It was a muted Independence Day celebrations because of the dawn-to-dusk general strike called by multiple militant outfits and the loss of lives and property of hundreds of people over the last three months in the ethnic strife.
BJP had attacked previous UPA govt over policy paralysis.
Both have made factory jobs the centre of their economic agendas. Kanika Datta explains the practical limits to their ambitions.
The Nehru-Gandhi scion attacked the Akalis for allegedly plundering Punjab and appealed people to vote for the Congress in the February 4 polls "to transform Punjab".
The least the leaders who met Prime Minister Narendra Modi could have done was to highlight the plight of the Muslim riot victims, but they happily chose to ignore it, so privileged they must have felt to be in the presence of the prime minister, the most powerful man in the country, says Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
Reforms under the Modi government will maintain a slow and tentative pace, constantly wary of political opposition. It may not be reform by stealth, but it is reform on the quiet, says A K Bhattacharya.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said that the assassination of his father and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi was the "single biggest learning experience" of his life, asserting that he cannot get away from the fact that the event also made him learn things that he would have never learnt otherwise.
Congress as the opposition party has become increasingly aggressive against the Narendra Modi government over its handling of the border standoff with China.
The truth is that few ministries in the Modi sarkar are working on new and updated legislation of any kind.
'If Modi were to be elected, he would be part of a coalition government, and within that he would have to take this minority into account. Muslims cannot relate to the idea of Hindu nationalism. Although it is presented as a pan-Indian idea, it appears to them to be exclusive.'
Civil Aviation Ministry has a few ready answers at hand.
Modi isn't going to voters on his track record but on the fear of the terrorist across the border and the Muslims within. It's a battle on his terms, says Shekhar Gupta.
From a ruling party's perspective, the BJP is in a sweet spot; editorial independence and analytical coverage of governance is rapidly declining
'Having India as a credible deterrent vis-a-vis Chinese ambitions in the Indian Ocean and South Asian region is a desirable short-term outcome.'
Launching a scathing attack on Narendra Modi for his oft repeated 'recounting minister' jibe, Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Thursday called the Gujarat CM an 'encounter minister'.
The rout of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance in the crucial assembly polls in Bihar is the "most significant domestic setback" to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, global media commented on Sunday, saying it shows that his vote-winning abilities were on the wane.
The Bharatiya Janata Party might have a majority in the Lok Sabha but sarcasm and public humiliation of rivals may not be the way to assert this. In fact, it is a waste of time
'The Americans want to have a good relationship with India. They see it as a counterweight to China. And also American businesses are all trying to get out of China and go to India and Vietnam as well, but India largely.'
"I don't think this administrative subject should be an issue of interest to the media," Modi said.
Piyush Goyal's comments about Amazon founder Jeff Bezos's investment in India reveals an inability to understand how businesses function, says Kanika Datta.
Your promise to protect bankers for their commercial decisions is a huge confidence booster, but how does one define a commercial decision? Are our investigative agencies well equipped to dissect lending decisions of bankers?
Modi's minimum government, maximum governance will go a long way?
If he doesn't win next year, it will set back the party's prospects in 2024. If he wins, it will be seen as his win as much as the BJP high command's, points out Shekhar Gupta.
It is wrong to say the Congress doesn't matter. Certainly one set of people who do not believe that for a minute is the BJP. That's why even in his speech in Parliament on Constitution Day, Mr Modi called dynastic politics a threat to democracy, observes Shekhar Gupta.
The Opposition party asked whether the prime minister will take responsibility for the 'deadliest rail tragedy' of this century.
'The unprecedented bitterness and rancour that marked this election campaign need not spill over into government and governance,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'You can't make the poor rich overnight.' 'Nor can you fly millions in planes.' 'But remember that word: Empathy.' 'Who in the BJP is speaking in that language to these millions?' 'Someone putting an arm of understanding, warmth, comfort around them?', asks Shekhar Gupta.
This was the first dinner hosted for a foreign dignitary at the White House under the Trump administration.
John Chambers said India may become top BRICS nation under Modi
Shah said that it is "a 3-D government in Rajasthan and three Ds stands for 'dange' (riots), 'durvyavhar' (ill-treatment) with women and 'Dalit' atrocities.
Priyanka Gandhi's office on Friday said she has "not had a meeting, even socially" with former Indian Premier League chief Lalit Modi whose claim that he had "run into" her and her husband Robert Vadra in London triggered a political row.
'He has a gift none of his eight predecessors, from Manmohan Singh to Rajiv Gandhi, had: Being able to speak directly and convincingly to a large enough section of Indians who will take his word for gospel,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
Only a leader with sufficient moral authority with voters can pull off such experiments, notes T N Ninan.
Industrialists have the same complaints as they did in the UPA's second stint.
There is only one perpetrator, Hamas. It is a terrorist organisation. It is obscene to argue that until the Palestinian question is solved, anybody has the right to use terrorism as an instrument of policy, argues Shekhar Gupta.
A strong leader, known for his strong speeches, uses his communication skills to guide and heal. He does not wait for 10 days to comment, provoking a worried President to speak instead-not once, but twice.
'His record will be clouded by the same negative factors as of Rajiv Gandhi and Narasimha Rao, namely, their politics and therefore social policies,' says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
Several of Modi's actions reflect political courage.
Lauding India's ambitious space programme, The New York Times has said the country, currently witnessing an 'explosive' growth in space-tech start-ups, is set to 'transform the planet's connection to the final frontier' and can emerge as a 'counterweight' to China.
The Congress on Thursday slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government over a scuffle between the Delhi Police and the wrestlers protesting at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, with Rahul Gandhi condemning such 'shameful' behaviour with sportspersons and alleging the ruling party has 'never shied away' from committing atrocities on the daughters of the country.
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