Newly appointed Bharatiya Janata Party national working president Nitin Nabin on Monday termed his elevation as a blessing of the party and claimed that it is the only political outfit that allows its grassroots workers to thrive.
A political slugfest broke out between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Trinamool Congress on Monday after the latter accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of insulting Bankim Chandra Chatterjee by calling him 'Bankim da', prompting a counter-attack from the saffron party, which accused West Bengal's ruling party of defiling the state's cultural legacy for a decade.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday said that in his personal opinion, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh should be banned as most law and order problems in the country are arising because of the Bharatiya Janata Party-RSS.
The Congress party launched a scathing attack on the RSS on its 100th anniversary, citing excerpts from a book claiming Mahatma Gandhi described the Sangh as a "communal body with a totalitarian outlook." The party also referenced Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's criticism of the RSS.
A timeline of key events that shaped the RSS' journey, including the various highs and lows, as the organization approaches its 100th anniversary.
'As we read and assess what is going on around us in the India of 2025, it is instructive to do this through the lens of 75 years ago and the events that led to the formation of the BJP as we know it,' recalls Aakar Patel.
New Delhi looks to be testing Omar's endurance with unconcealed glee, never feeling shy to bite whenever a moment comes its way. After all, ruling the country's only Muslim-majority UT/state has been the BJP's burning desire, points out Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
Will Mamata's bhasha andolan campaign sway Bengal's bhadralok before the 2026 election in the TMC's favour?
The drama unfolded after Majumdar, a Union minister of state, defied police restrictions and rode a motorbike to Bhabanipur to observe 'Paschimbanga Dibas' (West Bengal Day).
School students in Rajasthan will no longer study two-part supplementary textbooks with state Education Minister Madan Dilawar arguing that these reading materials are not required because they glorify the Nehru-Gandhi family and carry no marks for students.
India's major ports registered a 4.3 per cent rise in cargo handling to 855 million tonnes in 2024-25, an official statement said on Tuesday. The increase in traffic was driven by higher container throughput (10 per cent), fertiliser cargo handling (13 per cent), POL cargo handling (3 per cent), and handling of miscellaneous commodities (31 per cent) compared to the previous fiscal year, according to the statement.
Sinha said the inauguration of the Kashmir rail service has connected the hearts of the people of Jammu and Kashmir with the rest of the country and will pave the way for the economic prosperity of the region.
Only in the event of the RSS managing to force Modi into accepting a consensual candidate, will the party not continue to 'being' the 'next Congress', observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
The situation in Muslim-dominated Murshidabad district of West Bengal, which was marred by incidents of violence following protests over the Waqf (Amendment) Act, was calm and peaceful on Wednesday with no reports of any untoward incident. Prohibitory orders were clamped in and around Raghunathganj and Suti police station areas and large police force deployed in all sensitive areas of the district, especially in and around Jangipur town, where a large number of people had assembled on Tuesday afternoon, demanding the withdrawal of the legislation. Internet connectivity remained suspended within the areas under the Jangipur sub-division to prevent the spread of any disinformation. Protestors, who had gathered in large numbers on the NH-12 in the Jangipur area to protest against the Waqf Bill, hurled stones at the police who were deployed in the area, on Tuesday afternoon. A couple of vehicles belonging to the police were allegedly torched during the protest and police had to resort to lathi-charge and use tear gas shells to bring the situation under control. A few policemen were injured in the stone pelting. Police have also detained a few people in connection with the incident. West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose condemned the incident and said attempts to disturb the law and order situation in the state "should be put down with an iron hand". The opposition BJP alleged that the law and order situation in the state was "crumbling" under Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who was busy with "minority appeasement". The Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on Thursday, and by the Rajya Sabha in the early hours of Friday after marathon debates in both Houses of Parliament. The Act aims to streamline the management of Waqf properties (assets permanently donated by Muslims for religious or charitable purposes) with provisions to safeguard heritage sites and promote social welfare. It also seeks to improve governance by enhancing transparency in property management, streamlining coordination between Waqf boards and local authorities and protecting stakeholders' rights.
Protesters in West Bengal's Murshidabad district set fire to police vehicles and hurled stones during a demonstration against the Waqf (Amendment) Act. The incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon in the Jangipur area, where a large crowd had gathered demanding the withdrawal of the legislation. Police responded with lathi charges and tear gas to control the situation. Several people were detained and police personnel were injured in the stone-pelting. The West Bengal Police has said the situation is under control and strict action will be taken against those who resorted to violence.
