In walked the scruffy band of pirates, without any swagger. Mostly tall or burly men, with weather beaten, resigned faces, the majority were dressed in track pants and tees; a few had skull caps. Some of their T-shirts had messages like 'I'm not in danger, I'm danger' or 'Long Beach California Surfer'.
The stakes are high. While targeting Muslims for its political game plan, the Sena needs to check its own political path. Else it will face the same debacle as that of MNS and lose its identity completely, says Neeta Kohlatkar.
'It is very hard to get the police to file a report against someone from an upper caste.' 'Things are so bad that sometimes we have to sit on a dharna with the body of a Dalit victim to get the police to file a complaint.'
'That will affect the economy, employment, agriculture, and ultimately, youngsters, the working class and job opportunities.'
'Wisdom demands Modi moves to restore the critical institutions of the State and dial back on the cult building around his persona,' say Sonali Ranade and Shealja Sharma.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis faces the challenge of ensuring that Dalits and Muslims -- who are likely to be most affected by the beef ban -- do not drift away towards the opposition.
Better economic conditionsM, easy availability of jobs and plain carelessness are some of the top reasons of overstaying in India, says Vicky Nanjappa
'Nobody in AMU supports Jinnah's two-nation theory.' 'It is shameful we are debating Jinnah and not education or employment.'
As the political battle for the future of Maharashtra's political quinquennial future nears its electoral conclusion, Shreekant Sambrani looks at the intertwining nature of national and regional interests and the place for and value of inclusiveness in electoral politics.
Moody's earlier this week lowered its growth forecast to 7 per cent, from 7.5 per cent.
'It will take a long time for the effects of demonetisation to wear away, and I am not even sure that a year lost, can at all be even recovered.'
Tamil Nadu has time and again proved that it needs a decisive leader even if corrupt, rather than an indecisive leader, however good-hearted, good-natured and honest he may be, writes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The results will be declared on July 20 in New Delhi.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar wants the Modi government and BJP to reap the profit of the surgical strikes. But electoral history suggests a political party's ability to exploit military successes for poll gains has a mixed record.
'The PM should have spoken out much earlier and I would urge him to act, since speaking is not enough.' 'What we are demanding is action.' 'Immediate orders have to be issued by state governments to officials that such incidents should not happen.'
As its own national worth augments the BJP might decide to be more cautious with its local allies.
In a nation divided by many things, the 12-digit unique identity number is holding lives to ransom.
The prime minister had violated the model code of conduct by holding a 'roadshow' after voting in the Gujarat assembly polls, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala alleged.
Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Friday said his party should get more seats to contest in the assembly elections in Maharashtra as the position of its ally the Congress has weakened in the state, as evident from the Lok Sabha results.
A single party will need at least 137 of the directly elected seats to be able to form the government on its own.
Green kurta, green leggings, green waistcoat, green band holding her bun in place and - gasp! - were those green chillies dangling from Rakhi Sawant's ears?
Why Dalit leaders cross over to the BJP
'There is no remorse over the Dadri lynching of Mohammad Akhlaq or of Pehlu Khan by cow vigilante groups.' 'But should you not have remorse for those who came to kill them?' 'They were Hindus. Do you accept that?' 'That to kill one Pehlu, 20 Hindus have become murderers.' Rajdeep Sardesai in conversation with Ravish Kumar.
Even as Congress has announced plans to hold year-long celebrations to commemorate the 125th birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to lay the foundation stone for the 'Ambedkar International Centre' in New Delhi, the legacy of the Dalit icon becoming the focus of a contest between the rival parties
The narrative in America after Donald Trump's victory sounds like the questions and debates that took place in India after May 2014. Were both electoral results all about jobs and economic anxiety? Mihir S Sharma doubts it.
'We have used Arvind Kejriwal and Aam Aadmi Party as characters in the story of Indian democracy.'
'It's very tough for someone, who doesn't have a filmi background, to get work in Bollywood. It's not a smooth ride unless you are really lucky. But I think one has to be prepared for that. I must have given 30 auditions for films alone.' Rajkummar Rao survived the struggle to give us some brilliant films.
'It is the regional parties and their leaders who are the ones we have to watch.'
Daggubati Purandeswari is the only Union minister to have joined the BJP this election. 'Everybody knows Dr Manmohan Singh is a man of great integrity and I consider it an honour to have worked with him,' Purandeswari, the BJP candidate from Rajampeta, Andhra Pradesh, tells A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com
Prathamesh Murkute explains why he has volunteered his personal time and money to support a movement called the Aam Aadmi Party.
'I do not require validation from a hostile media. My conscience is clear.'
The biggest winner was Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan who ran her ship with self-confidence and aplomb.
'Those who have seen the functioning of the Modi government in Gujarat know that the issues related to Hindutva and issues of economy and growth function simultaneously.' 'Modi's politics are based on the understanding of the middle-class consumer society which is in pursuit of material aspirations.' Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com reveals the Modi government's economic and political plans for the year ahead.
'I am hopeful of getting all six seats from Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur, either for the BJP or with our allies.' 'The same is true about Meghalaya.' 'We will have to work hard in Mizoram and in Tripura.' 'In Assam, we won seven seats. In 2019 election, we will add to this number.'
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jailtey on Tuesday defended the Vajpayee government's releasing the three most wanted terrorists in return for the safety of passengers of the Indian Airlines plane hijacked to Kandahar in 1999, saying the lives of all Indians were "more precious" than the release of the terrorists.
Everyone, it seems, has a question to ask the BJP's prime ministerial candidate these days. Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt asked some well-known Indians what they would like to ask Narendra Modi, to gauge what emotions he evokes in them.
A divided party -- not the quashing of the Adarsh report -- will spell doom for the Congress in Maharashtra, argues Neeta Kolhatkar.
'There appears to be in the Indian polity a link between being Single and being of prime ministerial timber. It is a trend, a preponderance -- not a statistical verity,' says Dr Shashi K Pande.
The apex court is hearing its two-decade-old 'Hindutva' judgement for an authoritative pronouncement on electoral law categorising misuse of religion for electoral gains as "corrupt practice".
United Progressive Alliance's abysmal performance and the Bharatiya Janata Party's claims of good governance are two factors that could change how India votes this year, says Shreekant Sambrani
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