The Lok Sabha witnessed a heated debate between BJP and Congress members regarding the handling of Naxalism, with the BJP accusing the previous UPA government of failing to contain left-wing extremism and the Congress defending its efforts to curb the threat.
There are enough people at the top decision-making level in Tehran who are still willing to negotiate, provided Trump can create the right setting for the negotiation to acquire a dynamic of its own, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Haryana Labour Minister Anil Vij reveals a major scam in the labour department, with nearly 90% of work slips examined found to be fake. An investigation into the Haryana Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board reveals potential losses of thousands of crores of rupees.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju strongly defended Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla against a no-confidence motion, accusing the Congress party of attacking constitutional institutions and undermining parliamentary democracy.
Indian wrestler Abhimanyou Mandwal emphasises the importance of mental strength as he aims for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, transitioning to the 74kg category and drawing on his fearless upbringing and recent successes.
Indian wrestler Abhimanyou Mandwal discusses his mental strength, recent successes, and ambitions for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, including a shift to the 74kg category.
Ratheesh Balakrishna Poduval's latest film Oru Durooha Sahacharyathil (Under Mysterious Circumstances), showcases both his directorial strengths and inconsistencies, starting as a compelling tale of brotherhood before shifting awkwardly into a psychological study.
'India cannot speak of a demographic dividend if half its young women are unable to participate in paid work.'
If Trump wants peace with Iran, Pakistan will offer to help. If Trump seeks Pakistan's aid to spy on Iran, then too Munir will not hesitate to chip in. At the same time, the ISI will not hesitate to tip off Iran now and then, points out M R Narayan Swamy.
'When Narendra Modi was here, he spoke only about development and what the BJP wanted to do in Kerala. That kind of sober rhetoric or argument is acceptable to the people here.'
Three members of a family were found dead in a locked room in Uttar Pradesh's Fatehpur district, with police suspecting a suicide pact driven by financial difficulties.
India's top eight housing markets saw a one per cent decline in sales during the July-September period to 95,547 units, mainly due to lower demand in Mumbai, Pune and Delhi-NCR, according to PropTiger. Real estate consultant PropTiger, recently acquired by listed entity Aurum PropTech Ltd, released its data on Wednesday for India's eight primary housing markets for the July-September quarter.
Lok Sabha takes up FCRA Amendment Bill amid opposition protests.
'Narendra Modi -- a man with deep and vital experience of Indian politics -- has seen the BJP lose many elections between 1975 and 2015, and with every defeat, he learned lessons that made sure he would never allow his party to be defeated so easily again.'
'Workers are the people who create all the wealth in this country. How can you call them anti-national?'
The Supreme Court of India has ruled that individuals converting from Hinduism, Sikhism, or Buddhism cannot retain Scheduled Caste status, reinforcing existing constitutional provisions.
Nepalese citizens are voting in the general election, the first since protests toppled the previous government. Over 18.9 million are eligible to vote for the 275-member House of Representatives.
Cristiano Ronaldo has expanded his footprint in football, securing a 25 percent stake in Spanish second-tier side UD Almeria, representatives confirmed on Thursday.
The Rajya Sabha witnessed a heated debate between the opposition and the government regarding a discussion on the West Asia crisis, with accusations of political maneuvering and failure to uphold the dignity of parliamentary positions.
Despite President Trump's optimistic prediction of a swift resolution to the ongoing conflict with Iran, Tehran dismisses any possibility of diplomatic breakthroughs, citing deep distrust and highlighting the complexities of US-Iran relations.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announces increased domestic LPG production to offset import disruptions caused by Middle East tensions, alongside assurances of fertiliser availability and the clearing of UPA-era oil bonds.
US Vice President JD Vance leads a delegation to Islamabad for talks with Iran, expressing optimism while warning against bad faith negotiations from Tehran.
A car driven by a masked man breached security at the Delhi Assembly, raising concerns about potential security lapses.
