The Bharat Mata controversy in Kerala shows how political and symbolic fights between the state and the Centre have taken attention away from education, throwing the state's oldest university into confusion and disorder, observes Shyam G Menon.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a special postage stamp and a commemorative coin featuring Bharat Mata to mark the centenary celebrations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar asserted that there would be no compromise on Bharat Mata.
The editorial came amidst the ongoing tussle between Arlekar and the Marxist party-led Left Democratic Front government over the usage of 'Bharat Mata portrait' during official functions being held in Raj Bhavan.
The Kerala High Court questioned the suspension of a university registrar who cancelled a program where a 'Bharat Mata' portrait was displayed, sparking a debate over religious symbols and law and order.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said 'Bharat Mata' is apparently an unparliamentary word in the country, a day after some of his remarks made in the Lok Sabha during the no-trust motion were expunged by Speaker Om Birla.
Fifty-nine members of delegations visiting 33 world capitals, reaching millions of people, giving one message, in one language, in one voice -- is an unprecedented world movement, observes former BJP MP Tarun Vijay, former Chief Editor, Panchjanya, the RSS weekly.
The Raj Bhavan issued the statement hours after Sivankutty walked out of a state government event at Raj Bhavan, protesting against the display of a 'Bharat Mata' image, based on a claim that it was widely used in RSS functions, during the programme.
In a blistering attack against the BJP over the violence in Manipur, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that its politics had "murdered Bharat Mata" in the northeastern state and termed members of the ruling party "traitors".
'Genuine secularism cannot be built on the backs of Hindus alone.' 'In a pluralistic society every religion is duty bound to respect the rights and sentiments of the others.' 'Vande Mataram was a casualty of minorityism. Bharat Mata Ki Jai cannot be allowed to go the same way,' says Vivek Gumaste.
Chanting Bharat mata ki jai is an affirmation of citizens' faith in their country, their motherland and if a religion preached otherwise, it was against national interest, he said.
Union Minister Smriti Irani on Wednesday came down heavily on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his 'murder of India in Manipur' remark in Lok Sabha, saying this is for the first time in parliamentary democracy that someone has made such a statement.
The Congress-led UDF is set to move a no-confidence motion against the BJP-led administration in the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation. This move comes as the BJP faces a fragile majority, exacerbated by a councillor's arrest and the invalidation of oaths for 20 councillors. The UDF cites administrative paralysis and mismanagement, while the LDF's stance on supporting the motion remains a key factor.
The state government has also issued orders on celebration of Independence Day at state madrassas.
Four months ago, the resolution demanding to rename City Chowk was moved by senior Deputy Mayor of the JMC, Purnima Sharma. Simultaneously, the resolution was adopted after it was passed by the general house of the JMC.
Despite many restrictions put in place by the authorities, some people took to streets to catch a glimpse of the fighter jets.
Jamat-e-Islami Hind on Friday backed the fatwa issued by the Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband against chanting of "Bharat Mata Ki Jai"
Drawing examples from history to prove his point, Vijayan said a Muslim man named Azimullah Khan had coined the slogan 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai'.
Maharashtra today faces an acute water crisis. But all that Devendra Fadnavis is concerned about who is not chanting slogans like Bharat Mata Ki Jai, says Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
The total quantum of water supply has barely improved since Independence, while demand has exploded, points out T N Ninan.
Singh had said the slogan of 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' was being misused to construct a "militant and purely emotional" idea of India that excludes millions of residents and citizens.
A victim Mohammad Ajmal said they were not given a chance to say anything, adding that their skull caps were thrown and crushed with feet.
The Darul Ifta, the fatwa department of the Islamic seminary Darul Uloom of Deoband, has issued a fatwa against the chanting of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai'.
The first direct Vande Bharat Express service between Jammu and Srinagar has commenced commercial operations, significantly reducing travel time between the two cities and enhancing rail connectivity in the region.
A huge debate has broken out over patriotism and nationalism after All-India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi refused to chant 'Bharat Mata ki Jai'.
A criminal complaint was filed on Friday in a Delhi court seeking registration of an first information report against All-India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen President Asaduddin Owaisi for alleged offences of sedition and causing enmity between different classes.
AIMIM MLA Waris Pathan was suspended from Maharashtra assembly for refusing to say 'Bharat mata ki jai'.
Reminding that youth take to Naxalism and pick up arms against 'injustice', the Sena asked, 'Will the youth of Marathwada for the sake of a sip of water take up arms and become terrorists?'
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath criticised the TMC government in West Bengal, alleging the closure of numerous industries and a decline in the state's cultural and economic status.
Two cases were on Thursday filed in Bihar seeking sedition charges against AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi for his refusal to chant Bharat Mata Ki Jai.
Standing near the noose, he recited a couplet in which he said he wished nothing but to sacrifice his life for the motherland. Utkarsh Mishra remembers Ram Prasad Bismil on the revolutionary leader's 128th birth anniversary.
Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), has announced plans for nationwide protests if Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan does not resign by June 13 over alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests, following a peaceful agitation at Jantar Mantar.
Speaking to reporters in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Dipke also claimed that the protest organised under the CJP's banner at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Saturday was largely successful, with around 7,000 people participating in it.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has questioned the necessity of playing all five verses of Vande Mataram at the beginning and end of official events, calling the practice "unnecessary and burdensome". He highlighted the practical difficulties and lack of legal basis for mandating the full version at every function.
The BJP said moderate and liberal Muslims take pride in raising nationalist slogans like this but hardliners with medieval beliefs raise such issues for their own sectarian interests.
Chief Minister Stalin seems to have drawn a line between his personal beliefs and those of others in the family, beginning with wife Durga Stalin, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
"There is still a dispute over saying 'Bharat mata ki jai' and those opposing to say it, should not have any right to stay here. Those living here should say 'Bharat mata ki jai',"the Maha CM said.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), led by Abhijit Dipke, is staging a protest at Jantar Mantar, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks. Dipke has stated he will not leave until their demands are met and has requested Delhi Police to extend permission for the ongoing demonstration.
A private complaint was filed in a Hyderabad court seeking direction to police to register a case against AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi.
When Vinod Kumar Singh, the minister for mines and geology, found that mediapersons did not join the chorus, he stopped and asked if they were "sons and daughters of Pakistan".
