party.'
India on Wednesday outright rejected China's attempts to rename some places in Arunachal Pradesh, saying such 'preposterous' attempts will not alter the 'undeniable' reality that the state 'was, is, and will' always remain an integral part of India.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Sunday that indigenously developed BrahMos missiles destroyed Pakistani air bases while its air defence system, borrowed from China, remained unused, during Operation Sindoor, which exposed its lies on terrorism to the world.
India's Air Chief Marshal A P Singh met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday to discuss the security situation arising from escalating tensions with Pakistan. The meeting comes after a similar briefing by the Navy Chief on the situation in the Arabian Sea. This follows a deadly terror attack in Pahalgam, which India has blamed on Pakistan. India has taken several retaliatory measures, including suspending the Indus Waters Treaty and banning imports from Pakistan.
'You can be sure that the Pakistanis knew when the Indian Air Force aircraft took off, which type these were, and what their likely targets were.' 'The question was: How would they determine that the IAF wanted to fire, and when to bounce them?', notes Shekhar Gupta.
With this decision, the government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sought to draw a red line against terror incidents and makes clear that it will follow a similar military response as it has after the Pahalgam incident if terrorists linked to Pakistan target India again.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday said the Centre's decision to include caste enumeration in the next census has exposed the difference between the Modi government's 'true intentions' and the 'empty sloganeering' of the Congress.
'Will this near-war, India's strongest military response so far, buy India another seven years of deterrence?' asks Shekhar Gupta.
'In the Indian government there are no illusions about the United States reliability or the possibility of having any kind of preferential treatment from Washington when it comes to trade.'
'The Congress submitted four names to the government as the people who should accompany the delegation.' 'I don't know what happened to those names.' 'When I was approached, I told them to speak to my party.' 'I have no further involvement with this delegation.'
The BJP has lauded the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, a key accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, as a testament to "New India's" zero-tolerance stance against terrorism under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, the Congress has countered the claim, stating that the extradition was the result of diplomatic efforts initiated during the UPA government's tenure. The BJP highlighted Rana's return as a tribute to security personnel who lost their lives fighting Pakistan-sponsored terrorism and a step towards justice for victims of the attack. The Congress, however, asserted that the Modi government did not initiate the extradition process but benefited from the UPA's groundwork. The exchange of accusations has added a political dimension to Rana's extradition, with both parties vying for credit for the development.
Caste census politics took centre stage on Thursday with the Congress terming the government's decision as a 'diversionary tactic' and a move for headlines management and the Bharatiya Janata Party saying it has exposed the difference between the Centre's 'true intentions' and the 'empty sloganeering' of the opposition party.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting with top defence officials, including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and the chiefs of three services, amid India weighing its countermeasures following the Pahalgam terror attack which left at least 26 civilians, mostly tourists, dead. Modi has vowed to pursue the terrorists behind the attack and their patrons, a clear reference to Pakistan, to the "ends of earth" and inflict harshest punishment on them.
The Congress party in India has accused the government of "impropriety" in the sudden termination of KV Subramanian's position as India's executive director at the IMF, alleging it was linked to the Union Bank of India's purchase of two lakh copies of his book. The party also questioned the government's stance on Pakistan's request for a loan from the IMF.
The western media is going all out to prove that India suffered a major setback in Operation Sindoor and how China helped shoot down Indian fighter jets. One of the articles published in British newspaper Telegraph stated Operation Sindoor shattered the myth of India's air dominance over Pakistan. "The Pakistani Air Force, aided by Chinese targeting satellites and AWACS executed a sensor-fusion kill. The Rafales never got a lock, never even saw their adversary. When the missiles hit, it was already over," wrote the British Newspaper, The Telegraph.
The 'mediation' by the United States from behind the scene on the diplomatic track appears to be once again working, which calls on both Delhi and Islamabad to show restraint and pull back from a military confrontation, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday vowed to hunt down each and every terrorist involved in the Pahalgam attack and said all of them will be made answerable for the heinous act.
US Vice President JD Vance called on India to drop non-tariff barriers, give greater access to its markets and buy more American energy products and military hardware. Vance, in a speech in Jaipur, highlighted the need for a stronger US-India partnership for a prosperous and peaceful 21st century. He emphasized the importance of working together to address global challenges and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, describing him as a "special person." Vance also urged India to provide greater market access to American products and buy more defense platforms and energy from the US. He suggested that India consider dropping some of the non-tariff barriers for American access to the Indian market and highlighted the benefits of closer India-US defense collaboration, advocating for New Delhi to procure more military hardware from the US. He cited the example of American fifth-generation F-35s, arguing they would give the Indian Air Force the ability to defend its airspace and protect its people like never before. Vance also welcomed the Modi government's budget announcement to amend India's civil nuclear liability laws, paving the way for US producers to export small modular reactors and build larger US-designed reactors in India. He emphasized the importance of energy security for India's AI ambitions, stating "there is no AI future without energy security and energy dominance." Vance's visit comes amid growing global concerns over the US's tariff war.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said India will identify, track and punish every terrorist and their backers who were responsible for the attack in Pahalgam "beyond their imagination". Addressing a public gathering in Madhubani, Modi said, "Today, from the soil of Bihar, I say to the whole world that India will identify, track and punish every terrorist and their backers. We will pursue them to the ends of the earth." He added that India's spirit will never be broken by terrorism and that terrorism will not go unpunished. Modi also assured that every effort will be made to ensure that justice is served, saying that the entire nation stands firm in this resolve. He thanked the people of various countries and the leaders who have stood with India in these times. Earlier, Modi and a large crowd gathered for a National Panchayati Raj Day programme observed silence for a few moments to pay homage to the victims of the terror attack in Pahalgam. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar condemned the terror attack and told the prime minister that the entire nation was united against terrorism.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah attributed his health turnaround to a regimen of adequate sleep, a focus on diet and water intake, and regular exercise. Speaking at the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS) on World Liver Day, he urged young people to prioritize physical activity and sleep for good health. Shah shared his personal experience, revealing that he has been free from allopathic medications for the past 4.5 years due to this lifestyle change. He emphasized the positive impact on his work capacity, thinking, and decision-making. Shah inaugurated an Integrated Liver Rehabilitation Centre at ILBS and visited a cartoon gallery dedicated to liver health. He encouraged corporate houses to support liver health initiatives and praised the Modi government's focus on healthcare.
'Muslims need to work according to strategy and not fall into the trap of Opposition parties.'
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