News for 'National Security Archive'

From Rediff Archives: The strange case of Yakub Memon

From Rediff Archives: The strange case of Yakub Memon

Rediff.com21 Jul 2015

Back in 2007, Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt had profiled Yakub after he was sentenced to death by the Terrorist and Disruptive Actives (Prevention) Act court for criminal conspiracy and financing air tickets to send co-conspirators for arms and RDX training to Pakistan.

From Rediff Archives: The strange case of Yakub Memon

From Rediff Archives: The strange case of Yakub Memon

Rediff.com15 Jul 2015

Back in 2007, Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt had profiled Yakub after he was sentenced to death by the Terrorist and Disruptive Actives (Prevention) Act court for criminal conspiracy and financing air tickets to send co-conspirators for arms and RDX training to Pakistan.

The Indian Hero you must know about

The Indian Hero you must know about

Rediff.com23 Oct 2019

'R N Kao was a spymaster, an institution builder and a gentleman.'

The many shortcomings of Aadhaar

The many shortcomings of Aadhaar

Rediff.com14 Apr 2022

Aadhaar is falling behind on technology, missing out on confidentiality and has gaps in its data archiving policy and preserving confidentiality in delivery of the cards to people, says a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG). The performance report, 'Functioning Of Unique Identification Authority Of India', tabled in Parliament on the last day of the budget session notes, assigning a unique identity to all resident Indians was supposed to be the key feature of Aadhaar. But "There were instances of issue of Aadhaar with the same biometric data to different residents indicating flaws in the de-duplication process and issue of Aadhaar on faulty biometrics and documents". It says close to half a million such records had to be cancelled by the Unique Identification Authority of India up to 2016.

Why Caste Violence Is On The Rise In Tamil Nadu

Why Caste Violence Is On The Rise In Tamil Nadu

Rediff.com22 Aug 2023

Tamil Nadu is the celebrated home of the 'social justice' movement in the country, yet caste differences and violence has only been increasing in numbers and becoming more brutal in recent years, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.

'ISI is rarely questioned in Pakistan'

'ISI is rarely questioned in Pakistan'

Rediff.com18 Aug 2021

'But India, increasingly, is not that far behind, which is a story I never expected to tell.'

'I would have been the king of limited overs cricket'

'I would have been the king of limited overs cricket'

Rediff.com7 Apr 2023

'I am not envious of those who are making millions. It's their era and I had my era.'

Trump releases thousands of JFK files, but withheld few 'sensitive' records

Trump releases thousands of JFK files, but withheld few 'sensitive' records

Rediff.com27 Oct 2017

Trump ordered that they be reviewed in the next 180 days.

Column: Is Pakistan blackmailing PM, NSA?

Column: Is Pakistan blackmailing PM, NSA?

Rediff.com11 Apr 2019

'Imran Khan would only have spoken with the full awareness of Modi's complex political personality.' 'He has the great advantage of being privy to the confidential exchanges between then Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif and Modi during the latter's celebrated surprise visit to Lahore in December 2015 as well as the 'back channel' conversations between the national security advisors of the two countries,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.

Can Jagdeep Dhankar Handle The Rajya Sabha?

Can Jagdeep Dhankar Handle The Rajya Sabha?

Rediff.com26 Jul 2022

Running a fractious House full of members every bit as well versed in parliamentary law as the chair, has, in the past, reduced several Rajya Sabha chairmen to tears.

US imposes sweeping new sanctions on Iran

US imposes sweeping new sanctions on Iran

Rediff.com22 Sep 2020

'Today, I am taking new actions to restrict Iran's nuclear, ballistic missile, and conventional weapons pursuits. My Administration will never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon, nor will we allow Iran to endanger the rest of the world with a fresh supply of ballistic missiles and conventional arms,' Trump said in a statement.

What if LTTE's Prabhakaran were alive...

What if LTTE's Prabhakaran were alive...

Rediff.com14 Feb 2023

The Indian authorities have to reconfirm that Prabhakaran is dead. It may require seeking assistance from Interpol and also involve the re-opening of the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, and more so, the investigations, formally or otherwise, asserts N Sathiya Moorthy.

