External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has asserted that India has zero tolerance for terrorism and will never give in to nuclear blackmail, emphasizing that New Delhi will deal with Pakistan purely bilaterally. He made these remarks during a joint press conference with his German counterpart in Berlin, where he also highlighted the importance of the strategic partnership between India and Germany, emphasizing the need for a free trade agreement between the two nations.
The War of the Tiranga is a metaphor for a new battle of ideas in national politics, observes Shekhar Gupta.
Will January 22 mark a point of no return for our Constitutional secularism? asks Shekhar Gupta.
Former Reserve Bank of India governor Dr Raghuram Rajan -- the Katherine Dusak Miller Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago -- walked with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Sawai Madhopur, Rajasthan, on Wednesday, December 14, 2022.
Rajasthan Cricket Association representative Mehmood Abdi feels Board Of Control For Cricket In India president N Srinivasan should not decide on any matter relating to Lalit Modi's possible return to administration through the RCA because of his "old enmity" with the banned former IPL commissioner.
Jaishankar said that the Pahalgam attack "was an act of economic warfare. It was meant to destroy tourism in Kashmir, which was the mainstay of the economy. It was also meant to provoke religious violence because people were asked to identify their faith before they were killed."
India will continue to be a strategic partner for the United States despite concerns over its ties with Russia, the Biden Administration has said.
'There is economic danger: Not inflation, but a slowdown that feeds an employment crisis,' says T N Ninan.
Amid the row over Congress leader Sam Pitroda's remarks, the party on Wednesday asserted that it has no plans whatsoever to introduce an inheritance tax and cited former Union minister Jayant Sinha's remarks to allege that it is the Modi government that wanted to do so.
Take Rediff.com's Pulse of the Nation poll and let India know what you think of Mr Modi and his government.
The record of other prime ministers too shows how much can change when a prime minister is faced with the two-year challenge, says T N Ninan.
'It brings precarious peace because the red lines have shifted. 'The next Pahalgam attack would mean a full scale war.'
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Speaker Om Birla had a verbal exchange in the Lok Sabha on Monday when the Congress leader questioned why he bowed before Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
'The Congress submitted four names to the government as the people who should accompany the delegation.' 'I don't know what happened to those names.' 'When I was approached, I told them to speak to my party.' 'I have no further involvement with this delegation.'
'There was a lot of resentment against the BJP which has not translated into votes, this is surprising.'
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had earlier called out the remarks made by Zuckerberg on the Joe Rogan podcast. "Mr. Zuckerberg's claim that most incumbent governments, including India in 2024 elections, lost post-COVID is factually incorrect," Vaishnaw had said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on January 13.
'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.'
'Bihar, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Bengal can be the game changers of 2024.'
e Union minister of state for home is somewhat brash and rowdy, and has enormous confidence.' Some of this derives from the fact that he has independent sources of income (he reported assets amounting to Rs 18 crore in his 2019 Lok Sabha nomination papers)
'The touchstone is reciprocity which will be applied to friends and foes alike.' 'It will be a bitter pill to swallow.'
Both have made factory jobs the centre of their economic agendas. Kanika Datta explains the practical limits to their ambitions.
'I was amazed at how tasty it was.' 'They did a good job with millets and lentils, which Mr Modi liked.'
Mr Pradhan's understanding of realpolitik and organisational dynamics makes him the ultimate party man, notes Aditi Phadnis.
'Looking at how quickly the hostilities were escalating, the nuclear threshold did not seem that far.'
Gandhi has been attacking the prime minister on the Adani issue and has been demanding an investigation into the matter.
The high point of the 19 Shastri months was the 22-day war that he fought against great odds and won in principle, even if military historians often call it a stalemate. Pakistan saw a great opportunity to conquer Kashmir and lost. It was the last time they had the relative strength militarily and diplomatically to take Kashmir. Shastri's resolve buried that dream forever, points out Shekhar Gupta.
Accusing the prime minister of pushing a particular narrative in the media through the PMO, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said "Modi will not be able to deflect from real issues".
'The economy is in a free fall.'
'And it's been declining for so long, so consistently, that the promise of growth and better days now looks a fantasy.' 'A mid-1970s kind of pessimism, even hopelessness, is growing among the young.' 'This isn't what Mr Modi promised them.' 'Their aspirations and needs are clear and present, and not being fulfilled,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
If Mr Modi is to be blamed for the post-Godhra riots, he should also be given credit for maintaining peace after the Akshardham and Ahmedabad terror attacks. The BBC will never tell you that, points out Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Indian Members of Parliament have written to President Barack Obama, urging the US Administration to maintain the current policy of denying visa to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) directed the removal of West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar and mandated the appointment of Vivek Sahay, once suspended by the poll panel, as the new state police chief, with the TMC accusing the BJP of controlling the constitutional body.
If his attempt to have his appeal heard in the Supreme Court fails, in principle, Modi can apply to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to try and block his extradition on the basis that he will not receive a fair trial and that he will be detained in conditions that breach Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, to which the UK is a signatory.
The BJP is the preferred choice because it offers what the Mughals and later British offered in their time: A stable polity and an environment in which business could function, explains T N Ninan.
The fundamental construct of India's neighbourhood policy still needs to be what Vajpayee postulated, Manmohan Singh embraced, and Modi energised. It's just that we need to junk domestic politics and excessive religiosity, while acquiring much humility and a renewed respectfulness towards our neighbours, recommends Shekhar Gupta.
The winds of nationalism laden with religion will now yield to those of concern over the stalled economy, unemployment, and a general malaise and unhappiness, predicts Shekhar Gupta.
'Jockeying for that position has possibly started at this time.'
'While other parties generally need support directly from their central leadership to get influencers or celebrities to endorse their party, the work of identifying and contacting such influencers has been decentralised to state and district level IT cells to get more engagement in the BJP.'
The Indian and English cricket teams wore green armbands during the third ODI in Ahmedabad to support the BCCI's "Donate Organs, Save Lives" campaign, an initiative launched by ICC Chairman Jay Shah. Several Indian players, including Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, and KL Rahul, voiced their support for the campaign, emphasizing the life-saving impact of organ donation.
When a former police constable was appointed Gujarat unit chief, everyone was surprised. Now workers are laying bets on when he will be elevated to the Union Cabinet, notes Aditi Phadnis.
