Modi said laws which divide the country on communal lines and become a reason for inequality have no place in a modern society.
'When I asked whether they would choose a government job that offered Rs 30,000 a month or a private job that offered them Rs 3 lakh a month, without exception, everybody said, "I would rather have the government job!"'
Incidentally, the allegations come at a time when Lawrence Bishnoi is in the news in India for his alleged involvement in the murder of Nationalist Congress Party leader Baba Siddique in Mumbai.
According to the PIL, the 'Ghar Ghar Guarantee Scheme' involves the distribution of guarantee cards that promise various financial and material benefits in exchange of votes.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh agreed for an all-party meeting to discuss the issue after the law commission submits its report on the law which has come under focus in the wake of the Jawaharlal Nehru University controversy.
He will succeed K K Venugopal, whose term will end on September 30.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the Bharatiya Janata Party has decided it would not adopt the path of appeasement and vote bank politics.
Former judges of the Supreme Court and high courts and some senior advocates have written a letter to the Chief Justice of India NV Ramana requesting the top court to take suo motu cognisance of the detention of protestors and demolition of their houses by the Uttar Pradesh authorities following protests against objectionable remarks made by BJP spokespersons.
The recommendation, if implemented, is likely to face opposition from the government's key support base among Hindu traders and businesspersons.
A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and SVN Bhatti said in democratic nations, the freedom to express one's views is respected and the rights of journalists are protected under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.
The bench allowed the rejoinder affidavit to be filed by petitioners in two weeks thereafter and posted the matter for final hearing in January, 2025.
'No Indian political party functions in a democratic way.'
Kiren Rijiju's exit from the coveted law ministry came in the midst of his frequent criticism of the judiciary, particularly on the system of appointment of judges to high courts and the Supreme Court.
'The Opposition will continue to be attacked through misuse of agencies, civil society will be force-marched towards extinction and India's plummeting on global indices will continue.' 'Minorities and especially Muslims will continue to have open season declared on them. Institutions will continue their decline,' predicts Aakar Patel.
Coming on the heels of two successful bilateral meetings between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden -- the Official State Visit of the Indian leader here in June and a bilateral meeting in New Delhi in September -- USCIRF in its announcement of the meeting said the Congressional hearing is on how the US government can work with the Indian government to address violations.
The chief adviser alleged elections held under Hasina's regime were "rigged blatantly and generations of young people grew up without exercising their voting rights."
'The message is not clear whether we are wanted.' 'All this could adversely impact our strategy in India and also investments.'
The Kerala assembly on Tuesday unanimously adopted a resolution urging the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government to refrain from implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the country.
'Even if we have laws in place, which we must, we need a societal change.' 'Rather than telling our daughters that, "Listen, leave your house at so and so time, come back by so and so time," we must tell the men and boys that "Whatever point of time you encounter a woman in public space or wherever, you treat her with respect, dignity, and as an equal participant in these public spaces".'
'Bangladesh has become unstable and this instability will impact India.'
Other prominent candidates among the 904 in the fray are Union minister Anurag Thakur, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad's daughter Misa Bharti.
The Lokpal was functioning without its regular chief since Pinaki Chandra Ghose completed his term on May 27, 2022.
When a strong executive decides it wants something, even something that is dangerous and unconstitutional, there is little resistance from within to stop it, notes Aakar Patel.
Bangladesh's newly-appointed Home Affairs Ministry adviser has vowed to take swift legal action against those who attack or abuse minorities, stressing that there is no place for violence, conflict, or hatred in the country.
'...We should first look at and acknowledge what we have done to ourselves.' 'To not do so opens us to the accusation of rank hypocrisy and also reduces the stature of our globetrotting peaceniks,' asserts Aakar Patel.
The tribal communities, asserting their rights under the Forest Rights Act, are now planning to gather in Delhi to demand "justice" for their livelihoods and traditions that are closely linked to the forests.
Disclosing an individual's income-tax returns is tantamount to violating the person's fundamental right to privacy as recognised by the Constitution.
In a letter to the poll panel dated March 21, DMK's Organisation Secretary R S Bharathi alleged Modi made that claim in Tamil Nadu while campaigning for the ensuing LS polls. Modi's remark was a gross violation of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and the Model Code of Conduct.
The opposition, which had earlier accepted defeat, is again jumping around today, the UP CM said.
Reuters reported earlier this week that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has sent a warning notice to the companies expressing concern that the merged entity will effectively have a monopoly on cricket broadcast rights worth billions of dollars, allowing it to squeeze advertisers.
The statements the separatists make, the abominable tableaux at their parades, the slogans, posters, and selfies with assault rifles are not India's problem. If they are a nuisance, it should bother their host countries, because they are armed and have their own underworld with deadly gang rivalries. Significantly, none of this happens in the US -- only in snowflaky Canada, points out Shekhar Gupta.
At present, such a law has been enacted in just eight states to stop illegal conversion while the problem is nationwide, he added.
The specter of how the Munambam issue was exploited during the November by-elections is proof of the price Kerala is paying for its emergent politics. Controversies become the stuff of slow-burn and brinkmanship. The former promises mileage; the latter searches for an advantage, notes Shyam G Menon.
He said there is a fundamental distinction between religious practices, rituals and civil rights.
In a relief to industry, the government has accepted a parliamentary panel's recommendation on allowing cartels to opt for the settlement scheme under the Competition Amendment Bill, according to official sources. The proposed Bill seeks to introduce a clause for settlement and commitment that offers any enterprise against which an inquiry has been initiated to file an application for settlement. The Parliamentary Committee on Finance had suggested including cartels in the scope for settlement "as a pragmatic recourse to the whole process".
The top court said it cannot order a roving inquiry into purchase of electoral bonds on the assumption that it was quid pro quo for award of contract.
Writing his views in a separate verdict while concurring with the opinion of Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who was heading the bench, Justice Datta said the question of reverting to "paper ballot system", on facts and in the circumstances, does not and cannot arise.
The party was floated exactly two years after Kishor had embarked on a more than 3,000-km-long 'padayatra' of the state.
The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-led alliance won all five seats, performing particularly well in Singhbhum, Rajmahal, and Dumka.
Democracy does not begin and end with elections and the integrity of election process is pivotal for sustaining the democratic form of government, the Supreme Court said on Thursday while striking down as unconstitutional the electoral bonds scheme for political funding.
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