Draft policy unlocks govt data for all; monetisation likely

Draft policy unlocks govt data for all; monetisation likely

Rediff.com22 Feb 2022

The government on Monday published a draft data policy for public consultation, which says all data collected, generated, and stored by every government ministry and department will be open and shareable barring certain exceptions. Also, detailed datasets that have undergone value addition could be monetised by the government. The policy document, called "Draft India Data Accessibility & Use Policy 2022", prescribes that a regulatory authority called the Indian Data Council (IDC) and an agency by the name India Data Office (IDO) will oversee framing metadata standards and enforcement, respectively.

'1962 War Broke Nehru'

'1962 War Broke Nehru'

Rediff.com20 Dec 2022

'The war of 1962 exposed the hollow intellectual foundations of Nehruvian foreign policy, especially vis-a-vis China and that is why it was such a shock.'

JK accession files: CIC stops short of ordering disclosure of Bucher papers

JK accession files: CIC stops short of ordering disclosure of Bucher papers

Rediff.com10 Oct 2021

The disclosure of files provided by India's second army chief General Sir Roy Bucher to Nehru Memorial Museum and Library about Jammu and Kashmir related to the period of 1947-49, which may throw light on Accession, is in 'national interest,' the central information commission has observed in an order.

Why Central Vista project is all wrong

Why Central Vista project is all wrong

Rediff.com25 May 2021

The project shows a lack of respect for history, even if an inalienable part of it is colonial history, asserts T N Ninan.

'India is losing 10,000 artefacts per decade'

'India is losing 10,000 artefacts per decade'

Rediff.com28 Sep 2021

'In China there is capital punishment for heritage theft. That is how they treat criminals, unlike us.' 'Here we treat them like it's a house-breaking theft.'

Where is Dawood? One question, many answers in Parliament

Where is Dawood? One question, many answers in Parliament

Rediff.com5 May 2015

Rediff.com digs into Parliamentary archives to gauge how the government has responded on the issue.

19 kids, aged 7-10 yrs, among 21 shot dead in Texas school shooting

19 kids, aged 7-10 yrs, among 21 shot dead in Texas school shooting

Rediff.com25 May 2022

In one of the worst school shootings in American history, an 18-year-old gunman has killed 21 people, including 19 children, and two adults at an elementary school in Texas state, with an emotional President Joe Biden urging lawmakers to 'turn this pain into action' to control the powerful gun lobby.

Modi's PMO gets control of official Twitter handle

Modi's PMO gets control of official Twitter handle

Rediff.com27 May 2014

The Prime Minister's Office under Narendra Modi on Tuesday took control of Twitter handle @PMOIndia that was relinquished by the previous dispensation under Manmohan Singh last week and had led to a controversy with the Bharatiya Janata Party terming it 'disgraceful and illegal'.

A spoilsport in a time of genocide remembrance

A spoilsport in a time of genocide remembrance

Rediff.com25 Mar 2022

'The response to savagery and mass injustice is never a persistent howl.' 'There will be, among the victims, those who choose to forget the scars, those who go on living, those who challenge the overall environment of sentimentality.' 'And the more effort you put into including these other voices, into assimilating these spoilsports, the more balanced your depiction of the tragedy in question will be,' observes Sreehari Nair.

PMO twitter account to be handed over to new dispensation: PMO

PMO twitter account to be handed over to new dispensation: PMO

Rediff.com21 May 2014

Under sharp attack, the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday said the twitter account @PMOIndia has been "secured" by the microblogging company and will be handed over to the new dispensation which will take over next week.

US official sacked for Twitter barbs is Indian-American

US official sacked for Twitter barbs is Indian-American

Rediff.com2 Nov 2013

A key White House staffer who was fired after it came to light that he was behind a Twitter account that dished out gossip and pointed barbs at the Obama Administration is an Indian-American.

Robert Kennedy stole JFK's brain after assassination: Book

Robert Kennedy stole JFK's brain after assassination: Book

Rediff.com21 Oct 2013

The brain of assassinated American President John F Kennedy that went missing after his autopsy may have been stolen from the United States national archives by his brother Robert Kennedy, a new book has claimed.

Vijay Nambiar to lead UN probe panel

Vijay Nambiar to lead UN probe panel

Rediff.com8 Sep 2007

He will probe the circumstances surrounding the recent discovery of a "potentially hazardous substance" at the world body's New York offices.

