We sorted through countless photographs taken around the world to come up with the top photos of 2019. Together these images tell the story of the year -- capturing moments of hope and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy.
In an attempt to corner the Centre, the Opposition raised the issue of the Indian Army's involvement in the Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's Art of Living event.
Amidst outrage expressed by members in Parliament, India on Wednesday asserted that it will intervene "effectively and specifically" to ensure the return and restoration of dignity of its Deputy Consul General in New York who has been arrested on charges of visa rules violation.
Rains will continue to batter Tamil Nadu for the next seven days and the next 48 hours are "very crucial", the IMD has said.
'Here was a man who played a major part in helping the Bengalis of East Pakistan create a new nation, secured the merger of Sikkim into the Indian dominion and built R&AW into a formidable outfit, comparable to the best in the world.' Rameshwar Nath Kao shunned the limelight, hated to be photographed and preferred to work behind the scenes. A revealing excerpt from Nitin A Gokhale's much awaited book, R N Kao: Gentleman Spymaster.
The night before Sheena was allegedly killed, 'Indrani Madam instructed me to not send anyone up to her flat.' 'She told me to especially not allow Rahul Mukerjea.'
Army was on Friday called in for deployment in eight districts of Haryana after one person was killed and 21 were injured in police action as Jat stir for quota turned violent and the rampaging mobs set ablaze the house of state's Finance Minister besides several government and private properties.
It further said that the epic Valmiki's Ramayana, whose composition dated back to the period Before Christ (BC), was the main source of knowledge of Lord Ram and his deeds.
In a boost to relief efforts in the flood-ravaged Kashmir Valley, the Jammu-Sringar National Highway on Tuesday reopened for traffic after remaining closed for 13 days due to landslides triggered by incessant rains.
Congress on Wednesday sought to demolish Sushma Swaraj's claim of helping Lalit Modi on humanitarian grounds in Lok Sabha, saying she could have done it under a legal framework and demanded response from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Uber cab driver Shiv Kumar Yadav will spend the rest of his life behind the bars, with a Delhi court on Tuesday sentencing him for the "remainder of his life" for raping a woman executive in his taxi 11 months ago
Rejecting a plea for 20 years jail term, the court said "it was for convicts to respect the lady especially when she was a tourist" and by their act, they have put "a stigma" on the country's reputation.
The crackdown in the corporate espionage case led to the arrest of another person on Monday.
Battling choppy weather, power crisis, inundated streets and the odds, the students, with a few girls among them, survived through the tough times, keeping each other strong.
The Seismological department said that the quake measured 6.8 on the Richter scale and lasted for about two minutes.
If an FIR had been registered by the Pen police -- instead of a mere entry in the station diary -- an investigation could have taken place and the body might have been identified as Sheena's, leading to the case being cracked much earlier.
'The Senators were playing safe, not angering either the pro-India lobby or the pro-Pakistan lobby, but perhaps more importantly, the military-industrial complex -- the most powerful lobby of all -- which the majority of Senators are beholden to in terms of largesse to their campaign coffers.'
Ganesh Dhene said there had only been two or three mango trees in the grove, from where he found the skeleton, which he specified had no flesh on it.
Death was staring them in the face as flood waters rapidly rose and there were no rescuers in sight. Relief came only after the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force and teams from the National Disaster Rescue Force swung into action with the needed equipment. And with that, dimming hopes soared up, says our correspondent Mukhtar Ahmad, who himself had a narrow escape in Srinagar.
The Manchester and Salford Magistrates' Court heard that the attacker, Karl Anderson, had 25 convictions for 37 offences, including football-related violence, the BBC reported. The 29-year-old will pay a 100 pound ($134) fine.
With better preparedness and efficient planning and execution, toll restricted to a low level. Lesson from 1999 cyclone helped.
In an era when the misguided youth of today are trying to build political careers by subscribing to divisive ideologies, they need to look to independent thinking icons such as Acharya Kripalani, says Mohammad Sajjad.
In its first comments on the sexual harassment allegations against Akbar, the BJP said the minister has given his version on the row and that it is not about whether the party agrees or disagrees with him.
'When the forensics have collapsed, approver is clearly proved to be a liar from the beginning to the end... Does the prosecution genuinely believe that we ought to remain in judicial custody despite showing that their own story is not being corroborated by evidence, for another 192 witnesses?'
Cyclone Hudhud is set to intensify further into a very severe cyclonic storm in the next 12 hours before it makes landfall on October 12.
Jammu and Kashmir MLA Ramesh Arora wants momos banned, but are they really unhygienic and harmful?
Stepping up relief and rescue operations in quake-hit Nepal, India on Sunday deployed over two dozen aircraft and choppers along with nearly 1000 trained personnel and said the situation in the Himalayan nation was "very, very serious".
'The optimistic advice might be "fasten your seat belts" and the pessimistic one might just turn out to be "brace for impact",' says Claude Smadja.
'Islamabad receives billions in aid from the US but continues to harbour terrorists,' he said.
Israel on Wednesday stepped up its offensive in Gaza, asking 100,000 Palestinians to flee their homes and threatening ground operations, as the death toll in the airstrikes climbed to 208 with tensions escalating following failed Egyptian cease-fire efforts.
Hundreds others were wounded many of whom received bullet and pellet injuries and are undergoing treatment in various hospitals.
No other foreign leader seems to have been extended such a warm welcome by an Israeli Prime Minister in the past few decades.
In this exclusive conversation with Rediff.com contributor Rajeev Sharma, exiled opposition leader Ahmed Naseem explains why the world should care about democracy in Maldives.
The new equation between 'Namo' and 'Barack' may well 'convert a good start into lasting progress.'
Tamil Nadu government deployed state and national disaster response force teams in Kanyakumari district, which bore the brunt of the rain fury.
The Comptroller and Auditor General report tabled in Gujarat legislature has indicated security lapses and mismanagement by the jail staff in the state prisons.
Nepal Prime Minister Sushil Koirala on Tuesday said that the death toll in Saturday's devastating 7.9 earthquake could reach 10,000 even as he said that his government was carrying out rescue operations on a war-footing.
'A fierce crusader against communalism, George joined hands with majoritarian forces, never to revisit or re-assess his saffron association.' 'He was a Union minister in 1998-2004, a time when people like Graham Staines were lynched in Orissa.' 'On the Gujarat pogrom of 2002, George went on to kind of justify the slashing of pregnant women, by saying in the Lok Sabha that this was nothing new for India.' 'Thus, he was in sharp contrast to what he had himself stood for in the heyday of his political career in the 1970s and 1980s, says Mohammad Sajjad.
South African Olympic and Paralympic track star Oscar Pistorius was sentenced to five years in prison by Judge Thokozile Masipe, closing one of the most sensational trials in South African history and one that may yet fuel controversy about race and money in its justice system.
'Modi's investment in the relationship with Washington is the biggest deliverable of this visit. He means business and that's fantastic!'
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