'Although the Congress party ethos resembles a court with courtiers, Sonia Gandhi's style was to be consensual.'
'The fact that a rural Kashmiri boy was brainwashed into killing himself and others means there is an active programme that exists which does such recruiting and there will potentially be other such individuals out there,' warns Aakar Patel.
'Modi deliberately chose such unhinged people because they said what he wanted to, but couldn't,' says Aakar Patel.
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of indulging in political exploitation of the sacrifices of soldiers in remarks that come in the wake of cross-LoC surgical strikes on terror launch pads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Gokhale and Pompeo expressed satisfaction over the significant progress and the quality of the India-US Strategic Partnership
Nobody expects such "petty comments" from a person holding such a high post, said BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya.
'A tiger knows his territory in and out.' 'A tiger demarcates his terrain and never lets anyone enter.' 'Similarly, Ashu knew the trees, houses, rivers and rocks of the Rajwar jungles.' 'He didn't allow any militant to come into his territory.'
'We should not minimise the seriousness of Chinese encroachments because their perception is different.' 'Nor should we fall into the trap of accepting so-called 'buffer zones' in areas of overlapping claims. We cannot have buffer zones in our own territory,' asserts Ambassador Shyam Saran, a former foreign secretary.
'New Delhi and Washington are now on the same page, on dealing with growing Chinese assertiveness, across the entire Indo-Pacific region,' notes Ambassador G Parthasarathy, Chancellor, Central University of Jammu.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh also called up Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and discussed the situation with her.
Those who feel the irresistible need to express strong sentiment for our nation and its contents must consider being pro-Indian, whether this Indian be jawan, cobbler, Kashmiri, lesbian, Dalit, protester, pujari, businessman or child.
Given all the turbulence created by Pakistan Foreign Minister Qureshi's unexpected tirade against Saudi Arabia, it is likely to be business as usual between the two countries, albeit with a bit of caution on the part of both, observes Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
'Islamabad is only as big as a Delhi suburb.' 'How can a city with just two five star hotels and only one departure gate at their international airport be compared to Delhi with its sprawling airport?' Ambassador T P Sreenivasan finds the pulse of Pakistan after visiting Islamabad for the first time.
India and China on Monday admitted to intrusion by Chinese herdsmen into Ladakh last week but both the sides sought to play it down saying the issue was resolved amicably through a flag meeting.
'A lack of strategic trust and the 'persistent security dilemma' prevails between India and China,' points out Dr Rup Narayan Das.
There appears to be inadequate appreciation of the freedoms and rights that are guaranteed and practised daily in a vibrant democracy, India says.
Leaders of 33 NDA constituents also adopted a resolution endorsing Modi's leadership and his government's policies, while resolving to strengthen the alliance by expanding its base.
J&K Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh on Thursday said that people are making a 'mountain out of a molehill' over the delay of the Air India flight.
Efforts to revive the Bharatiya Janata Party-People's Democratic Party coalition in Jammu and Kashmir have hit a roadblock with BJP making it clear that government cannot be formed on the basis of conditions.
Demanding the resignation of Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy over the solar scam, Communist Party of India - Marxist General Secretary Prakash Karat on Monday said the Congress was setting a "shameless" standard of not accepting responsibility for "what is happening right under its nose."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday deplored the "expansionist" tendency among some countries which "encroach" upon seas of others, in oblique comments against China which has a maritime dispute with Japan.
'We are not producing good students who are examining issues independently of what they are being fed either by the media or their educators,' says Aakar Patel.
'You can see that in Chinese behaviour in the Yellow Sea, you can see it in their behaviour towards Taiwan, you can see it in their behaviour towards Hong Kong, you can see it on our border as well.'
'Vajpayee was the first prime minister to visit the battlefield at the height of conflict,' recalls Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'Indira Gandhi proved herself a great war leader, but failed as a statesman,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'The biggest stumbling block will come from the traditionalists in the Pakistan army who have grown on a diet of anti-Indian propaganda and thinking on which much of their role -- both militarily and politically -- is centered upon.'
'We need to see Pakistan taking concrete and sustained action to reign in the terrorist groups'
The Peoples Democratic Party on Wednesday virtually turned down the offer of support from its arch rival National Conference for government formation, dimming the prospects of an early resolution to the political stalemate resulting from the hung verdict in last month's assembly polls.
"They call themselves the champions of speech and expression. But deny the same for the people of Kerala."
Stating the reason behind her decision, the 18-year-old said she is not happy with her current line of work, which has silently and unconsciously transitioned her "out of imaan".
42 MLAs, including leader of Opposition Charanjit Singh Channi, went to the assembly and submitted their resignations.
From the Gulf countries to Malaysia and the UK to the US, the multi-agency operation christened 'Vande Bharat Mission' will see the state-owned AI operate 64 flights till May 13 in the first phase to ferry around 15,000 Indian nationals from 12 countries.
Condemning the incidents of intolerance, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that it is against the traditions of our culture. He said publicising the acts of vandalism is also a matter of great concern.
'If the NSCN-IM is cold shoulderd, the chances are that it will slip back into insurgency,' caution Sandeep Pandey, Meera Sanghamitra and Babloo Loitongbam.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's carping ally said the police assertion about security threat to Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Maoists was just a 'conspiracy theory'.
'We should hit Pakistan, continue to prepare for surgical strikes, continue to punish Pakistani posts in the proximity of the LoC and we should start adopting counter terrorist measures.' 'That should be India's action without escalating it to a full-fledged war.'
Vajpayee had always felt that India must act with conviction and panache. He decided that, irrespective of the attendant risks, he would undertake what many felt was a precarious course. A fascinating excerpt from N K Singh's Portraits Of Power: Half A Century Of Being At Ringside on Atalji's 96th birthday, December 25.
Opposition parties on Thursday launched a vociferous attack on the Centre over its handling of the farmers' agitation, callings its dialogues with the protestors 'monologues', even as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party defended the new laws asserting that its government is committed to the welfare of peasants and increase their incomes.
In comments that are likely to create a political storm over the next few days, former Research and Analysis Wing chief A S Dulat has reveled that former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had expressed his discontent over the 2002 Gujarat riots and called it "our mistake".
India lacks China's culture of collective discipline, so what will provide the glue for people to cooperate rather than follow their raw survival instincts? asks Ravi Bhoothalingam.
