A fascinating excerpt from Shantanu Gupta's book, Teachings from the Ramayana on Family & Life.
'We are very close to become a theocratic State where Hinduism is the official religion of the government.'
"I do not think the idea of turning India into a 'Hindu Rashtra' is appropriate," Sen, 90, said.
Claiming that the BJP's government's works in the three holy cities are only follow-ups of her government's initiatives, Mayawati went on to promise, in what is being seen as a subtle shift towards soft Hindutva ahead of the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, to complete all those work on time.
'Those who opposed Ram, none of them was given power. Even all of them together were made number two. God's justice is true and enjoyable'
The Delhi government also advised all private schools to remain closed on November 9 as a precautionary measure in view of the verdict.
The 'Pran Pratishtha' of the idol of Ram Lalla -- the childhood form of Lord Ram -- will be attended by people from all walks of life, including representatives of major spiritual and religious sects of the country and of various tribal communities and prominent personalities.
'Besides Ayodhya, the BJP lost in nine other constituencies with a Ramayana imprint; it tasted success only in Thrissur.' 'In Rameswaram, K Navaskani of the Indian Union Muslim League won with a 44% voteshare in a 84% Hindu constituency.' 'In the 21 seats in the Ayodhya and Varanasi regions, both crucial to the Hindutva project, the BJP won just 7.' 'It won just 3 out of 12 seats around Modi's constituency,' points out Krishna Prasad.
'The Ayodhya anniversary, every year brings back the tragic memories. Politicians should let people's wounds heal and not reopen them to suit their agenda'
Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani has said the Ram Janmbhoomi movement, whose primary objective was construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, also became a symbol of 'reclaiming the true meaning of secularism from the onslaught of pseudo-secularism'.
'Ayodhya Ram Temple is about to be inaugurated. I would like to congratulate everyone who made the effort for the temple. It's ready now'
Will BJP campaigners start using the term 'Ram Rajya' to refer to the nation under Modi's rule, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
Reacting to the results, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that in the by-elections held on 13 seats in seven states, the people of the country have given their support to the INDIA bloc.
'If you want a room for the consecration, then you better book it now.' 'By this time next week there won't be any hotel rooms available in the temple city.'
Rammu Guru, the head priest of the temple, said, "Sai Baba was being worshiped without proper knowledge, which is forbidden according to scriptures."
'We are going to need more technical people in government.' 'You can't expect a generalist to understand the complicated world of financial engineering.' 'I regret to say that most of our politicians have no competence to deal with these things. Nor is there a willingness to learn.'
In addition to these temple models, metallic rings, lockets and other cloth items bearing Lord Ram's name are flying off the shelves in Ayodhya, according to shopkeepers.
The construction of the three-storeyed Ram temple in Ayodhya will be completed by December this year, temple construction committee chairperson Nripendra Misra said on Thursday. The sprawling temple complex will also have other structures.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday recalled how the government, political parties and the civil society prevented attempts to create fissures when the 2010 Allahabad high court ruling on the disputed land in Ayodhya was to be delivered.
To me he always symbolised the sincere, confident, face of a Bharat whose rise is unstoppable. Ratan Tata was a Rishi who was unquestioningly trusted by people who never saw him and never met him, asserts Tarun Vijay, the former BJP MP.
As Ayodhya readies itself for the glittering, much-awaited consecration ceremony of the Ram Mandir on January 22, and as millions of pilgrims and devotees pour into the holy city for the momentous event, companies are rushing to do their bit and be a part of the mega celebrations. Some are offering a part of their profits as donations, telcos are beefing up the number of cellular towers to ensure better connectivity, and there are those distributing jalebis and food platters.
'Our greatest enemies lie within us Kama -- selfish desires; krodha -- anger; moha -- attachment; lobha -- greed; madha -- pride and matsarya -- envy. Life is a constant battle against these dark forces. An enlightening excerpt from Priya Arora's book, Rama: A Man of Dharma.
Bihar Education Minister Chandrashekhar reiterated that temples are the path to "mental slavery" while schools mean the path of light in life, extending support to party MLA Fateh Bahadur Singh whose similar statement drew the ire of a fringe outfit that announced a "reward" of Rs 10 lakh to cut off his tongue.
The trigger for the stone pelting incident was not yet known, he said, adding further details were awaited.
The threats via microblogging platform X came a day after three international flights originating from Mumbai received bomb threats, causing trouble to hundreds of passengers and airline crew.
Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray president and former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray has been sent an invitation by speed post for the Ram temple consecration ceremony to be held in Ayodhya on Monday.
Manish Tripathi who designed the outfit adorned by the Ram Lalla idol in the newly constructed temple in Ayodhya said a divine connection with the deity helped him achieve the task.
Although conventional political wisdom would decree that the construction of a 'magnificent' Ram temple at his 'birth-place' would bring the BJP a big yield of votes in the prospective elections, its leaders know by now that the mandir must not exist in isolation in its game plan, reports Radhika Ramaseshan.
As the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Thursday sent a general advisory to all the states and Union territories asking them to deploy adequate security personnel at all sensitive places, political leaders made fresh calls to people not to indulge in making provocative remarks or spreading rumours.
The Supreme Court verdict on the Ram temple showed India's secular character to the world, Shah said.
All India Congress Committee spokesperson Radhika Khera on Sunday resigned from the party claiming that criticism over her visit to Lord Ram temple in Ayodhya led to the denial of justice to her in the incident that happened at the Chhattisgarh Congress office.
'Modi and his guarantees stand alone when it comes to national trust'
'For the convenience of Modiji this inauspicious muhurat was fixed'
PM Modi will arrive at 12.30 pm at the Ram Janmbhoomi and take part in various prayers including the main 'bhoomi pujan'. Govind Giriji Maharaj, treasurer of Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, said that the religious ceremonies will begin from 8.30 am in the morning and will continue till 12.30 pm.
For the first time in his political career, he failed to carry his party to even a working majority -- and again, for the first time in his career, he finds himself in a situation where he cannot rule by dictatorial fiat, points out Prem Panicker.
Much drama is likely to continue in the coming year, within the Sangh Parivar as well as involving the Opposition parties and, of course the BJP's allies, predicts Modi biographer Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
"For us Ram temple is a matter of faith and not politics," Thackeray said.
The complainant, Ajay Agrawal, a Supreme Court advocate and a Bharatiya Janata Party leader, alleged that Suranya Aiyar made objectionable remarks on different social media platforms on January 20, 2024, and other dates.
As a consequence of prominence given to the brutality during those few days, a very important aspect of that episode got almost glossed over. This was the intervention by a very significant section of people who restored faith in humanity, and conveyed the message that only a small section of Indians, that too politically backed, were consumed by anti-Sikh majoritarianism. The overlooked facet of the events of 1984 was the story of significant sections of the city's populace, public figures and nondescript ones, stepping out hand-in-hand, to first stand with little but bravery in hands, in the way of attackers, and thereafter to provide immediate relief to those who lives were uprooted and who lost family members in the violence, recalls Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
The apex court will pronounce the judgement at 10.30 am on Saturday.
