'A President who is a living embodiment of high principles can tone up the entire national fabric,' says B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
The 'secularists'are more adept at the politics of intense and alarmingly exaggerated fear-mongering, as this kind of politics provides easy votes of Muslims without making them answerable for the concrete issues of poverty, unemployment, lawlessness, and of basic needs like roads, electricity, etc, which is exactly how Nitish Kumar was defeated in the elections, says Mohammad Sajjad.
'If the RSS should be saluted for choosing such a scholarly statesman to address its highly trained cadre, one must also praise Pranab Da's sagacity for having gracefully accepting the invitation, thus disapproving any ideological apartheid,' says former BJP MP Tarun Vijay.
'there is absolutely no question that the Hinduism of the mob-lynchers, the people who have actually gone and killed others because of what they are eating or how they are worshipping or the faith they belong to or what they're doing professionally, those are, to my mind, not Hindus at all.' 'Hinduism needs to be reclaimed for the Hindus who are not bigots.'
Fearing imminent arrest and likely reprisals from the CRPF -- 25 of whose jawans were gunned down by the Maoists inside a jungle just 200 to 300 metres away from their homes on the afternoon of April 24 -- young Adivasi men and women in Burkapal abandoned their homes and fled into the jungle.
Hackers have begun to emerge from the shadows of suspicion.
Salman Khan of Khan Academy explains how he is pioneering the cause of free online education.
Today when we see the man behaving in a controlled, almost genteel fashion, creating a government with Prussian efficiency, colonising Delhi with a strange silence of expectation, one must ask is this Modi? Or is Modi all the trails he has left behind?'
A profile of Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot.
Nobody is clear what 'minimum government maximum governance' means.
The former McKinsey India head is presently on board of many big Indian conglomerates.
'Politics is full of struggle, especially for those from my background,' says Union Minister Kumari Selja in her first interview after Sunday's attack on her. 'It has always been a struggle and will continue to be so.'
The US wants to split Sino-India ties, says the Chinese media.
Founder Shilen Amin tells Arthur J Pais how far the South Asian International Film Festival has come since its inception 10 years ago
India has so far succeeded in staving off the deadly virus that has claimed over 4,500 lives abroad.
The fight over FYUP is between a highly controversial decision taken during the United Progressive Alliance rule and how the National Democratic Alliance government perceives it and how it is determined to resolve it in its own way, reports Sheela Bhatt.
The Centre said the reports of the governor mention that law and order situation has been deteriorating every passing day and there was 'total collapse' of the law and order machinery.
If the impact of the Greece crisis spreads across Europe and parts of the world which are more interconnected than ever before, India cannot hope to be insulated, says Paranjoy Guha Thakurta.
Two years into power, there is very little to show for the Modi government by way of 'achievements' on the foreign policy front, and his China, Pakistan policies are gasping for breath, says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
It will be difficult for the Indian equity to outperform overall growth to the extent bullish observers expect.
The government has provided a long-term vision.
'Even if Akhilesh Yadav opens up the entire state treasury for us we will not vote for the Samajwadi Party... ''...I don't want to return to my village, my head will be chopped off. They want me to press the button on the lotus.' Caught between an aggressive BSP cornering Dalit votes and the BJP cornering other Hindu votes, the Muslims of Muzaffarnagar have nowhere to go, no one to turn to. Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt presents the grim situation on the ground in western Uttar Pradesh.
'Dadri was an extension of the cultural fascism that was happening in the country.' 'All the people in the country suffered under the Emergency, but now we see one community trying to crush the other community. Do they know what is brewing in the minds of the other side? What is happening today can lead to a very dangerous situation in the country.' 'We have lost religious tolerance in today's India.' Writer Sarah Joseph on why she returned her Sahitya Akademi Award.
An upcoming film on Mohammad Azharuddin promises to be a potboiler, though not a true biopic.
When it comes to celebrating William Shakespeare, can India be far behind?
AAP has been vociferous since its inception and has mainly raised issues pertaining to corruption. A political party must have crisp and specific standon all issues which concern the nation not just corruption or secularism; and AAP has failed to deliver on all these counts, says Aditya Shah and Aadit Kapadia.
The central government has drafted a law to restrict wombs for hire, and there is much to be said on all sides.
'There is nothing like the Sangh agenda or the BJP agenda... we believe only in the Nation's Agenda,' says newly appointed BJP Vice-President Vinay Sahasrabuddhe.
'Earlier India as part of the Third World fought for the rights of the Palestinians. But oddly the defeat of the Congress and the decline of the Nehruvian imagination has altered such perceptions. The new middle class expresses an open sympathy for Israel, contending that Jews like many Hindus has been misunderstood,' says Shiv Visvanathan.
'This has to be seen in the context not only of the legacy we inherited, but also of global economic weakness.'
'If after inheriting the very bad situation we have reached this level despite consecutive years of drought and no growth in the world economy, it is no accident.' 'It is a result of the sound macro economic policies followed by this government.' 'We have eschewed populism and stuck to a path of fiscal prudence.'
The city readies itself for the biggest economic, political and social event of the year
'You will see more and more people working independently -- starting beauty parlours, driving cars, etc.' This is what we call the gig economy.' 'The same people who have been laid off in India or are unable to get visas to work in the US may be part of this gig economy.' 'India needs billions of jobs, and it can only be created by self-employment or the gig economy.'
Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Bajirao Mastani has ruffled quite a few feathers among the descendants of the Peshwa and his Muslim wife.
Now that an elected chief minister is at the helm, it is high time the Centre initiate discussions to appoint a full-time governor at the earliest, given that the state is set to face some challenging times, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
'The question now is how long the exercise in perfection he created will last once his influence isn't there any longer,' says Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
Not many people know that today's BPM industry gives specialists great career options.
Hers is a rags-to-riches story for the ages, peppered with risks, determination and strokes of luck.
On the occasion of her breaking the world's longest hunger strike, Rediff.com reproduces this 2011 feature on the activist and her life.
Several SP leaders fear Muslim voters may shift loyalty, which will benefit rivals like the BJP.
