As the virus continued to spread its tentacles across India, several parts, including Kashmir valley headed towards a virtual lockdown with the administration restricting movement of people in several parts and banning all public transport in Srinagar city.
A 'beef party' and a bandh greeted Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah who visited the state on Wednesday as part of his north-east tour seeking to strengthen party base and urging workers to make public the alleged corruption by ruling Congress party in Meghalaya.
'The message the government is sending out is you are not safe if your dare oppose this regime.' 'The entire incident gives you an understanding of what happened in Germany during the Third Reich.' 'This is jingoism and this is not nationalism of any kind.'
People in Delhi and other big cities are very "cunning" and look down upon the tribals in the country, Union Minister Jual Oram said on Thursday, as he called for a change in the outlook of the society towards the community.
Hasty, ill-conceived steps show how isolated Mamata Banerjee had been from the national political trend. A fascinating excerpt from Sugato Hazra's Losing The Plot: Political Isolation Of West Bengal.
The Central Information Commission has directed the Central Board of Secondary Examination to allow inspection of class 10th and 12th school records of Union Minister Smriti Irani, rejecting CBSE's contention that it constituted "personal information".
'This is a political case and police is being used here right from the day one.'
The journalist, identified as Anwar of news channel CNN IBN, said despite heavy police deployment, clashes erupted in the court complex and the cops' presence did not deter the lawyers from shouting slogans and fighting with journalists and students.
Besides, less than 200 applications have been received by the authorities challenging the inclusion of the names of suspected illegal immigrants in the NRC, a list of Assam's residents, two months after a window was opened for claims and objections.
Kumar said he had no option but to walk out of the grand alliance as continuing in it would have meant compromising with corruption.
'Amit Shah and Modi have a disciple and guru relationship. But Modi and Jaitley's relationship was based on friendship. That's the difference.'
Rahul Gandhi said he had helped the party conceptualise its 'Nyay' scheme to help remonetise the economy.
The rape survivor, who is a postgraduate student at one of the colleges run by Chinmayanand's organisation, has alleged that she was raped and "physically exploited" for a year by the former Union minister.
India is the fifth worst-hit nation by the COVID-19 pandemic after the United States, Brazil, Russia and the United Kingdom, according to data issued by the Johns Hopkins University.
HRD Minister Javadekar responding to criticism of politicising the event said the UGC communication reflected "patriotism not politics", and it is not compulsory for the academic institutions to organise any such event.
Opposition parties on Thursday alleged that an "undeclared Emergency" has been imposed in the country in the light of restrictions and detention of thousands for defying prohibitory orders to deal with the mounting protests against the new citizenship law in multiple cities. Rejecting the charge, the Centre and the Bharatiya Janata Party said no government can tolerate violence and alleged that the opposition parties were fuelling the protests for vote bank politics.
Internal strife and tribalism is endemic to Afghanistan, notes Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Family members of Parliament attack victims on Monday demanded stringent action against the students allegedly involved in the "anti-national act" in Jawaharlal Nehru University.
On December 10, Kissinger began to encourage the Chinese to take action against India: 'If the People's Republic were to consider the situation on the Indian subcontinent a threat to security, and if it took measures to protect its security, the US would oppose efforts of others to interfere with the People's Republic.' On the 50th anniversary of India's greatest military victory, Claude Arpi recalls how the US suggested that China intervene militarily on Pakistan's side.
The Indian police is governed by the archaic, colonial-era Police Act of 1861, which has no place in a democracy. It was created to make the police subservient to its masters and, consequently, antagonistic to the masses, states Veenu Sandhu.
'The economy is in a free fall.'
'And it's been declining for so long, so consistently, that the promise of growth and better days now looks a fantasy.' 'A mid-1970s kind of pessimism, even hopelessness, is growing among the young.' 'This isn't what Mr Modi promised them.' 'Their aspirations and needs are clear and present, and not being fulfilled,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
'In all likelihood, the Congress will fall short in Gujarat.' 'The Modi-Amit A Shah duo will hold on to the state for the BJP,' predicts Sudhir Bisht.
Will Malik's worldview, shaped by his years with the socialists, Charan Singh, the Congress and V P Singh, help him govern the troubled state? Or would his rule have the imprint of the party he joined in the latter years of his chequered political career?
'What the BJP will have to ensure in order to score an ideological victory is to demonstrate not only its commitment to the rule of law -- which is the first prerequisite -- but to introduce a sense of compassion,' says Amulya Ganguli.
After a meeting of the Group of Ministers on coronavirus, the government has proposed a set of social distancing measures to be in force till March 31, the officials told reporters.
Making a statement on the situation after cases of coronavirus surfaced, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said the government is taking all necessary measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
Ramdhari Singh Dinkar's poems speak to every Indian, uniting them across political, social, religious and caste divides. They elevate; they inspire; they stir the soul and goose-bump the flesh.
Ramdhari Singh Dinkar's poems speak to every Indian, uniting them across political, social, religious and caste divides. They elevate; they inspire; they stir the soul and goose-bump the flesh.
Sparks flew in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday as the raging Jawaharlal Nehru University row and suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula was taken up for discussion, with opposition accusing the government of muzzling the voice of the youth and "mercilessly crushing" the principles of democracy.
Rarely have we seen such intoxication over power, which ignores the cries of those dying, notes Jyoti Punwani.
A meeting chaired by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba reviewed India's preparedness to deal with the virus amid mounting global concern over increasing number of cases in China and several other countries.
A total of 1,203 candidates, including 109 women, are contesting for the 140 assembly seats in which a total of 2.61 crore voters are eligible to exercise their franchise.
Greetings from all quarters, including his political rivals, poured in on Monday for Prime Minister Narendra Modi who celebrated his 68th birthday in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi.
Incidents like these are a wake-up call, says School Education Secretary Anil Swarup. 'Today, if a particular problem has been found, technology allows solutions to address it,' he says, suggesting alternatives such as printing and distribution of encrypted question papers on the day of the exam. Swarup wants electronic tracking to keep tab on who has access to and can, therefore, leak papers.
'The D K Adikesavulu clan is so wealthy, owns so many houses, and has so much jewellery,' notes T V R Shenoy, 'that it did not notice a servant stealing at the rate of Rs 66 lakh every year!'
Three medical students studying at the Wuhan University, all natives of Kerala, who returned to India on their own recently and self-reported at a hospital in the state have tested positive for the respiratory virus.
'Is the agenda of the RSS according to the Constitution of India? They talk of Hindu Raj, Hindutva. Is this Constitutional?'
No one was injured in the incident that came even as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during a poll rally in Delhi's northwest Rohini area alleged that those who support terrorists in Kashmir are staging protest at Shaheen Bagh.
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.