Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday said 'there is no need for socialism in India', adding 'secularism is not the core of our culture'.
BJP and RSS leaders are once again pushing to remove the words 'secular' and 'socialist' from the Constitution's Preamble, showing a deeper effort to change India's identity from a diverse, multi-religious republic to a Hindu-first nation, even though they don't have the numbers in Parliament to officially change the Constitution, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The opposition INDIA bloc leaders are expected to discuss their joint candidate for the post of vice-president at a meeting of floor leaders on Monday morning.
'The Election Commission's involvement in the avoidable SIR controversy has carried a message down to the last voter -- who just does not like it,' observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Bombay high court has said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has a legitimate right for an expeditious decision on merits over a 2014 defamation complaint for his alleged remarks against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
Gandhi alleged that assembly and Lok Sabha polls were being "stolen" across the country and there was a "conspiracy" in Bihar to do the same through the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Wangchuk, who has been camping at Ladakh Bhawan in the national capital, is yet to be approached by a central government representative, a group member said.
'I disagree with much of Modi's politics, but it cannot be denied that in these years in office, he has carved more than a niche for himself in history,' points out Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, author, Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times.
According to insiders, their lack of enthusiasm is showing on the ground. There is nothing to suggest that their enthusiasm will return in the final four phases of polling, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Bharat Mata controversy in Kerala shows how political and symbolic fights between the state and the Centre have taken attention away from education, throwing the state's oldest university into confusion and disorder, observes Shyam G Menon.
Only in the event of the RSS managing to force Modi into accepting a consensual candidate, will the party not continue to 'being' the 'next Congress', observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has called for social harmony within the Hindu community, urging them to embrace the principle of "one temple, one well, and one cremation ground" for all. Bhagwat, on a five-day visit to Aligarh, emphasized the importance of achieving true social unity for India to fulfill its global responsibility for peace. He also stressed the significance of "sanskar (values)" as the bedrock of Hindu society, encouraging members to reach out to all sections of society and strengthen the foundations of nationalism and social cohesion.
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju clarifies that tribal communities in the northeast and other areas will be exempt from the proposed Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to preserve their traditional way of life.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other UDF MPs protest the arrest of Catholic nuns in Chhattisgarh, alleging religious persecution by the BJP government and demanding their immediate release.
Radhakrishnan defeated INDIA bloc nominee Justice B Sudershan Reddy by 152 votes in the Vice Presidential elections held between 10 am and 5 pm on Tuesday.
The BJP's constitution mandates that the party should complete the process of electing block, district and state chiefs before it elects its national president.
Describing the unrest among party members as just the "tip of the iceberg," the report shed light on the underlying discontent within the BJP.
The prolonged delay over electing J P Nadda's successor possibly stems from the RSS leadership wanting a person who is at least equidistant from the Sangh as well as the Modi/BJP edifice, observes BJP-RSS watcher Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
'It is a crisis of BJP's own doing. This is an in-house fire.'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP of rigging the Maharashtra assembly elections and expressed concerns about similar tactics being used in the upcoming Bihar polls. He alleged that the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar is an attempt to manipulate the election process.
Nationalist Congress Party leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Saturday didn't join his cabinet colleagues Devendra Fadnavis and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in visiting the Nagpur-based memorial of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh founder.
The BJP had no option but to get Jagdeep Dhankhar out of its way for the sake of the Modi government's stability, reveals Sheela Bhatt, the legendary political journalist.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat has said terrorists killed people in Pahalgam after asking about their religion, and Hindus would never do such a thing.
Mahadevan said after he got the invitation to attend the RSS event as the chief guest, he received congratulatory calls from many people, a gesture which he found deeply touching.
'If the BJP had its way, it would sideline him in favour of someone else. But that's not feasible. There is no vote catcher in Bihar for the BJP.'
'Is it right and proper for the US authorities to allow people like Subrahmanya Swamy [sic] go round the country preaching murder, violence, overthrow of the duly elected Government of India?' A fascinating excerpt from Sugata Srinivasaraju's The Conscience Network: A Chronicle of Resistance to a Dictatorship.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi turned 75 on Wednesday, with the Bharatiya Janata Party launching over a fortnight long 'Sewa Pakhwada' to mark the birthday of its preeminent leader.
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar stated that the Preamble of the Indian Constitution is fundamental and unchangeable, comparing it to parenthood. He also criticized the alteration of the Preamble during the Emergency era, amidst calls for review of certain terms.
The Supreme Court has extended the stay on trial court proceedings against Congress MP Shashi Tharoor in a defamation case filed over his 'scorpion on Shivling' remark. The court questioned the complainant's sensitivity and adjourned the matter for further hearing.
The Congress party has accused Union Minister Nitin Gadkari of conflict of interest, alleging his sons' companies have benefited from the government's ethanol blending policy. The BJP has rejected the allegations.
He was speaking at the 101st anniversary event of Lokmanya Seva Sangh, a Mumbai-based organisation set up to build a 'socially vigilant, disciplined, cultured and progressive society'.
Kolkata Police stopped the trailer launch of 'The Bengal Files', a film based on the 1946 Calcutta Riots, its director Vivek Agnihotri claimed, sparking controversy and allegations of censorship.
The Supreme Court of India has declined to interfere with the bail granted to 17 members of the Popular Front of India (PFI) in connection with the 2022 murder of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leader Srinivasan in Kerala. The court noted that the Kerala High Court, which granted bail, has the power to revoke it if the conditions are violated. The NIA had sought cancellation of the bail, alleging the accused had violated bail conditions and contacted witnesses. The accused are also facing trial for allegedly instigating communal violence in Kerala and other parts of the country.
A controversy has erupted in Mysuru over the ownership of Chamundi Hill, home to the Chamundeshwari Temple, ahead of the Dasara festival. Pramoda Devi Wadiyar of the erstwhile Mysuru royal family criticized Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar's statement that the hill is not the property of Hindus alone, leading to a heated exchange and raising questions about the nature of the upcoming Dasara celebrations.
Former Supreme Court judge B Sudhershan Reddy is the joint candidate of the Opposition parties for the Vice-Presidential polls, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge announced.
Glimpses from India and around the world that will make you smile and cry.
The Madhya Pradesh high court on Thursday said it took the Union government nearly five decades to realise that an "internationally renowned" organisation like Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh was wrongly placed in the list of organisations banned for government employees.
Former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur, acquitted in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, alleges torture by investigating officers and pressure to implicate Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other prominent figures.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale on Tuesday said the organisation believes that there is no need to turn India into a 'Hindu Rashtra' or Hindu nation because the country has always been one.
Gandhi's remarks at a press conference during the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Nagaland's Chiephobozoucame days after the Congress top brass declined the invitation to the event at the Ram temple in Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh.
