President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday conferred Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian honour, on former prime ministers P V Narasimha Rao and Chaudhary Charan Singh, agriculture scientist M S Swaminathan and two-time former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur, posthumously at a ceremony held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
Calling itself the "custodian of the Constitution", the Supreme Court on Thursday asked if it could "sit idle" if a constitutional functionary like governor failed to discharge duties, as it reserved its verdict on the presidential reference on grant of assent to bills.
A five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court is scheduled to consider the Presidential reference on whether timelines could be imposed by judicial orders for the exercise of discretion by the President while dealing with bills passed by state assemblies.
At a civic reception hosted in her honour by the Rairangpur Municipality, the President said she often thinks of her village, adding that her family members, neighbours and villagers are always in her heart.
The wife of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk has appealed to President Droupadi Murmu for his release from jail, alleging a witch-hunt and expressing concern for his well-being after his detention following violent clashes in Ladakh.
There were many people who wanted to seek favours from her by offering lakhs and crores of rupees even through her family members when she was Odisha's transport minister. She never allowed any kind of corrupt practices to touch her department officials, family members or the supporters who have stood by her.
Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh chaired the morning session after Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar's resignation due to medical reasons.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to pronounce interim orders on key issues related to the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, including the power to denotify waqf properties.
The Supreme Court has scheduled hearings starting August 19 for the Presidential Reference concerning constitutional issues related to timelines for handling bills passed by state assemblies. The court has directed the Centre and states to submit written arguments by August 12.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to pronounce interim orders on key issues related to the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, including the power to denotify properties declared as waqf.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi turned 75 on Wednesday, with the Bharatiya Janata Party launching over a fortnight long 'Sewa Pakhwada' to mark the birthday of its preeminent leader.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss ways to further expand India-Russia ties, following talks with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov focusing on trade.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished Jagdeep Dhankhar, who resigned as vice president on health grounds, good health, and acknowledged his service to the country.
Maharashtra Governor C P Radhakrishnan reflects on his tenure as he prepares to move to Delhi as the next Vice President of India, calling it the happiest period in his public life.
Odisha's and Telangana's principal opposition parties, the Biju Janata Dal and the Bharatiya Rashtra Samithi, on Monday announced that their MPs will abstain from voting in the vice presidential elections.
It's been an emotional night for many film folk across India, as they were honoured at the National Awards.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Chinese President Xi Jinping and apprised him of recent developments in India-China bilateral ties during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Foreign Ministers' meeting in Beijing.
India recognised acts of gallantry by armed forces personnel and senior military officers involved in Operation Sindoor, along with other distinguished service awards, on the eve of the 79th Independence Day.
The Supreme Court is hearing arguments regarding a presidential reference on whether fixed timelines can be imposed on governors and the president for acting on bills passed by state legislatures. The court is considering objections to the maintainability of the reference under Article 143 of the Constitution.
Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena expressed concern over AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal labelling Atishi a "temporary chief minister" and called it a "flagrant disregard for the democratic spirit and values enshrined in the Constitution". In his letter to Atishi, Saxena said Kejriwal's remark was an insult to President Droupadi Murmu, who appointed her, as well as himself as her representative. Hitting back, Atishi alleged the lieutenant governor's office was working as a BJP "proxy" and asserted that Kejriwal was Delhi's "tallest leader".
On Friday, November 11, the second day of her Odisha tour, the President visited her alma mater, the Government Girls High School and the Kuntala Kumari Sabat Adivasi Hostel where she used to stay during her school days.
President Droupadi Murmu visited the INS Vikrant in Kochi on Thursday, March 16, 2023, to interact with the officers and sailors on board the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier.
The President took the decisive move on May 27.
She said that access to justice for all has been a theme close to her heart and mentioned several steps taken to help economically disadvantaged sections of society to approach legal institutions for remedial action.
Union minister J P Nadda clarified that the Vice President's office was informed about his and Kiren Rijiju's inability to attend a Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting convened by Jagdeep Dhankhar before his resignation. This statement follows questions raised by a Congress leader regarding their absence.
The first time most of us heard of Droupadi Murmu was when she was appointed governor of Jharkhand, where by all accounts she impressed Prime Minister N D Modi with her dignified and measured six-year tenure in the Raj Bhavan in Ranchi. So much so that Modi picked her as the National Democratic Alliance's Presidential candidate.
Jagdeep Dhankhar's resignation marks the third instance of a vice president resigning mid-term in India. The article looks at past instances of vice presidents who resigned.
Indian hockey legend PR Sreejesh, just months after receiving the prestigious Padma Shri, delighted fans by sharing a heartwarming social media post.
President Droupadi Murmu receives blessing from Hirbai Ibrahim Lobi before presenting her with the Padma Shri for social work at Rashtrapati Bhavan, March 22, 2023.
The Axiom-4 mission, marking the return to space for India, Hungary and Poland, blasted off from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida at 12:01 pm on Wednesday.
Vice President Dhankhar had in March this year undergone an angioplasty at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi.
The Centre has opposed the imposition of fixed timelines on governors and the President for decisions on bills passed by state legislatures, arguing that such constraints were intentionally omitted by the Constitution's framers.
President Droupadi Murmu conferred the coveted Padma awards on 68 eminent personalities, including former Chief Justice of India Jagdish Singh Khehar, dancer Shobana Chandrakumar, actor Anant Nag, and Vice Chancellor of King George's Medical University Soniya Nityanand. The awards were given in various disciplines and fields, including art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, and civil service. The Padma Vibhushan was awarded to Justice (retd) Khehar for public affairs, while nine individuals received the Padma Bhushan. The Padma Shri was awarded to leading immunologist and KGMU VC Nityanand, footballer Inivalappil Mani Vijayan, singer Ashwini Bhide Deshpande, actor Ashok Laxman Saraf, mask maker Reba Kanta Mahanta, and musician Ricky Gyan Kej, among others.
The Income Tax department is working on simplified I-T forms and aims to notify new rules by December-end to give effect to the new I-T Act, which will come into force from April 1 next year, a senior tax official said on Monday.
'What we need to watch is how Saudi Arabia's financial assistance will be used by Pakistan. If the funds go to build their military hardware and operations, it should worry us.'
'It is a crisis of BJP's own doing. This is an in-house fire.'
In 2023, the BCCI announced a deal with Dream11 as the lead sponsor for Team India. Dream11 replaced Byju's, whose contract ended in March that year, and had signed the agreement with BCCI for a period of three years.
S L Bhyrappa, who passed into the ages last week, remains an enigma, with his clear and unwavering voice resonating through his writings. Standing apart from the literary trends over the course of the last fifty years, he succeeded in establishing his own style, sensibility and creative tradition, points out Shridhar C R.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday Allahabad high court judge Yashwant Varma's plea seeking invalidation of a report by an in-house inquiry panel which found him guilty of misconduct in the cash discovery row.
The Centre has told the Supreme Court that imposing fixed timelines on governors and the president to act on bills passed by a state Assembly would amount to one organ of the government assuming powers not vested in it by the Constitution and lead to a "constitutional disorder".
