Abe, who is on a three-day day visit to India from Friday, along with Modi will attend the 'Ganga Arti', a beautifully choreographed ritual worship of the holy river performed daily at the fabled Dashashwamedh Ghat.
The long-term plans for Varanasi will take time to materialise but what has changed is the mood, says Aditi Phadnis
The Bharatiya Janata Party suffered stunning losses in three Hindi heartland states, partial poll results showed Tuesday, forcing the party to rely on allies to form the government after a bitter and divisive election that was projected as a referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity.
Wrapping up his two-day visit to Varanasi, Modi said work done in the city is clearly visible.
SpiceJet apologised for the inconvenience caused to the passenger and will also provide a full refund. As the passenger kept waiting in the lavatory, a cabin crew slipped in a note asking the passenger not to panic and that despite trying their best, the door could not be opened.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday revived a Gyanvapi panel plea it inadvertently disposed of on July 24 while staying an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey on the mosque premises to determine if it was built upon a temple.
The Allahabad high court on Wednesday extended the stay on a survey of the Gyanvapi mosque premises by the Archaeological Survey of India till Thursday.
District judge A K Vishvesh on Friday directed the ASI to conduct a detailed scientific survey -- including excavations, wherever necessary -- to determine if the mosque in Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh is built upon a temple.
A bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha and Justice JB Pardiwala took note of the submissions of lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain that the district judge of Varanasi has deferred five times the decision on a plea seeking clubbing of all civil suits pertaining to the dispute.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) began working on a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi premises in Varanasi on Friday to determine whether the 17th-century mosque was constructed over a pre-existing structure of a Hindu temple.
"No material has been placed on record to make the petition triable," the judge said.
Bollywood stars celebrate Mahashivratri by sharing pictures on social media.
The Election Commission has expressed "surprise" and "disappointment" over Bharatiya Janata Party's decision to hold protests on Thursday against denial of permission to Narendra Modi for his programmes in Varanasi.
Despite the hype over the possible candidature of All India Congress Committee General Secretary Digvijaya Singh for the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat, the Congress has narrowed down its choice to local legislator Ajay Rai and former party MP Rajesh Mishra, with the former emerging as a front runner.
Online travel portals are flooded with flight and train bookings, hotels teeming with requests for accommodation, and spiritual merchandise on e-commerce platforms is selling like hotcakes. As the consecration ceremony of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya on January 22 draws near, Indians across the country are putting their travelling boots on as the temple frenzy catches on. India's largest travel technology (traveltech) platform MakeMyTrip (MMT) has witnessed a substantial four-fold increase in bookings for Ayodhya compared to the previous year.
A team of officials from the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad and directorate of forensic science, Gandhinagar has reached Varanasi to study Tuesday's blast at Dashashwamedh ghat.
The Uttar Pradesh Police Wednesday conducted searches at the native place Chandauli of Varanasi Sankatmochan bomb blast case accused in the aftermath of the Delhi blast.
Around 5 to 6 Union Ministers may accompany Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his 2-day visit to his parliamentary constituency Varanasi from November 7.
The ASI had on Wednesday urged the court not to make its Gyanvapi complex survey report public for at least four more weeks, citing the December 19 judgment of the Allahabad high court.
Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Rahul Gandhi are likely to contest the Lok Sabha election from Rae Bareli and Amethi seats, respectively, sources said on Thursday.
The Aam Aadmi Party will find it difficult to repeat its Delhi success in Uttar Pradesh as it will have the Bahujan Samaj Party to contend with, says Archis Mohan
A huge make-shift stage has been erected on the river bed with the help of pontoons, while a thick blanket of security has been thrown over the city for the VIPs.
The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear on April 14 a plea by the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid committee seeking permission for wazu (ritual ablution) at the Gyanvapi mosque complex in Varanasi during the month of Ramzan.
'Modi is trying avenues to convince people why they should vote for the BJP.'
Narendra Modi could be in for a tough fight in Varanasi with the Congress declaring its resolve to put up a formidable candidate against the Bharatiya Janata Party's PM nominee in the Lok Sabha polls and ruling out support to the Aaam Aadmi Party's Arvind Kejriwal.
Recalling the blasts that shook Varanasi in March 2006
Vedic rituals for the pran pratistha will begin in Ayodhya on January 16, a week before the main ceremony. A priest from Varanasi, Lakshmi Kant Dixit, will perform the main rituals of the consecration ceremony on January 22.
In his social media post in Hindi, Gautam had written, "For women, it is better to read the Constitution of India and the Hindu Code Bill instead of fasting for nine days during Navratra. Their lives will be free from fear and slavery. Jai Bheem."
The court was hearing a plea by the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid committee seeking permission for wazu at the mosque complex in Varanasi during the month of Ramzan.
MARD has lost deposits on all seats it has contested so far since it was formed in 2018 but its leaders say they are undeterred by elections losses.
Modi can abandon the path of Hindutva only at risk to his position within his own fraternity. But if he pursues a hard line, he faces the risk of being hauled up by his coalition-partners. For the first time in a decade, Modi is not in enviable situation, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
'Last Tuesday's bombing might best be interpreted as an attack against the tolerant, cosmopolitan character of modern Varanasi, which also characterises India at its best.'
The issue came up at the quarterly meeting of the standing committee on Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanwapi security in Varanasi on Wedmesday.
Manish Tripathi who designed the outfit adorned by the Ram Lalla idol in the newly constructed temple in Ayodhya said a divine connection with the deity helped him achieve the task.
Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa, who has extensively covered Election 2014, reports from Varanasi on voting day
Escalating his attack on the Election Commission, Narendra Modi questioned the poll body's neutrality over denial of permission for a public meeting at a venue of his choice in Varanasi even as appealed to party workers to maintain peace while protesting the move.
Do you, our dear readers, think Arvind Kejriwal should take on the BJP's prime ministerial candidate from Varanasi? Or do you believe Kejrwal is fighting a losing battle?
Javed, who arrived from Kolkata early in the morning, visited Sarnath and the Banaras Hindu University and took a boat ride in river Ganga before winding up his visit.
A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com visited many polling booths in Varanasi on polling day. This is what he discovered.
'Divine experience and a proud moment' is how the 15 couples who were the 'mukhya yajman' for the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya described the grand event and said that the day will be forever etched in their memories.
