If you are more than your rhetoric about a strong and united country, give us our due -- treat us as countrymen, says an ordinary Muslim in this open letter.
'What of Modi? They are willing to take their chances. Maharashtra's Muslims recall how the Congress scared them with the Bal Thackeray bogey for decades, yet, when it came to using all the might of the State to protect them from Shiv Sena goons, be it in 1970, 1984 or 1992-1993, it did nothing. For them, the Congress's secularism is a cruel joke.' 'This argument that we ('seculars') must vote for the 'winning secular candidate' has one more implication: Those who are against Hindutva must forever be stuck with the same corrupt, cynical and tired old parties, who are not even secular,' says Jyoti Punwani.
For generations to come it will be difficult for any other Urdu poet to attain such high standards as Nida Fazli, who passed into the ages on Monday, says Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com.
'We have finished that fear.'
'We are losing the battle of secularism, but we have not lost.'
'In a competitive industry where no one has a formula for success other than the actor's personal appeal, the need to dominate the news cycle in the interim between films is so overpowering that even the otherwise sober stars can suffer a Ghajini moment,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
The Congress-led UPA government was a sinking ship and would not return to power while the Left would face further rejection by the people, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Monday.
Amit Shah now enters an unfamiliar and interesting phase of his political career. His success or failure will henceforth be assessed based on his performance as a key minister, points out Shekhar Gupta.
'His speech at the bhoomi puja will stand out for a long time in the memory of those who listened to it for touching the pinnacle of excellence and brilliance in both style and content,' declares B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
Sukanya Verma celebrates 25 years of Bollywood images.
Once Ram temple is built it will become a 'ghoshit (declared) Hindu Rashtra', a VHP leader told the gathering.
The Padma Bhushan was conferred on 17 personalities including N Chandrasekharan, chairman of Tata Sons, Krishna and Suchita Ella of Bharat Biotech, Cyrus Poonawalla, Satya Nadella, chairman of Microsoft, Sunder Pichai, chairman of Google.
The Supreme Court's refusal to stay execution of Yakub Memon on Wednesday drew sharp reactions from legal experts.
'I was fortunate to have served as India's ambassador to Indonesia and witnessed on several occasions, the incredible performances of the Ramayana and episodes from the Mahabharata in Jogjakarta and in Bali,' recalls former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
The Muslim parties on Thursday took a U-turn on questioning the authorship of the 2003 report of the Archaeological Survey of India and apologised to the Supreme Court for wasting its time in the Ayodhya land dispute case.
He also appealed to everyone to light a lamp this Diwali in the name of Lord Ram.
In George Fernandes's passing, many will mourn him -- even those who disagreed vehemently with him, writes Aditi Phadnis.
'He couldn't hold himself from chanting 'Siyavar Ramchandra ki Jai'.'
Modi hasn't raised or encouraged the raising of slogans such as 'Jai Sri Ram' at public meetings
Thackeray said he has to undergo a surgery on June 1 and after recovering from it, he would again address a public meeting.
Only on Wednesday, in his Independence Day speech, Prime Minister Modi said he wants to resolve the Kashmir issue through Vajpayee's doctrine of "Insaniyat, Kashmiriyat, Jamhooriyat" - a testimony to the former PM's lasting legacy.
The tragedy is that, at least on social media, the narrative that was being lapped up by many Indian Muslims was that Yakub Memon was being victimised. The purveyors of this poisonous line of thinking of course want this sentiment to grow since communal polarisation is the primary pillar of their political strategy, says Sushant Sareen.
'Emboldened by the BJP victory, the upper castes feel they must assert themselves and regain dominance over the rural power structure.'
'Today, there is pervasive fear in society; an uncertainty of what might happen.' 'This has forced Muslims to shrink further into mental ghettos, with many considering extreme measures like pretending to change their identity.'
However, many historians, conservationists and artists have slam move to 'entrust' Red Fort to cement company.
In a fresh plea on Tuesday, the Centre said it had acquired 67 acres of land including the 2.77 acre disputed Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid site and sought permission of the top court to return the excess land to its original owners.
'Ayodhya will once again become Ram's city.'
'For Muslims, India is now a Hindu Rashtra, no matter what kind of Constitution is still in place,' argues Mohammad Sajjad.
The BJP is banking on development. The opposition is raking up caste identities and the dangers of hyper nationalism.
Here are 15 things you should know about Bharat Ratna Atal Bihar Vajpayee.
'It was only to be expected that she would grace the national awards function in her distinctive style.' 'For her admirers, the flouting of norms was in character because she has made her mark in highly competitive Bollywood on her own terms,' says Amulya Ganguli.
'Non-separation of religion from politics is India's most daunting challenge'
In this lockdown, no matter how many similarities the memory dredges up from past events and associations, there is one thing that has no precedent: The isolation that it has imposed on people, reports Arundhuti Dasgupta.
One accused was acquitted by the court.
Javadekar, along with Piyush Goyal and Dharmendra Pradhan, is among the few ministers who have party as well as ministerial responsibilities.
'The burden of proof is on Muslim parties to show that this finding, that the mosque was built on land held sacred by Hindus, is wrong'
Increasingly seen as the 'bellwether' for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the assembly election results will not only decide as to who will rule UP but show which way the wind is blowing ahead of the Lok Sabha elections two years hence.
Controlled communal tension is useful in ensuring continued Muslim support. Fear of the BJP is a requirement for both, the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, to keep their Muslim vote bank in line, says Saeed Naqvi.
Looking back at the history of the Memon family from March 12, 1993 to July 30, 2014
We celebrate January 26 as Republic Day because that's the day on which we adopted the Constitution in 1950. Yet, in the days preceding and following Republic Day 2021, three different courts violated the Constitutional rights of citizens, observes Jyoti Punwani.
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