By all available indications, the White House drafted a face-saving note and handed it, ready-made, to Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was supposed to then post it in the guise of a plea urging Trump to extend the deadline by two weeks 'to allow diplomacy to run its course'. Trump would then graciously accept Pakistan's 'request' and declare a ceasefire. Sharif dutifully posted the message on X. Except that he, or whoever was handling the account, forgot to delete the tell-tale first line visible in the edit history: 'Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X'. Prem Panicker's must read blog on the Iran War.
'Many of the children I work with had never attended school before and had never been given the right environment or opportunity to learn.'
'When education became accessible -- through flexible learning spaces, creative methods and community-based classrooms -- these same children began to thrive.'
'Over time, many who had never stepped into a formal classroom not only entered the education system but continued their studies further, with some going on to university.'
Iranian news agencies have denied reports of Iranian officials travelling to Pakistan for negotiations with the United States, even as Pakistan prepares for potential talks and faces criticism from Israel.
The delegations from the US and Iran head to Islamabad on Friday, carrying a ceasefire that is already fraying, a Strait that is technically open and practically closed, and a negotiating agenda that would challenge even parties actually negotiating in good faith, which these groups are not. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
'There is no shortage of fuel whatsoever.' 'India is stock surplus as far as petrol and diesel are concerned.'
Congress women MPs in the Lok Sabha have accused Speaker Om Birla of bias, alleging he made false allegations against them under pressure from the ruling party to defend Prime Minister Narendra Modi's absence from the House.
Opposition parties are demanding a full Parliament discussion on the West Asia conflict, criticising the government's silence and calling for a contingency plan to protect India's energy security and citizens.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah criticised the Congress party for its alleged inaction in addressing Maoist violence during its long rule, while highlighting the Modi government's success in nearly eradicating Maoists from Bastar, Chhattisgarh.
The clock on the ceasefire is running out. But everyone's already whispering about round two, possibly as soon as this weekend.
The core issues to be settled -- access to Hormuz, Israel's aggression in Lebanon, the question of Iran's nuclear programme, sanctions relief and compensation -- are thorny enough to require weeks of patient negotiation. The most likely outcome of the opening sessions is that both sides take the measure of each other, establish what is and is not negotiable, and return home without having broken anything. That would count as progress.
With domestic markets turning choppy, investors are increasingly scouting for opportunities overseas to diversify portfolios and hedge against a weakening rupee.
A Mumbai sessions court has directed a magistrate to issue summonses to former Maharashtra DGP Satish Mathur and other senior officers for allegedly not registering an FIR in a MHADA fraud case.
As the negotiations continued, the Iranian government said on social media that "talks between Iran and the US in Islamabad entered the expert-level stage as economic, military, legal, and nuclear committees joined in".
Trump may strike. He may announce productive talks and extend again. He may do both at the same time. Iran will not open the Strait on someone else's terms, so no matter what happens, that problem will remain unsolved. And the IRGC will still be collecting its $2 million toll from every ship bold enough to ask permission to pass.
'The reason why they rushed through the bill was they wanted to avoid using the 2026 Census because the 2026 Census by their own decision will be a caste census.' 'The BJP knows that a significant share of the OBCs who will get captured in the census, for the first time after the 1931 Census, are against the BJP. Only a segment of the OBCs are in their favour.' 'So they wanted to avoid the OBC reservation among women, which is a demand of a lot of Opposition parties.'
Sonia Gandhi criticises the government's proposed delimitation, claiming it's a politically motivated move to delay the caste census and gain an unfair advantage, rather than genuinely promoting women's reservation.
Both sides have now revealed a preference for escalation over strategic defeat, and each new provocation narrows the space for the next pause. The Touska seizure, Iran's refusal to negotiate under blockade, Israel's strikes on Iranian oil infrastructure -- all of these add up to an increasingly untenable situation. This makes the wild card -- Trump and his motormouth -- more consequential than ever, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