BJP president JP Nadda said on Sunday that the party does not seek to control the Waqf Board but wants to ensure that those managing it operate within the bounds of law and adhere to established rules. He said the properties and funds of the Waqf Board should be dedicated to promoting education, providing healthcare and employment opportunities for the Muslim community. Nadda also highlighted the BJP's growth and achievements, emphasizing its commitment to national unity and cultural heritage.
Besides the not-so-hidden unease between Modi and Adityanath, Modi chose to address the Lok Sabha to ensure that he could personally claim all the kudos, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
The deputy prime minister was in Kolkata to take part in Mookerjee's birth centenary celebrations.
Modi, while addressing the 150th anniversary programme of Kolkata Port Trust, invoked Mookerjee and B R Ambedkar and said their contributions had led to the development of the country post Independence, but suggestions made by them were not implemented after they resigned from the government.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah asserted that the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 was crucial in ending terrorism in Kashmir. He stated that the provision fostered separatism among Kashmiri youth and impeded the region's full integration into India. Shah also highlighted the development initiatives undertaken in Jammu and Kashmir post-Article 370, including a reduction in terrorism, successful local body elections, and an increase in tourism and film production. He emphasized the significance of writing India's history with facts and evidence, countering narratives that had obscured the country's rich heritage.
'My chants in praise of BJP and RSS stalwarts were a reaction to what MPs like Owaisi did.'
'The whole Kashmiri population is seemed to be a suspect community. This status is not good.'
'We put the seed of BJP's ideology in Jammu, watered it, nurtured it for four decades and when it was time to reap the fruits of those efforts, the fruits are being sold out to the very same people who worked hard to uproot this tree.' 'Shockingly, our own people are letting this happen and nobody from Delhi bothers to even listen to us.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday "strongly disapproved" incidents of vandalism of statues in certain parts of the country and spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh on the matter.
Gandhi's remarks come amid repeated attacks by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that the Congress manifesto bears a 'Muslim League imprint'.
A delegation of Congress leaders met EC officials and raised several issues, including the use of pictures and large cut-outs of the prime minister in government buildings and colleges and demanded that those be removed to maintain a level-playing field in the upcoming parliamentary election.
On the Opposition's poll promise of statehood restoration, Shah said, "I want to ask Farooq Abdullah and Rahul Gandhi, who is going to restore the statehood. You cannot give it back. Why are you misleading the public?"
The Sittwe deal is more significant than Chabahar in Iran, where India has rights to operate only two terminals and not the port itself.
This is the first cyclone in the Bay of Bengal this pre-monsoon season.
A deep depression over the Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm, named Remal, on Saturday evening and is likely to turn severe before making landfall between the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh on Sunday midnight, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
'Sheikh Abdullah ruled the state with secular values. Post 1953, when he was sacked, corruption took over governance.'
As severe cyclonic storm 'Remal' initiated its landfall process between the coasts of Bangladesh and adjoining West Bengal on Sunday evening, authorities took swift action, evacuating over 1 lakh people from vulnerable areas of the state to safety.
Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said the BJP is consistently losing ground, which is why "the PM's love for Muslim League has resurfaced".
The opposition party also said that it would like to remind the BJP that Hindu Mahasabha president Syama Prasad Mookerjee aligned with Jinnah's Muslim League to form the government in Bengal during the British rule.
'If you post on social media on an issue like power cuts in Tral, the police will come to your home and tell you to remove your social media post.' 'If you don't, then the local police threaten you that they will book you under PSA.' 'This is happening all the time in Kashmir.'
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday took a critical view of some of the key decisions made by the Jawaharlal Nehru government, and said one needs to get out of this "cult worship" that the period from 1946 onwards was "great years" and the country did "splendidly".
Addressing a rally in the Balpur area in Gonda in Uttar Pradesh on the completion of nine years of the Narendra Modi government, Singh skipped any direct reference to the wrestlers' protest for his arrest and chose to target the Congress over the Emergency, Ram temple, the 1984 anti-Sikhs riots and other issues.
During the day-long debate, the lines between science and religion often got blurred with many invoking religious texts and the contribution of 'rishi munis' to highlight India's tryst with the extra-terrestrial world.
'We need to find out whether any structural element has got fatigue.' 'We want to increase the lifespan of the bridge.'
'We think we know him because he's written about everyday.' 'But how many of us know him as a person?'
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances