Calling the political condition prevailing in West Bengal "horrible and frightening", Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar alleged on Tuesday that the people of the state do not have the freedom to exercise their franchise fearlessly.
The government's annual Economic Survey on Friday strongly defended new farm laws, saying they herald a new era of market freedom which can go a long way in improving lives of small and marginal farmers in India. These legislations were designed "primarily" for the benefit of "small and marginal farmers", which constitute around 85 per cent of the total number of farmers and are the biggest sufferer of the "regressive" APMC-regulated market regime, the survey said. The pre-budget document defended the farm laws in the backdrop of long-running farmers' agitation at various borders of the national capital seeking repeal of these legislations expressing concern that they are pro-corporate and could weaken government regulated mandis, also called Agriculture Produce Marketing Committees (APMCs).
Bangladesh descended into chaos on Monday as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina surreptitiously resigned and fled the country in a military aircraft while the Army stepped in to fill the power vacuum.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday apologised to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and those hurt by the collapse of the warrior king's statue in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district, an act coming in the backdrop of a huge row over the crash which provided ammunition to the opposition to target the Mahayuti government ahead of assembly polls.
Pezeshkian gained the attention of people for his stance against the crackdown on the 2009 pro-democracy protests and the violence perpetrated by the notorious morality police in 2022 after Mahsa Amini's death.
India also accused Canada of allowing "celebration and glorification" of violence, expressing concerns over the security of Indian diplomats in that country, and said it expects Ottawa to ensure that they are able to carry out their responsibilities without fear.
Then prime minister Manmohan Singh's brief to his new information and broadcasting minister Manish Tewari on what should be the government's approach to the media was simple -- it should be an essay in persuasion, not coercion.
"Indians will decide the fate of India, not the foreigners," Verma told the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations, a prominent think-tank.
Kamal Haasan is right where he left off from the first film but there is only so much he can do to salvage an already lost cause, observes Arjun Menon.
'Free India turns 70 this year.' But 'freedom from whom and freedom for what?' asks Rajendran Narayanan.
"His own government has destroyed Gandhian institutions in Varanasi, Delhi and Ahmedabad," the Congress leader alleged.
The House preserves the hiding place at the rear of the 17th century canal house, known as the Secret Annex, where Anne Frank hid from Nazi persecution with her family and four other people during World War II.
"Hum kya chahe - Azadi. Kashmir ki Azadi. Manipur ki Azadi. Nagaland ki Azadi (We demand freedom. Kashmir's freedom. Manipur's freedom. Nagaland's freedom)," one of the posters said.
'The 2024 general elections proved that UP is not Gujarat.'
In a statement, Congress' media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said that in yet another crackdown on press freedom, two editors from two language newspapers have been arrested by the Manipur government.
New Delhi has reached out to Moscow while waiting for a new president in Washington. New Delhi knows well that in international relations, there are no permanent friends or foes, only permanent national interests, points out Dr Rup Narayan Das.
Here's the full text of address to the nation by President Droupadi Murmu on the eve of the Republic Day 2023.
He further added that the people of India respect different languages, religion, food and customs which varies from region to region. "That's the India that I believe in, where everybody has a place and everybody compromises little bit," he said.
'Many like me fought for the freedom of the country. Now the freedom is being surrendered to the West in the name of globalisation,' Siddha Raj Dadda said.
Donald Trump on Thursday became the first former United States president to be convicted of a felony as a grand jury in New York found him guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records.
Taking note of the recent violence against the Christian community in India, the US has asked the Indian government to protect the religious freedom throughout the country. "We urge all parties to refrain from violence and urge government officials to protect religious freedom throughout India and thus preserve India's longstanding tradition of religious tolerance," said Ambassador for International Religious Freedom, John Hanford.
'I would think that India faces less damage from opinions voiced overseas compared to the damage it suffers if the right to free speech of its citizens is curtailed in the name of image management,' asserts Shyam G Menon.
The current instability in the world is a result of long term systemic and socio-politico problems, points out Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The go-ahead given to prosecute Arundhati Roy would be seen by supporters of freedom of speech as an announcement that the Right-Wing doesn't feel humbled by the results of the elections, argues Shyam G Menon.
In a stinging attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government, Shiv Sena member of Parliament Sanjay Raut on Sunday said it wouldn't be surprising if the Enforcement Directorate issues summons against former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru in the National Herald newspaper case and paste the notice on his memorial.
'I give a lot of credit to Rahul Gandhi for standing up and fighting it for a long time and surviving, nobody else would have been able to survive'
Such public domain discussions affect their morale and dedication -- and that, if anything, will definitely affect combat-effectiveness, asserts Vice Admiral Biswajit Dasgupta (retd).
The United States on Thursday advised India to ensure Internet freedom while seeking to preserve national security, as the Indian government asked social networking websites to check pages carrying inflammatory messages.
Bush said trade liberalisation and ongoing security efforts in the region had become increasingly important to global economic stability and to the ongoing war on terror
Both factions of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind (Arshad Madani and Mahmood Madani) slammed the Bill and expressed grave concerns over the proposed legislation.
'We will get our rights as normal citizens of India and enjoy those rights as openly and fearlessly as you and others do.'
It demanded that the government take note of the cases of disruptions in television programme signals, investigate and explain how and under what circumstances these 'egregious violations' are taking place.
Here's the full text of address to the nation by President Ram Nath Kovind on the eve of the Republic Day 2022.
For the first time, Modi is eyeball to eyeball with his bete noire, sitting a few feet across him. Given the last 10 years, a confrontation between them was unavoidable, inevitable, points out Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Scottish fans clad in kilts have dominated central Munich for the last few days, playing bagpipes, chanting and endearing themselves to the locals. Hours before kick-off Germany fans emerged to join the excitement, saying they were proud to host the tournament and ready to get behind their team.
RIL has more than half a dozen undeveloped discoveries.
Campaigning ended on Wednesday evening for 102 Lok Sabha seats across 21 states and Union territories which will go to polls in the first phase on April 19 with top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance and the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) making a last-gasp effort to woo voters.
'There are lots of very talented and skilful players who are coming through the system. The only thing we need to make sure is the transition is done in a controlled manner.'
