Fast-track court Judge Vijay Kumar Mandal ordered the issue of the notice to her after hearing the complaint by an advocate Sudhir Ojha. An advocate on behalf of Sonia would be allowed to present her side on May 22 failing which the court would be free to take an ex-parte decision, Mandal directed.
When the deadly earthquake battered Nepal last week, major temples in Kathmandu' Darbar Square were razed to the ground, but the home of a nine-year-old girl worshipped as a living goddess remained almost unscathed.
The Muzaffarpur court had on April 16 issued a notice to the Congress president on a petition alleging that that she had hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus by her alleged portrayal as 'Goddess Durga' in a poster at the party's Muradabad office in Uttar Pradesh.
This Durga Puja, the world's largest Durga idol will be installed at Deshapriya Park in south Kolkata.
Rediff readers went pandal hopping and shared these pictures.
"You have seen that in Islam, it is said that they oppose 'bootparastee' (idol worship). It is their matter and their philosophy. We perform idol worship. We worship the 'saakaar brahma' and the 'niraakaar brahma', which is allowed by the Sanatan Dharma.... Some are saying 'I Love Mohammad' and indulging in arson and vandalism." "They know that this is Sharadiya Navratra, the occasion of Vijaya Dashami. If they spread chaos during the Sharadiya Navratra, work like 'Chundd' and 'Mundd', then Goddess Bhagwati is not going to tolerate it. Goddess Bhagwati crushes such 'Chundd' and 'Mundd'," Adityanath said.
A Durga idol in Kolkata in which the 'Mahishasur' was replaced by a crudely-crafted Mahatma Gandhi lookalike created a controversy on the birth anniversary of the father of the nation.
Hearing an appeal submitted by Forum for Durgotsab, a division bench of the high court comprising Justices Sanjib Banerjee and Arijit Banerjee, retained its earlier order declaring all Durga Puja marquees no-entry zones and erecting barricades in front of the pandals to prevent visitors from entering inside in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.
At 4 am, troops roared their war cry! In the long running tradition of the armed forces, soldiers seek the blessings of the Goddess before setting out on their mission -- in war or peace. The Republic Day parade is one such mission.
Elaborate security arrangements were also made at the temples in view of the rush of pilgrims. Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended his greetings to people on the beginning of Navratri and wished them happiness, peace and prosperity.
In the past, Thackeray has expressed disappointment claiming "delay in the disqualification" of rebel Shiv Sena MLAs led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde after the Bal Thackeray-founded party split in June 2022.
Get inspired by these styles when you go pandal hopping during Durga Puja.
Please continue to e-mail your festive pictures and stories to getahead@rediff.co.in (Subjectline: Navratri, Durga Puja, Golu 2025). Don't forget to include your name and location. We will publish the best photographs on Rediff.
Every week, we bring you fascinating videos, chosen by you, through your likes.
The nine-day Navratri festival began across India with fervour on Saturday. Thousands of devotees queued up at temples of Goddess Durga. Navratri, which literally means nine nights, is observed twice a year.
For the second straight year, the popular festival will be celebrated under the long shadow of the pandemic.
The decision to invite Mushtaq had sparked controversy, with several petitions challenging the Karnataka government's move.
'Kajol has always been very particular about Nysa and Yug coming for the puja every year.'
The Navratri festival begins on Monday, September 26, 2022.
The colour of the day is red, symbolising the vigour of this auspicious occasion and making it the perfect time to 'paint the town' in this dramatic hue!
An encyclopedia to the best Durga Pujo eating.
There's a lot more to the festival than just five days of celebration; that is something you can only experience when you live in Kolkata. And that's what every Bengali living outside the state misses, notes Chitrangada Datta Chaudhuri.
A division bench of the high court comprising Justices Sanjib Banerjee and Arijit Banerjee, while hearing a public interest litigation, said that no visitors will be allowed to enter the marquees. For small pandals, barricades will have to be put up five metres from the entrance, while for the bigger ones, the distance has to be 10 metres, the court ordered.
You can also channel your inner diva like Aditi Rao Hydari in a stunning sharara set or take inspiration from Tejasswi Prakash in a twirly skirt and choli.
Priyanka Chopra, Tamannaah Bhatia, Khushi Kapoor turned the Bvlgari showcase into a star-studded style spectacle.
'It is time again for Durga Puja.' 'Time again to be struck by India's astonishing cultural irony, one where the female form is worshipped as divinity while millions of real women are forced to lead restricted lives,' notes Shuma Raha.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticized the Congress party, alleging that the dropping of important stanzas from the national song 'Vande Mataram' in 1937 sowed the seeds of partition. He made these remarks during the inauguration of the year-long commemoration of 'Vande Mataram'.
The poll panel has also ordered an inquiry into the entire incident by Magadh Divisional Commissioner Asangba Chuba Ao, an election commission statement said.
Kangana Ranaut spent Gandhi Jayanti visiting a museum in New Delhi and seeing an exhibition with a difference.
'This year, it may be pertinent to look at some of the myths that invoke her warrior form, where she manifests herself as Shakti, the underlying strength in all humanity,' says Arundhuti Dasgupta.
'If she manages to throw out people, go for surgical operations, clean up her image, she will be victorious.'
Over 30,000 policemen have been deployed.
Rashmi Thackeray, wife of Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, on Thursday visited a Navratri event at Tembi Naka in Thane city and offered prayers to Goddess Durga.
This is the first time when the civic body has asked for closure of meat shops during Navratri which is being observed from April 2-11.
According to the police, the trouble erupted in the Bhagwan Bazar locality of Chhapra, which is the headquarters of Saran district, when a procession for immersion of Goddess Durga's idols was being taken out.
Ma Durga might be the city's most celebrated annual visitor, but Kali is the resident Goddess, notes Sandip Roy.
Kajol and her family offered prayers on Ashtami at the North Bombay Sarbojanin Durga Puja -- or the Mukherjee Bari Pujo -- in Juhu, north west Mumbai on Wednesday, October 13, 2021.
Navratri celebrations in Chennai are not only about Golu dolls, Saraswathi Puja or Ayudha Puja. These days, Durga Puja and Dandiya Raas too are regular events in the city, reports S Saraswathi.
