The Supreme Court has refused to entertain Congress leader Pawan Khera's plea seeking protection against possible coercive action until April 20 in a case lodged against him for levelling allegations against Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's wife.
Pakistan has proposed the dates of June 27-29 for Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmud Qureshi's first bilateral visit to India.During the planned three-day official trip, that may include a short trip to Ajmer Sharif , Qureshi will hold talks with his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee, at whose invitation he will be visiting India. Qureshi's call on meetings with the top Indian leadership, including PM Manmohan Singh and President Pratibha Patil, are being planned.
Pakistan launched a retaliatory operation, 'Ghazab lil Haq,' against the Afghan Taliban following alleged border attacks, resulting in reported casualties and destruction of Taliban infrastructure.
Kasuri will call on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday evening.
The foreign ministers of both India and China will meet in Bengaluru on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Russia, India, China foreign ministers' conference.
Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, special envoy, foreign ministry of Israel, has asserted that the situation has effectively been a "multi-front regional conflict" since its inception, while claiming significant military and strategic gains against adversarial forces.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will represent India at the swearing-in ceremony of Bangladesh's next prime minister, Tarique Rahman. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Secretary-General of Lok Sabha Utpal Kumar Singh are also likely to accompany Birla.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held wide-ranging talks with his visiting Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Wednesday against the backdrop of widespread anger in West Asia over controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammed made by two former Bharatiya Janata Party spokespersons.
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki will undertake a three-day visit to New Delhi next week during which issues related to Iran's controversial nuclear programme and the proposed tri-nation gas pipeline are expected to dominate.
Pakistan on Friday said that its foreign minister will be travelling to India in July to take forward the bilateral peace process. "What we can deliver at this stage is that our foreign minister will be visiting New Delhi in July," said Pakistan High Commissioner to India Shahid Malik. On the ongoing foreign secretary-level talks, Malik said, "They are going well." Pakistan currently has Hina Rabbani Khar as minister of state for foreign affairs.
It is for the first time that a senior minister has said that Iran requested permission for docking three of its ships in Indian ports.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbami Khar holds India responsible for the tensions between the two countries following the border incident and says statements coming from the Indian government were disappointing. Suman Mozumder reports
'Wang Yi said the border issue is important and we should stay committed to peacefully addressing it through consultation and coordination.'
'India's ties with Israel have to do with defence and general technology.' 'The war changes nothing in what India and Israel hope to get from the relationship.' 'It's not as though India will get significantly more benefits from Iran if India abandons Israel at this time.'
The MEA release said that the embassy of India in Kabul will further augment India's contribution to Afghanistan's comprehensive development.
Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey met in Islamabad in what analysts say is the formal opening of a new diplomatic formation that could reshape the post-war regional order. Their immediate goal is a ceasefire; their larger ambition is to ensure that neither Iran nor Israel emerges from this war in a dominant position. Pakistan's foreign minister then flew directly to Beijing and mooted a Chinese role as guarantor of any eventual agreement. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
The Enforcement Directorate has accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of obstructing its investigation into a Rs 2,700-crore coal smuggling case, alleging she used state machinery to halt a search of an I-PAC office in Kolkata.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar stated that India has demonstrated resilience in the face of recent global shocks, including the conflict in West Asia, while speaking at the convocation ceremony of IIM Raipur. He emphasised the importance of building national capabilities to de-risk and develop leverage in a changing global order.
For weeks, the war skirted the edge of catastrophe without tipping over. Missiles flew, there was much destruction, commanders were assassinated, cities across the Gulf and even in Israel struggled to absorb the shock. But one line held: Energy infrastructure, the arteries of the global economy, remained largely untouched. That is no longer true. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri attended the swearing-in ceremony.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Thursday said he may visit India in the first quarter of 2011 if there was a breakthrough in talks between the foreign secretaries of the two countries in Bhutan in February. Qureshi said the foreign secretaries would meet to discuss the agenda for talks and he was likely to visit New Delhi in the first quarter of the year if there was a breakthrough in talks between the top diplomats.
'In West Bengal, the BJP's ideology of Hindutva will be customised to cater to the culture and the cultural imperatives of Bengalis.'
We cannot simply have a 60-65 per cent import dependency in LPG, the bulk of which comes from just one volatile region -- West Asia, points out R Jagannathan.
'As result, Netanyahu 'convinced' Trump to go to war with the help of overoptimistic Israeli intelligence assessments, essentially explaining to him that they only need to bomb Iran for 3-4 days, and the regime would then collapse.' 'Rather unsurprisingly, Netanyahu is ever since blaming his own intel service for the entire operation failing.'
The Punjab government has announced cash rewards for information leading to the arrest of 28 proclaimed offenders, including foreign-based gangsters, prompting criticism from the BJP regarding the state's law and order situation.
The India release of the Oscar-nominated film 'The Voice of Hind Rajab', based on the story of a five-year-old Palestinian girl killed by Israeli forces, is facing delays as the distributor awaits a censor certificate.
Global brokerage Bernstein has issued a cautionary note, stating that India risks 'under-delivering on its potential' unless it addresses key policy bottlenecks and structural risks, including employment challenges from AI, limited manufacturing gains, and rising welfare spending.
Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala has accused the BJP of attempting to intimidate bishops and church leaders in Kerala to gain their support, asserting that such tactics will not succeed in the state.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar affirms India's self-determined and 'unstoppable' rise, emphasising the nation's strategic growth and role in the Indian Ocean region amid evolving global dynamics.
The US Department of State highlighted a mission-defining challenge during External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's visit in November amid the US government shutdown, detailing the security measures taken to ensure his protection.
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini commemorated B.R. Ambedkar's birth anniversary, highlighting his contributions to women's empowerment and social justice. Saini and Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal criticised the Congress party for allegedly disrespecting Ambedkar, while praising the current government's efforts to honour his legacy.
The ceasefire is still technically holding, to the extent that no overt hostilities have been reported yet, but the rhetoric has hardened dangerously. The week ahead will also clarify whether the Islamabad failure was a negotiating tactic or whether Washington has genuinely locked itself into a position from which the only exits are climb-down, escalation, or the slow bleed of a new status quo that nobody chose and nobody controls. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
Sensitive issues remain. Water sharing of the Ganga and Teesta rivers. Treatment of minorities, particularly Hindus. Border management. Trade imbalances. Connectivity projects.What happens next will shape not just bilateral ties, but the balance of South Asia itself, points out Ramesh Menon.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed deep sorrow over the demise of Asha Bhosle, honouring her as an unparalleled versatile artist whose passing marks a significant loss for Indian and global music.
India and Canada are negotiating a long-term uranium supply agreement worth $2.8 billion. They are also exploring expanded civil nuclear cooperation after the passage of the SHANTI Bill.
A public exchange of open letters between Congress leaders Mani Shankar Aiyar and Shashi Tharoor reveals a significant rift over foreign policy, particularly concerning Israel and the Sabarimala temple issue.
The foreign ministers of the Quad grouping of India, the US, Australia and Japan on Friday held extensive talks in Melbourne amid escalating tension between Russia and NATO countries over Ukraine, the Afghan crisis and increasing concerns over China's "coercion" in the Indo-Pacific region.
Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee with Myanmar's Foreign Minister U Nyan Win. Win is in India to enhance bilateral ties, particularly in trade and energy fields. He also met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said at a media briefing that the meeting, however, does not indicate any change in India's policy towards Pakistan.
Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy announced that seven coal gasification projects will be established in Maharashtra, Odisha, and West Bengal with a Rs 64,000 crore investment, aiming to reduce India's reliance on energy imports.
