A day after Sharad Pawar announced his decision to step down as the Nationalist Congress Party president, senior party leaders held a discussion in Mumbai on Wednesday on the road ahead, even as Chhagan Bhujbal said Pawar's daughter and Lok Sabha member Supriya Sule was ideal for a 'national role'.
Is it a case of poor targeting of a welfare scheme, or is it a reflection of the government's desire to expand the scope of this benefit to secure greater electoral dividends? asks A K Bhattacharya.
The Centre has summoned to New Delhi the chief secretaries and directors general of police (DGPs) of Assam and Mizoram for a meeting on Wednesday while the restive inter-state border was calm, a day after armed clashes left six dead and over 50 injured, officials said.
With elections elsewhere in India showing that multi-pronged contests usually work to the BJP's favour, the party can gain if it hangs on stubbornly. In the meantime, any additional support helps. That is why the archbishop's comment attracted political traction in Kerala, observes Shyam G Menon.
'The BJP should not treat Shinde saheb as a lightweight.'
'Does anyone understand India?' 'Does anyone have a larger perspective for India as a whole?' 'Today we have rulers who do not understand the ruled.'
'...the Congress tally in 2028 would further plummet under 50.' 'A fresh face as CM would further strengthen the BJP and weaken the Congress in Madhya Pradesh.'
'I want to warn Ajit dada and all those who have stabbed Pawar saheb by joining hands with the BJP.' 'Don't write saheb's obituaries so soon.'
Deepa Gahlot picks 10 Web series that was worth the viewer's while.
Ramesh stressed that the prime minister should participate in the debate on Manipur.
August 15, 2023 became for me, an extraordinary Independence Day. I will remember it as the day the country's largest political party -- one that struts around like a colossus and tutors us in apt behaviour -- suddenly looked bankrupt in terms of ideas and had to take out a personal guarantee from the prime minister to underscore its capacity to deliver our future, observes Shyam G Menon.
Very few know of his scintillating mind, the outpouring of fresh ideas, the attention to detail in every endeavour, the extraordinary administrative and organisational skills, and a limitless stamina and energy with which he pursues every interest and commitment, notes Ambassador Talmiz Ahmad.
The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to list for hearing a PIL filed by former Rajya Sabha lawmaker Subramanian Swamy seeking a direction to the Centre to declare the Ram Setu as a national heritage monument.
The Railway Men is a compelling watch; the subject is handled with seriousness and respect without going overboard with the dramatic impact, observes Mayur Sanap.
'I wonder how people who come to power through democratic means turn out this way.' 'But people of India are strong, and those who think they can hoodwink people, are mistaken.' 'You can fool some people for some time, but not all people, all the time.'
The Congress on Thursday slammed the Centre after a May 4 video of two women being paraded naked in Manipur surfaced, with party president Mallikarjun Kharge accusing the Narendra Modi government of turning democracy into 'mobocracy'.
'The Russian attack might be a wakeup call for Europe.'
Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu Monday called Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann the 'most protected CM' as he took on the Aam Aadmi Party government over the law and order situation in the state and also claimed that his security has been pruned.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday made it clear that it will not go into the personal laws governing marriages while deciding the pleas seeking legal validation for same-sex marriages, and asked the lawyers to advance arguments on the Special Marriage Act.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Punjab visit was cut short on Wednesday after a "major security lapse" as he was stranded on a flyover for 20 minutes due to a blockade by protesters, prompting the Union Home Ministry to seek an immediate report from the state government and strict action against those responsible.
'Somewhere in the midst of the three milestones of 1881, 1984 and 1999 are the clues that provide the answer to the troubling corrosion of Karnataka politics: The disappearance of values, the criminalisation of politics, and the complete collapse of ideology,' says Krishna Prasad, former editor-in-chief, Outlook.
Scores of churches and homes belonging to Christians in Jaranwala tehsil of Faisalabad district, some 130 km from the provincial capital, were burnt down on Wednesday by a mob enraged over reports that two Christians had desecrated the Quran.
"Everyday fringe elements are making speeches to vilify others including on TV and public forums," the bench said.
Recent disclosures allege large scale corruption, nepotism and kickbacks by Pakistan air chief Air Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Babar Sidhuin housing land deals in Islamabad and in buying of new aircraft, points out Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
'The TDP walking out of the NDA is a victory for the YSRCP.' 'The YSRCP wanted it to happen so that it would help them in coming elections.'
During his interaction with the chief ministers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured that more economic activities would resume; he also said that zone identification may be left to the states.
The present happenings in Manipur are the wages of continued neglect, and not so benign at that, of a vital region and its people. Had we lavished on the North East even a fraction of the care and resources we do on Kashmir, things would not have come to this pass, asserts Shreekant Sambrani.
The controversy erupted after the Tamil Nadu Cooperative Milk Producers Federation -- which sells dairy products in brand name Aavin -- declined to use the Hindi term 'Dahi' in its printed sachets as directed by FSSAI and said that it would only stick to the Tamil word 'Thayir'.
The Congress on Monday promised that a government led by it will conduct a nationwide caste census and implement 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies at the earliest, including adequate representation for women belonging to the OBC community.
The contrast between the two meetings couldn't have been more stark, yet, both were organically linked, the latter a show of support for the former.
The Archies is an evergreen thought passed on from generation to generation. But Sukanya Verma wishes it had some of the comic's tee-hee humour and hyuk hyuk too.
'The Bills (Bharatiya Saksha, Bharatiya Nagarik Sanhita and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita) are arbitrary, opaque and ambiguous and structurally quite violent.'
The apex court, which was hearing a PIL seeking that convicted persons be restrained from forming and holding posts in political parties for the period they are disqualified under the election law, posted the matter to May 3 for final disposal.
Suraj was found lying still in Palpur East Forest Range's Masavani beat by a monitoring team on Friday morning.
'The Modi government's lack of foresight has compelled India to become an importer of vaccines today and even now, their "vaccine strategy is flawed and discriminatory'
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".
The common man in India is bogged down by corruption and there is a need to fix accountability at all levels, the Supreme Court observed on Friday as it dealt with a petition seeking debarment of those against whom charges have been framed in criminal cases from contesting elections.
In a response to the August 3 order, the Centre, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, said till the time either the legislature or the poll panel steps in, the top court must lay down "dos and don'ts" for political parties in the 'larger national interest.'
Political blame game has begun over the violence in Saharanpur with Congress accusing the Uttar Pradesh government of "administrative lapse" while BJP alleged that Samajwadi Party was indulging in "vote-bank politics".
'The Swedish government would consider who will live, who will not die, in rationing coronavirus healthcare!' 'This means the 'biological age' would supersede the patient's chronological age as a potential guideline,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar