Though dubbed as the 'war hero', the role of Rajapaksa in ending the conflict with the LTTE with the death of its supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran in 2009 is quite divisive as he stands accused of violating human rights, a charge he vehemently denies.
The agitators belonging to 70 organisations, led by KMSS and Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad, gathered at the secretariat to protest against the passing of the bill in the Lower House of Parliament.
The Bharatiya Janata Party chief also said that Ram temple will be built in Ayodhya in four months.
Scholars and students have cautioned that the proposed divisive and discriminatory changes would harm the country.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar told rediff.com in Patna on Tuesday that the Dalai Lama promised to back and fully support the setting up of the university in Nalanda.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi flew to Tokyo on Sunday for crucial summit talks with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe after an overnight stay in Kyoto where he visited two ancient Buddhist temples with the latter accompanying him in a significant gesture.
'The present government swears by Hinduism. But we lost three of our sants during earlier BJP regimes.'
'How is it to live in a place that does not have electricity or a telephone connection, where people do not have any concept of what the world is beyond the mountains?'
A group of assailants has set on fire at least 29 homes of Hindus in Bangladesh over an alleged blasphemous social media post amidst protests by the minority community against temple vandalism incidents during the Durga Puja celebrations last week, media reports said on Monday.
A separate Union Territory has been a long-standing demand of locals, many of who have alleged that the Ladakh region had been neglected by leaders of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Dalai Lama speaks at a discussion on the scientific basis for compassion at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington. This is the second day of his six-day visit to Seattle, where he is scheduled to host a five-day conference on compassion.
Xi's visit to Nyingchi, bordering Arunachal Pradesh, signals China's opening of another front to India in the eastern sector, observes Srikanth Kondapalli, the leading China expert.
Hindu and Sikh leaders will share stage with Pope Francis during a prayer service in New York
Universities must be the bastions of free speech and expression. It must be the arena where diverse and conflicting schools of thought contend. There should be no room for intolerance, prejudice and hatred within the spaces of this institution. Further, it must act as flag-bearer for the coexistence of multiple views, thoughts and philosophies, says Pranab Mukherjee.
The Second Annual Interfaith Baccalaureate Service of the University of Nevada-Reno, to be held next week, will include readings from Hindu scriptures and prayers.
At least 21 people, including seven women, were killed and 47 injured today when a powerful bomb ripped through a packed bus near the Sri Lankan capital. The explosion occurred at 7.35am in Moratuwa, 12 km from Colombo, a military spokesman said and blamed the LTTE for the attack.
Pakistan Foreign Office in a statement said the latest legislation by the Indian government was another major step towards the realisation of the concept of "Hindu Rashtra.
The Dalai Lama has won the first Guru Nanak Interfaith Prize given out by Hofstra University in New York. The $50,000 prize honours men and women striving for interfaith dialogue. The Dalai Lama, winner of the Nobel Prize for peace, has spoken across America on several occasions in recent years and could visit the Hofstra campus in the near future.
'The missile mounted near Kailash-Mansarovar is called DF-21. It is a medium-range, 2,200 kilometres ballistic missile. Its advantage is that it can cover all cities of north India, including New Delhi'
Addressing the students of the Royal University of Bhutan in Thimphu, Modi asked them to work hard and take the Himalayan nation to great heights.
Can you find a world leader who has met generations of Indian politicians, most US Presidents, European head of States, several Popes, celebrated cricketers, Hollywood and Bollywood stars, some of the greatest scientists and many ordinary people, including what he calls, 'Chinese brothers and sisters?'
The Mahabodhi tree in Gaya under which the Buddha attained enlightment has not been vandalised, Bihar Home Secretary Afzal Amanullah and Rajendra Agriculture University scientist A Singh said on Friday.
'The Tibetan movement will never turn violent during the Dalai Lama's life-time.'
Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Saturday said India is a nation of non violence and noted that a majority of the Hindus believes in peace and amity.
Banerjee has held five rallies in Kolkata in 11 days against the CAA.
President Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Rajapaksa will transform Sri Lanka's political landscape after Thursday's electoral triumph, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy, veteran Colombo watcher.
Dr Behera speaks about how the nationwide positive reaction to the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir indicates that the very idea of India is changing. From a diverse, multicultural entity, could India be becoming a place where assimilation is more important than accommodation?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday arrived in Xian on a three-day visit to China during which he will hold summit talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on a range of issues including the festering border dispute and China's plans for infrastructure projects in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Aseem Chhabra lists his favourite films, most of them shown at international film festivals held virtually (Berlinale and Rotterdam), hybrid (Toronto) or physical (Cannes and Venice).
Despite repeated appeals from the police and the varsity authorities, the protesters refused to end their agitation. Police said the protesters did not have permission to march towards Parliament.
Ten images that show it's an odd, odd world we live in.
58-year-old doctor Sanaur Rahman was riding home on his motorbike when he was attacked by machete-wielding militants in Kushtia town.
The event, which was slated to have been held at Rajghat to commemorate the Buddhist monk's 60th year in exile in India, was later moved to Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh, and will now be held at the end of the month.
Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing his government of "extraordinarily large" interference in academic institutions.
India on Wednesday expressed concern over the "negative and incorrect" picture conveyed about Hinduism and Sikhism after a leading Malaysian university published an educational module depicting Hindus in India as unclean following which the varsity has issued an apology.
She lived for two-thirds of her life in India, adopted its national cause and customs, and took an Indian passport. She served a prison sentence in Lahore as part of Gandhi's protests against an Imperial power which happened to be her motherland. Freda Bedi delighted in confounding accepted definitions of identity.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is truly stealing the show in Japan. Apart from signing deals and improving ties with Japan, his visit to the country is creating quite a few memorable moments - from selfies, to playing the flute, to even playing the drums. Rediff.com presents a few of these fun moments.
It was just outside the stadium that Vichai crashed in the helicopter he used to take off from the pitch and fly back to London after games.
'Whatever the legal position, it is my understanding that in practice, the Indian authorities have always treated Hindu refugees from Pakistan and Bangladesh far more sympathetically than Muslims,' notes Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
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