'The timing is a little suspect.' 'Could it be, just be, a convenient tool to wield months ahead of a hyper-crucial state election, judge if its efficacy in sending out its subliminal message is intact, and accordingly decide the future course of action on the long but quick road to 2019?'
Twenty things you may not know about Lok Sabha polls 2009.
"It is about time that India and its institutions are protected from these 'institution wreckers'," said Jaitley.
No one in Bihar will deny Nitish Kumar's contribution to governance, notes Aditi Phadnis.
Here are 8 factors to watch out for, says psephologist Yogendra Yadav.
Rup Narayan Das reveals the towering Odisha leader's role in improving national security after the 1962 War with China.
'India's first and longest-serving prime minister created -- or at the very least imagined -- a modern, democratic nation-State of the 20th century,' says Sunil Sethi.
"The RSS is trying to change the nature of India. Other parties haven't tried to capture India's institutions," he said.
Thank you, Mr Prime Minister, for bringing colour to our colourless, drab, despair-ridden lives.
'Tamil Nadu is a paradox. We have more places of Hindu worship per square kilometres than any other place in the world. 'We break more coconuts for religious reasons everyday than any other place in the world.' 'At the same time, we also have a very strong Periyar-infused movement of rationalism.'
Kamra allegedly heckled Goswami, the editor of Republic TV, on IndiGo's Mumbai-Lucknow (6E5317) flight on Tuesday.
The title alludes to Socrates willingly drinking poisonous hemlock as his punishment after he was convicted of corrupting the minds of the young and impiety in ancient Athens.
In a statement, the Youth Congress said Joseph represented Michel in his personal capacity and did not consult the party before appearing in the case.
Manoj Sinha's greatest asset is his capacity to get on with everyone regardless of political affiliation, notes Aditi Phadnis.
He also advised Congress chief Rahul Gandhi to "learn" from former defence minister Pranab Mukherjee "lessons on national security."
'It is a travesty that I have to prove my commitment to Gandhi and to this country.'
Some senior Congress leaders including Kapil Sibal have called for introspection after the party's dismal performance in the recently held Bihar assembly polls, after which the ruling National Democratic Alliance returned to power in the state despite the main member of the grand opposition alliance, Rashtriya Janata Dal, putting up a strong show and emerging as the single largest party.
''At this stage we are closer to military confrontation than at any time since 1971.' 'Given the known positions of the two governments, it will not be surprising if this happens sooner rather than later,' says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).
'How do you deliver wealth when you don't have the slightest idea about it?' asks T C A Srinivasa Raghavan.
Will the finance minister present a legacy-seeking Budget?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had faced backlash on social media over his morphed photo during the aerial survey of flood-hit Chennai earlier this year, is now mired in a similar controversy once again.
With so much bad news, everybody is hunkering down in readiness for Mr Modi's next radical Big Idea, says Kanika Datta.
Shah reviewed the party's preparations and strategy for the Lok Sabha election due next year.
'A close look at the time-lines tells you that exactly as the back-channel negotiations were in their most crucial stage, "somebody" was planning the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai,' says Shekhar Gupta questioning Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri's account of a peace deal with India.
'Unity in diversity is a dated notion as India, today, is more unified and cohesive and yet more pronouncedly diverse than ever in its history,' argues Shekhar Gupta.
Gandhi had earlier tweeted about a smiling Modi during the latter's visit to Japan recently.
They said this round was the 'semi-final', and that the finals in 2014 would be between Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi. The two men campaigned more than any other party leaders in their respective camps. On both sides, there were enthusiasts who could not wait. Some in the Bharatiya Janata Party declared Mr Modi a prime ministerial candidate while the campaigning was still on, as though L K Advani was already history; and businessmen hastened to sing his praises.
'You can see the essential contours of his new Pakistan strategy. Rather than keep engaging with or humouring them, he'd rather work on taking their four biggest supporters -- the US, China, the UAE and later Saudi Arabia -- away from them.' 'In his calculation,' says Shekhar Gupta, 'with the total support of all four of these, Pakistan will be forced to moderate its policies.'
'We don't know where he will go from here and how he will conduct his government.'