US government shutdown set to drag on to 2019 as Trump, Democrats stick to their stands

US government shutdown set to drag on to 2019 as Trump, Democrats stick to their stands

Rediff.com28 Dec 2018

Trump has refused to sign any stopgap spending bill that does not has provisions to fund a wall along the US-Mexico border which he says is essential to stop the flow of illegal immigrants.

How India Won The 1971 War

How India Won The 1971 War

Rediff.com3 Dec 2021

December 3, 2021 marks 50 years since the beginning of the 1971 War which ended in a decisive military victory for India and the liberation of Bangladesh. Most analysts of the 1971 War agree that the IV Corps dash across the mighty Meghna river led by the brilliant General Sagat Singh was the turning point in the war, recalls military historian Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).

Revised 9/11 commission report released

Revised 9/11 commission report released

Rediff.com14 Sep 2005

The report provides fresh details about warnings against al-Qaeda.

What's wrong with Modi's Central Vista project

What's wrong with Modi's Central Vista project

Rediff.com7 Dec 2020

'If you are doing something to our national democratic space which involves serious amounts of land, the public should have been consulted.'

ETFs catch on, daily average value on NSE up 70 times

ETFs catch on, daily average value on NSE up 70 times

Rediff.com10 Jul 2015

Unlike mutual funds, an ETF trades like a common stock.

India, Singapore lift ties to strategic partnership, ink 10 pacts

India, Singapore lift ties to strategic partnership, ink 10 pacts

Rediff.com24 Nov 2015

India and Singapore on Tuesday elevated their ties to the 'strategic partnership' level and signed bilateral agreements for enhanced defence cooperation and in areas like cyber security, shipping and civil aviation.

Singapore is Asia's economic lion, says Modi

Singapore is Asia's economic lion, says Modi

Rediff.com24 Nov 2015

Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the city state is a major partner in almost every area of India's transformation.

After 1962 China war stock markets fell 16%, gold 30%

After 1962 China war stock markets fell 16%, gold 30%

Rediff.com18 Jun 2020

The government was also faced with problems on its balance of payments. It took steps to conserve declining foreign exchange reserves, and began to regulate the production, supply and distribution of gold. It banned forward trading in the yellow metal in November 1962, and introduced gold bonds as well, reveals the RBI's annual report for the year ending June 1963.

11,100 files destroyed, Gandhi assassination records safe: Govt

11,100 files destroyed, Gandhi assassination records safe: Govt

Rediff.com11 Jul 2014

11,000 files were destroyed as per Prime Minister Narendra Modi's orders to weed out files and papers but none of these related to the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said.

Meet Kavitha Kuruganti, the farmers' champion

Meet Kavitha Kuruganti, the farmers' champion

Rediff.com27 Nov 2020

Kavitha Kuruganti has been fighting for decades to ensure farmers are respected and get their due from the Indian nation. In order to ensure they don't struggle for a living, she works to ensure sustainable farm livelihoods and farmers' rights.

Government had accepted Netaji had died in 1945 crash

Government had accepted Netaji had died in 1945 crash

Rediff.com23 Jan 2016

A Union Cabinet note said, "There seems to be no scope for doubt that he died in the air crash of 18th August 1945 at Taihoku. Government of India has already accepted this position. There is no evidence whatsoever to the contrary."

Two titans of diplomacy leave a rich legacy

Two titans of diplomacy leave a rich legacy

Rediff.com16 Sep 2020

Ambassador Natarajan Krishnan and Ambassador Shankar Bajpai helped shape Indian foreign policy at a glorious, but difficult, time in history, recalls Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.

'200 cows, $200M lines of credit': Modi ends 2-day Rwanda visit

'200 cows, $200M lines of credit': Modi ends 2-day Rwanda visit

Rediff.com24 Jul 2018

Here are some of the glimpses of his visit.

Reckless businessman to reckless president: Decoding Donald

Reckless businessman to reckless president: Decoding Donald

Rediff.com5 May 2018

'Can he be the statesman that a divided nation needs?' 'Not remotely, but by following his gut, he may yet surprise the scores upon scores of naysayers,' says Vikram Johri.

China: Modi's historic now-or-never opportunity

China: Modi's historic now-or-never opportunity

Rediff.com21 Jul 2020

Only he, with his tremendous political capital and personal stature, can pull it off, observes B S Raghavan, the veteran civil servant.