In recent years, China has refrained from taking a public stance on the India-Pakistan ties, expressing hope for resolution of the disputes through dialogue.
Ayush Minister Shripad Naik on Wednesday said there was "no compulsion" to say 'Om' during the World Yoga Day programme.
The seven participants due to represent Pakistan at next month's Games have all been given wildcard entries.
Kulkarni said that he has accepted Kasuri's invitation to join the launch of his book 'Neither a Hawk nor a Dove' in Karachi on November 2.
'The government may backpedal for now to stave off bad international press and diplomatic demarches, but that it will go ahead with putting religion at the centre of citizenship rules is certain.' 'For it is convinced that this is the magic bullet that will ensure its return to power in 2024,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
As the year 2014 draws to an end, we at Rediff.com take to look at some of the ridiculous remarks made by some blundering politicos.
'The use of nuclear/biological/chemical weapons by Islamic terrorists is just a matter of time.' 'It must be clearly understood what the world faces is a global level insurgency against the world order.' 'Terrorism is merely a tactic and Islamic State its most brutal face, says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has won the online reader's poll for TIME magazine's Person of the Year 2016, beating out other world leaders like US President-elect Donald Trump, incumbent US leader Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
'There were 27 cases against me. I have obtained bail in all the cases. The judiciary has released me,' the freed Kashmiri separatist tells A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com
After a series of defeats since 2012, the results of the recent panchayat polls are being seen by her as a tide changer for the upcoming UP assembly elections
The state government last week announced the schedule for holding elections to local bodies and panchayats in the state.
Trump's poll-defying win has sparked a wave of similar rallies across the country.
'The protests have forced the government to announce that the NRC is not an immediate priority.' 'Even if they are trying to pursue this policy in a different guise, through the NPR, the fact that they have been forced to pause and backtrack at least temporarily shows the positive impact of the protests.' 'Moreover, various state governments have opposed the NPR which cannot be carried out without their cooperation. That is also a success of the protests.' 'The state governments would not have taken this stance against the central government if their hand had not been forced by the popular mood.'
The Islamic State released a five-minute video on Sunday purportedly showing the beheading of 21 Egyptian Christians that they captured in Libya.
To demand justice for the eight-year-old girl who was gang-raped and murdered in Jammu and Kashmir and the teenager in UP's Unnao, the Congress party led a candelight vigil to India Gate in New Delhi.
It discharged three accused -- Shyam Sahu, Shivnarayan Kalsangra and Praveen Takalki -- from the case.
Maithripala Sirisena, the Sri Lankan president-elect, will be sworn-in on Friday evening following his stunning victory in the tightest-ever presidential race that ended the 10-year-rule of Mahinda Rajapaksa.
"In India, we derive our strength from tolerance, and respect our pluralism. We celebrate our diversity," he said.
Terming the 2002 Gujarat riots as "unfortunate", Bharatiya Janata Party President Rajnath Singh on Sunday said it was unfair to blame state Chief Minister Narendra Modi for the incident and accused Congress and some other parties of dividing the country on religious lines.
Trump said that the US will defeat its enemies with the full force of American might.
Director of Intelligence Bureau Syed Asif Ibrahim on Sunday said effective intelligence sharing with neighbouring countries like Nepal, Myanmar, and Malayasia, Saudi Arabia would go a long way in helping the country tackle the threat from global terror groups like the Al Qaeda and ISIS.
A circular asks the madrassas to hold events on the day and record them. The state government has even warned of action against madrassas which do not follow the order.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam supremo J Jayalalithaa on Sunday squarely blamed the Centre and the Dravida Munetra Kazhagam for the plight of Tamils in Sri Lanka and also the fishermen from the state.
Pakistan's minority Hindu community leaders have asked Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to accept their demand for a public holiday on Diwali and announce a special aid package for them on the festival.
'Loss of faith in the fairness of the system and the perception that one cannot expect justice are the first few steps to the slippery slope of anarchy,' warns Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
While Congress criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government for being "insensitive", saying yoga, a great discipline of ancient India, does not belong to the saffron party, Janata Dal-United termed it as yet another attempt to "impose the communal agenda" on Indian masses.
If Myanmar's election demonstrates reasonable transparency and fair process, it would go down in history as the first free and fair one in the country in more than two decades, says Dr Rahul Mishra.
The NIA had also not opposed her bail application.
'Facebook and Google no longer need to have infantry regiments and cavalry like the East India Company because they are inside everyone's phones listening to our conversations.'
RSS head Mohan Bhagwat will be present through the exercise in which issues like census figures and OROP are likely to come up for discussion.
United States President Barack Obama said goodbye to his nation in an emotional address enriched with wisdom and optimism.
Prohibitory orders were imposed in Delhi and parts of Karnataka. Police kept tight vigil in Kerala. In Gujarat, 50 people were arrested for Thursday's violence.
We are spectators who have no voice and no power to influence the giant changes being imposed on all of us, says Aakar Patel.
The delegation was told that the autonomy resolution passed by the Jammu and Kashmir assembly in 2000 should be implemented.
Assam Chief Minister Sarbanand Sonowal condemned the fatwa and directed police to provide security to the singer.
The State is trying to curb the students movements, therefore, there are suspicions against some of the Subramanian report on education's recommendations, says Mohammad Sajjad.
'Speaking this year from the ramparts of the Red Fort, he excelled himself in content, diction and delivery -- all extemporaneously flowing, replete with felicitous expressions and captivating word play. 'The only other Indian prime minister with whom he stands comparison is Jawaharlal Nehru who too shunned prepared speeches and established instant rapport with his audiences,' says B S Raghavan.
