'We are seeing an era where only what Modi wishes is going to happen.' 'A clear message has now been sent to others that if this fate could befall on Nitin Gadkari, then just think what could happen to lesser mortals.'
'Police records suggest one Kashmiri boy joined terrorist ranks every third day last year and that trend has continued,' says Karan Thapar.
'It is astonishing that such a serious issue be handled in so casual and cavalier a fashion, but this has become what is expected of this government,' observes Aakar Patel.
Are our ministers having fun at our expense? Any other explanation would suggest 'we are ruled by men whose judgement you cannot trust and whose grasp of reality is questionable,' says Karan Thapar.
'Not just the angry families, but also the public will remember Swaraj's foreign ministership for this colossal lapse of judgment,' notes Karan Thapar.
Laid to Rest: The controversy over Subhas Chandra Bose's death, a book published by Bose's great nephew Ashis Ray, reveals how we've always known the truth, notes Karan Thapar.
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh's daughter Daman Singh, who has penned her parent's biography, said it was "upsetting" that the public opinion had turned against him towards the end of his 10-year rule.
An agreement between India and Pakistan, however tenuous, has its own meaning and impact. We have not heard the last word about the ceasefire agreement, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
'Surely a higher standard is required when ministers speak in public to an audience that will assume they are factually correct, says Karan Thapar.
Will Amar Singh be the go-between between the SP and Congress, asks Aditi Phadnis.
Not only do Modi and Trump's personalities overshadow the high offices they hold, the way they attack people and speak are very similar, observes Karan Thapar.
If the BJP falls sizeably short of the 115 mark -- the seats it won in 2012 -- it will be hard to deny the party hasn't suffered a telling reverse.
'We needed Smriti Irani to champion democratic values, but she's chosen to be a coward.' 'In fact, she has shrunk India's democracy.' 'Why blame her or the BJP? I can't hear the voices of Sonia and Rahul Gandhi.' 'They lack the guts to stand up in support of Padmavati, Sexy Durga and Nude.' 'When it comes to defending freedom they are no different,' says Karan Thapar.
'So far there is no clear money trail nor an indisputable smoking gun.' 'But that doesn't mean there aren't disturbing questions and a strange resistance by the government to reveal the price, which only adds suspicion to concern,' observes Karan Thapar.
People are steadily pulling the prime minister off the pedestal where they once placed him, which prompts Karan Thapar to ask if there's a change in the political temperature.
'At critical moments an inability to take tough decisions resulted in potentially far-reaching solutions slipping out of our grasp.' 'If similar opportunities come Narendra Modi's way will he act differently?' asks Karan Thapar.
The deported Rohingyas would face persecution in Myanmar but also, possibly, elimination.
'This is not a moral but a political question yet its importance is likely to grow with every passing day,' says Karan Thapar.
Former Union Minister Arun Shourie on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of deliberately maintaining silence on incidents like Dadri lynching while his ministerial.
Shashi Kapoor and Ramesh Sippy's grandson is all set to make his movie debut.
'I think we have had these periods of standoffs with China.' 'And there is enough knowledge, enough experience, enough wisdom still available to be able to retrieve situations.'
Justice J Chelameswar, who courted controversy by virtually revolting against Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, also said that impeachment cannot be an answer to every problem and there was need to correct the system.
'The sacking of Outlook magazine's Editor-in-Chief Krishna Prasad provides another example of the saffron camp's disrespect for dissent,' argues Amulya Ganguli.
Sonia Gandhi declined to become prime minister in 2004 because of strong opposition from her son Rahul Gandhi who was afraid she would be killed like his father and grandmother if she accepted the post, former External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh claimed.
'Modi has also made mistakes and overpromised.' 'However, his cautious and careful approach have insulated him from criticism.'
He also said it was for India to decide on dates for Foreign Secretary-level talks, postponed in the wake of the terror strike.
'From his persistent fuelling of pan-Hindu nationalism to pandering to narrow Gujarati chauvinism, Rambo rides again, using fair means and foul -- and often foul -- to gain the battleground,' says Sunil Sethi.
Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav behaved entirely in character when he broke ranks with the Congress and backed the Bharatiya Janata Party in the monsoon session, says Aditi Phadnis
Raghuram Rajan said the head of the central bank should have a fixed tenure of more than three years as the current term was too short.
He was deliberately reducing Ansari to his Muslim identity by linking his career as a diplomat in the Arab world and educationist and his reflections on intolerance with his religion.
With no clarity on the Congress getting the Leader of Opposition status in Lok Sabha, senior leader Kamal Nath threatened action against the Speaker.
'We are a plural society that for centuries, not for 70 years, has lived in a certain ambience of acceptance.' 'It is under threat,' outgoing Vice President Hamid Ansari tells Karan Thapar.
Her brother Karan made her hate Leonard Cohen's music. And then, she bumped into the singer in a Mumbai swimming pool.
Nobody expects such "petty comments" from a person holding such a high post, said BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya.
'The conception of Make-in-India, Skill India, Smart Cities, Digital India, Beti Bachao, Beti Padao and so on show a visionary breadth of mind, and Modi is almost the first political leader in India to put them into effect with single-minded zeal,' notes B S Raghavan, the former civil servant.
India has never sought Dawood's extradition, the Pak high commissioner has said.
Arun Shourie, a minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Cabinet, has hit out at the Narendra Modi government, saying its economic policy was "directionless" while the social climate was causing "great anxiety" among the minorities.
In remarks that could fuel a fresh controversy, senior Congress leader Kamal Nath on Sunday said that Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan's decision on the issue of Leader of Opposition in Lower House could be "flavoured" by the Bharatiya Janata Party and Narendra Modi.
'You can still acquire the COVID-19 virus even if you are vaccinated.' 'But if you develop the disease, (after being vaccinated) the likelihood is that it will be mild.' 'It just makes sense to continue to take precautions, because you may be around a lot of unvaccinated people.'
'Like in cricket, M S Dhoni was the captain and Virat Kohli played under him.' 'Then Dhoni played under Kohli.' 'Now imagine, having a second switch.' 'That is the analogy here, and I find no other example in Indian politics, or even world politics.'
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