'India's first and longest-serving prime minister created -- or at the very least imagined -- a modern, democratic nation-State of the 20th century,' says Sunil Sethi.
It is unusual to see Narendra Modi highlight his OBC status -- something he has never done in his long political career. Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com examines Modi's compulsions for bringing his caste to the foreground
Chants of "Amar rahe, amar rahe, Ananth Kumar amar rahe" and "Bharat mata ki jai" rent the air as leaders paid homage and the mortal remains were consigned to flames.
'Since the rise of the Modi-Shah paradigm, the BJP has followed a simple formula.' 'Sweep the Hindi heartland and the two big Western states, and you can rule India with a majority by just adding some little bits on the platter from here and there,' points out Shekhar Gupta.
Pravin Gaikwad, the state coordinator of Maratha Kranti Morcha, has two rare qualities: he has an unparalleled connect with people from his community and, at the same time, underpins his ideology on a strong analytical base.
The Sangh Parivar forgets that not only is there no scriptural prohibition, venerable authorities in India held beef as both a desirable and an essential food, says Sunanda K Datta-Ray
The Union home ministry has received a factual report from the Maharashtra government on the prevailing situation in the state in the wake of caste-based violence there, a ministry spokesperson said.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah are being showered with accolades for securing a historic victory in the Uttar Pradesh elections, the milestone's scriptwriter, Sunil Bansal is glad his hard work has finally paid off.
After a series of defeats since 2012, the results of the recent panchayat polls are being seen by her as a tide changer for the upcoming UP assembly elections
The Congress on Sunday said it will give a "good fight" to Bharatiya Janata Party leader Narendra Modi on Varanasi seat and did not rule out fielding an outsider.
Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla, who had crossed 75 years, resigned on Tuesday from the Union Cabinet along with Minister of State for Heavy Industries G M Siddeshwara.
'Isn't it obvious that the BJP government in Jharkand and its police force care two hoots about the Supreme Court's orders?', asks Jyoti Punwani.
Fadnavis, BJP's state unit chief and MLA from Nagpur Southwest constituency, was unanimously chosen at the legislative party meeting at Vidhan Bhavan in Mumbai.
Seshadri Viswanathan tells us how he fell for Sunita.
Mourners in large numbers on Saturday paid their last respects to Jnanpith award winner and Kannada literary giant U R Ananthamurthy who was cremated with full state honours in Bangalore.
The proposed reservation will be over and above the existing 50 per cent reservation enjoyed by the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and the Other Backward Classes, taking the total reservation to 60 per cent.
A 60-year-old Dalit man and his physically challenged daughter were burnt alive by members of the Jat community in Mirchpur village in Haryana's Hisar district in April 2010.
The desecration of Vidyasagar's statue during Amit Anilchandra Shah's rally, which the TMC projected to be a 'Bhojpuri' and 'Dhokla' invasion on West Bengal's culture, may help her gain some favour with middle-class and erudite Bengalis in the last phase of the polls.
'The idea of Hindu Rashtra is one of the most inclusive concepts.'
Although the Opposition has been making a hue and cry over demonetisation, the BJP's programmes have been attracting crowds.
For the new millennium generation, slowly and at an accelerating pace, it is attractive to harbour a start-up ambition, says R Gopalakrishnan.
The foundations of the army's own peculiar secularism are potentially being destabilised
Addressing his fans on the opening day of a six-day-long photo session with followers, the actor said he was hesitant to enter politics since he knew its dynamics.
Social Justice Minister Thaavarchand Gehlot sought to allay doubts raised by several opposition members about the legislation's fate if challenged in the Supreme Court, saying he can say with confidence that the apex court will accept it.
Former Miss India Niharika Singh alleged Nawaz grabbed her and told her it was his dream to have a Miss India or an actress wife.
The attacks, which disrupted normal life, marked return of political violence on large-scale after a gap of over a year in Kannur.
Hits street with demonstrations across 75 UP districts
The state government is worried that the agitation may pose a serious threat to it, reports Sanjay Jog.
Seven time Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament and L K Advani loyalist Harin Pathak, who has been denied a Lok Sabha ticket, on Sunday flayed the party's decision and said he would consult his supporters before taking the next step.
'...incarcerated in jails, ruining their entire families.' 'You would see that Dalits who displayed so much agitation over the Bhima-Koregaon issue are effectively silenced by the arrests of their activists by the police.' 'What can be a more pitiable state than this for a people who had just seen a ray of hope after darkness of millennia?'
'If any party talks too much about Muslims, it will lose.'
There is nothing the young Purvanchali wants more desperately than to escape to a place with less hopelessness, and some opportunity, discovers Shekhar Gupta.
'One one hand, the BJP puts Uniform Civil Code as a goal in its manifesto, and on the other, it pushes massive discrimination against Hindus.' 'This is not sabka saath, sabka vikas. Rather it is "Haj ka saath, church ka vikas",' argues Sankrant Sanu.
Inclusion has never been a straight road and stories from ancient cultures show it has always been a struggle to accord equal status to all genders and species, says Arundhuti Dasgupta.
'Modi is the first BJP leader to try to include Dalits in its fold.' 'But the rank and file of his party is backward and want to bash up Muslims and Dalits whenever they have a chance.'
A senior politician Naidu respected once tried to convince the firebrand student leader to quit the Jana Sangh.
'At a time when the news channels are screaming louder than the worst crowd, you can't be subtle if you really want to say something important,' Anubhav Sinha tells Bedika/PTI.
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati has warned the people against the "communal designs" of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Bharatiya Janata Party and urged them not to lose their cool in the run-up to the 2017 Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh.
'We fear worse things to happen. We feel this is just a teaser.' 'I wonder whether later, the Christian community will be targeted.'
A Rediff reader recently travelled to Bihar's remote naxal effected district of Jamui... to attend a wedding! Snapshots from an unforgetful journey
