On a visit to India in 2013, writer Ved Mehta -- who passed into the ages on Sunday January 10, 2021 - gave Rediff.com's Vaihayasi Pande Daniel a rare glimpse into his state of mind and what he thinks of the changes he encounters in his motherland.
India's silence on this week's troubles in the Maldives is puzzling, says Rajeev Sharma.
'A proposal to do away with labour laws is not feasible.' 'That's why we wanted to have a dialogue with the states.'
Controversial Bharatiya Janata Party MP Sakshi Maharaj on Sunday declared the Ram temple at Ayodhya will be built under the Centre's BJP government, which has "four more years to go", drawing sharp criticism from opposition Congress party.
"Various organisations and anti-social elements had infiltrated the pro-Jallikattu protests (at Marina) with the intention of diverting it," he said.
The DMK combine has won 37 of the 38 LS constituencies in Tamil Nadu, and bagged 13 of the 22 assembly bypolls. What swept away the AIADMK-BJP alliance in the southern state was not dravidian ideology but job loss and graft bias, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
'We are against Alibaba investing in Paytm.' 'We are against the concessions given to Paytm.' 'In fact, we want Paytm to close down because of its alliance with Alibaba.'
The Telangana Rashtra Samithi would seek to befriend Prime Minister-elect Narendra Modi and Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government to forge a good and healthy relationship, and would not be confrontationist with the successor state of Andhra Pradesh but would fight tooth and nail for the rights of Telangana, a key party figure said on Monday.
'It is time to not merely assert that Kashmir is an internal problem, but begin to act on it,' argues Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The prime minister also underlined the belief of many Hindus that cow is like mother, but said that this should not let people take law in their own hands and every state government should act against violation of the law.
'One must remember that a dragon has a forked tongue,' warns Vivek Gumaste.
Delhi assembly on Friday passed the Janlokpal Bill, incorporating suggestions of Anna Hazare, which provides for an ombudsman with powers to act against any government functionary.
'The clearest interpretation of the November 8 mandate is that the backwards, Dalits and minorities, and a huge proportion of women cutting across caste and class, displayed massive consolidation to the extent that despite chipping of votes by the Left Front, by the Third Front and by the BSP, Mahagathbandhan candidates won, and in many cases by huge margins,' says Mohammad Sajjad.
The strategic alliance between China and Pakistan is primarily driven by their rivalry with India, eminent US experts have said, with one of them expressing concern over Sino-India border tensions.
'When the first Islamic State flags appeared, it was called an aberration.' 'When videos appeared, they were termed exceptions!' 'It is high time we accepted that the global jihad is here.'
Faceless Ambedkarite groups from across the country are running BSP's election war rooms, writes Archis Mohan.
Can Mamata Banerjee unite the Opposition?
Singh said the Centre will provide whatever assistance required but the state governments should take stringent steps to curb such incidents.
The Aam Aadmi Party has to return to the drawing board and learn from this experience. The party is here to stay and make its mark in Indian politics, says AAP members in the US. Ritu Jha/Rediff.com reports from California.
The Trinamool Congress has romped back to power in style in West Bengal. However, Bharatiya Janata Party activists and supporters can't help being happy with their performance in the state. The party has received a 10.2 per cent vote share. Sumantra Maity, a BJP activist and Information Technology professional, speaking to Indrani Roy/Rediff.com had predicted the party putting up a respectable show. He explains to Rediff.com the factors that led to the rise in Bharatiya Janata Party's vote share in Bengal.
The year is coming to an end and overall, it's been one hell of a year! We have had our share of ups and downs and we look forward to a better 2020. While we count down the days to the new year, let's also reflect on those who gave us strength to stand up in what we believe, the courageous who didn't bow down and the ones with gumption who inspired us to be better. We, Rediff.com, have selected 26 personalities, who we think are worthy of the title -- HERO OF THE YEAR -- and we want you, dear readers, to choose your hero!
'If you look at the entire protest on April 2, you will find it was not only about the Atrocities Act dilution, but the accumulated anger of the Dalit community against the BJP over the last four years.'
Sonia Gandhi spends just 30 minutes in Kanyakumari to promote 39 candidates in Tamil Nadu. A Ganesh Nadar listens in.
'The Opposition has no option but to make it an 'All versus One' fight to even think about winning.'
Counting has begun for the election which will be the second democratic transition of power in the nation's 70-year history.
'As of now, this one move seems to have precariously altered the balance of forces on the volatile ground, between separatists and the mainstream. 'The landscape today presents a fearsome picture of the future of mainstream politics in Kashmir. 'Conversely, the separatist ideology looks to have got an unearned boost,' points out Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the veteran commentator on Kashmir affairs
Only on Wednesday, in his Independence Day speech, Prime Minister Modi said he wants to resolve the Kashmir issue through Vajpayee's doctrine of "Insaniyat, Kashmiriyat, Jamhooriyat" - a testimony to the former PM's lasting legacy.
'Vaghela has said he is with the Congress.' 'The controversy that he may switch to the BJP is a creation of that party to create confusion in the Congress.'
Sitharaman cancels Myanmar trip at last moment citing launch of Modi's Jan Dhan Yojana.
'The biggest challenge and the one that needs immediate attention is massive shortcoming of jobs, leading to rampant migration from the state (almost 4 million Odias migrated!). 'This forces them to work in abysmal and inhumane working conditions.' 'Some are fortunate to come back alive, while some return in coffins.'
Around 1.72 crore voters, including 94.60 lakh men and 77.84 lakh women, are eligible to cast their votes in this round to decide the fate of 635 candidates.
Assembly elections in Assam used to be a quiet affair and people outside the state would take little interest in the outcome. This time, even in faraway Delhi, people are keeping tabs on political developments in Assam.
'Since Pranab Mukherjee is the Custodian of the Constitution, he should present practical ideas to solve the problems he has been so outspokenly highlighting,' feels Sudheendra Kulkarni.
Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav on Monday confirmed that Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar would be the Janata Parivar's chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Bihar assembly polls.
A Congress-led opposition on Tuesday came together seeking to pin down the government on the demonetisation issue in the winter session of Parliament beginning tomorrow but a consenses eluded on Trinamoll Congress's proposed march to Rashtrapati Bhawan for meeting the President.
The Congress feels there was no articulation of a bold vision of a statement of intent in the Budget, no articulation of a direction in which the economy has to go, and it lacks imagination. Renu Mittal reports.
Swaraj emphasised that the UN must accept it needs fundamental reform.
'Like it or not, the Congress is still the only party with the potential to challenge the BJP at a pan-Indian level,' says T V R Shenoy.
The party is finding increasing acceptability in the 18-35 years age group with Rahul Gandhi adding a million followers in the past 2 months and Facebook and Twitter also seeing similar spikes.
The CPI-M leader also demanded the setting up of a House Committee to examine the latest developments in various central universities.
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