Civic authorities have removed a banner put up by a local Hindu organisation leader at Surathkal, carrying pictures of Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse and Hindutva icon V D Savarkar, following a complaint.
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on the events of August 5, 2020.
Speaking at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's Dussehra rally in Nagpur, Bhagwat said community-based population imbalance is an important subject and should not be ignored.
A Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party MLA over the weekend hit out at Akhtar and said no film involving him will be allowed to be screened till he apologises for his remarks.
VHP leader Pravin Togadia told a dharam sansad in Delhi that this will help restore the honour of the 'Hindu rashtra'.
A political activist in Bihar on Thursday put up a poster announcing his resignation from 'all posts in the Bharatiya Janata Party' in protest against the ethnic strife in Manipur.
VHP general secretary Pravin Togadia claimed the Gujarat elections had proved that 'Hindu bashing is not profitable in India.
'Now they're talking about changing the Constitution; they feel they have no reason now to hide their intentions.'
'Many Indians are not voting mostly on the basis of issues like the economy and their own well-being as measured by data provided by the government.' 'They seem to be as concerned and perhaps more concerned about other things, especially those that have to do with the harassment of India's minorities,' asserts Aakar Patel.
'We want Muslims to go about their work and business unhindered.' 'They should not get victimised and that will only come through the process of reconciliation.'
'I would think that India faces less damage from opinions voiced overseas compared to the damage it suffers if the right to free speech of its citizens is curtailed in the name of image management,' asserts Shyam G Menon.
A Muslim cleric, who had been booked by the Uttar Pradesh police for allegedly making inflammatory remarks, was placed under house arrest after he made a call to his supporters to march to Delhi seeking a ban on Hindutva organisations, a senior official said on Wednesday.
"If the defence minister thinks that by examination and change in currency (demonetisation), the storm, which has erupted here, will die down, then he has a misconception. This storm will not die down. Whatever they do, this storm is there and after exams, they will see that the storm will rise once again."
If we accept that there is a challenge in Punjab today, any realistic progress can only be made if the rest of the country, especially the government and the ruling party, engage with this sense of grievance, points out Shekhar Gupta
'A climate of impunity is created when the fascistic hate-mongers reckon they can get away with anything because 'this is our regime' and this is going to be a 'Hindu Rashtra'.'
Sunday's yatra proved that it needs both the maturity of locals as well as the police doing their duty, to ensure that a religious procession doesn't turn ugly.
Two more persons have been arrested in connection with last week's killing of an IT professional at suburban Hadapsar in Pune which witnessed violence in the wake of Facebook posts denigrating warrior king Shivaji and Shiv Sena supremo late Bal Thackeray, the police said.
'Who has given them the right to decide that I am not a Hindu like them'
Four more persons with suspected links with a Hindu outfit have been arrested in connection with the murder of a 28-year-old IT professional in Pune, police said on Thursday.
Already in the eye of a raging controversy over the 'Ghar Wapsi' programme, fiery Hindutva mascot and Bharatiya Janata Party MP Yogi Adityanath has now launched a campaign for declaring cow as 'Rashtra Mata', claiming his demand "embodies the sentiment of every Indian".
Voicing his displeasure over several incidents of mob violence in the country, he said, "Lynching is not the word from Indian ethos, its origin is from a story in a separate religious text. We Indians trust in brotherhood. Don't impose such terms on Indians."
'How come the BJP won even in the Muslim belt? I am 100% sure that the BJP would not win in the Muslim belt.'
'The situation in India is much more grave and serious than all of us think.' 'That's why it's important to defeat the BJP in 2024.'
Almost all will say no. Then ask them why they don't push back at those who rise the slogan of Khalistan. Somebody would confront you with a counter-question: If people can talk of a Hindu Rashtra, why get so upset if others talk of a Sikh Nation, points out Shekhar Gupta.
'It will be the end of the Congress after the Lok Sabha election.' 'Many Congressmen and even Communists will move to the BJP.'
On seeing them, Gandhi got off his vehicle, walked up to them and shook hands with several people in the crowd.
The Shiv Sena on Thursday hit out at the Congress for describing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat as 'Hitler' for his controversial 'Hindu nation' remarks saying it is the same party which appeased Muslims to derive political mileage while ignoring Hindus.
'We should not underestimate the power of Hindutva.'
India is too diverse to be governed centrally and with a single system. The way forward is for the central government to keep the monopoly of military power and a share of national resources while the provinces must have greater autonomy, recommends Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'With the abrogation of Article 370, the Constitutional integration of Kashmir is complete, but whether there has been emotional integration of the Kashmir Valley is a question mark.'
The Bombay high court on Wednesday rejected the bail plea of 2008 Malegaon blast accused Lt Colonel Prasad Shrikant Purohit but allowed liberty to co-accused Ajay Rahirkar on certain conditions.
'The entire swathe of Internet trolls -- who now apparently serve as the ideological brains-trust of the BJP -- would have looked at each other in puzzlement, thinking: What kind of warning is that?' says Mihir S Sharma.
The Congress Lok Sabha member from the Kerala capital said the BJP and "Sanghi goondas" orchestrated the incident.
Gehlot said the CAA is against the Constitution and divides people in the name of religion.
An aggressive nationalism debate has been manufactured by the BJP and RSS so that they can force their agenda on the nation. They want to convert a democratic, republic and a secular country into a Hindu rashtra," the CPI-M general secretary said.
"By attending, the Prime Minister has not only laid the foundation of a Mandir, but also the foundation of a Hindu Rashtra," Owaisi told reporters in Hyderabad.
Destiny had decided that a grand temple of Lord Ram will be built in Ayodhya and it chose Prime Minister Narendra Modi for this, BJP stalwart L K Advani has said in an article to be published in a special edition of the Rashtra Dharma magazine next week.
'This will require statesmanship and not politicking.'
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