Even with an ongoing pandemic, theatres in many states functioning at 50 per cent occupancy, a quieter social life and fewer movies, Bollywood still managed to pack in plenty of drama and trauma, fun and festivity, love and war into the year.
Till the statue, made of granite, is completed, a hologram statue of his would be present at the same place.
Alert to the looming threat from the 'Omicron' variant, states began to re-tighten curbs and urgently trace people who arrived from abroad in the last one month while a demand to not allow flights from the affected countries was made by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.
Bollywood celebrated Raksha Bandhan with their siblings over the weekend, and posted lovely pictures on Instagram.
Buoyed by the exit polls projections, the party has sent its senior leaders including general secretary Randeep Surjewala and Avinash Pande, chairman of the Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee screening committee, to Patna for proper coordination with the allies and possibly also to keep its flock together after the results are declared.
A report of five-member sub-group constituted by the Supreme Court to audit oxygen use in hospitals in the national capital during the second wave in April-May said the Delhi government "exaggerated" consumption of oxygen and made a claim of 1,140 MT, four times higher than the formula for bed capacity requirement of 289 MT.
Pilot, who is also the president of the state unit of the party, on Tuesday night claimed he has the support of 30 MLAs and the Gehlot government is now in minority.
The hits and misses of the week.
Justice S N Dhingra Commission, which was set up to probe into grant of land licences to some companies including that of Robert Vadra's in Gurgaon during the Congress rule in Haryana, on Thursday sought six weeks more time to submit its report hours before the deadline was to end.
Upset over political developments in Maharashtra, the Congress and other opposition parties boycotted Constitution Day celebrations in the Central Hall of Parliament and held a joint protest in front of the Ambedkar statue inside Parliament complex.
Sonia called for cancelling all public gatherings and poll rallies in view of the rising number of coronavirus cases.
A host of top Congress leaders wished him on his birthday, with former prime minister Manmohan Singh among the first to send his best wishes through a letter in the morning.
While the Congress has found success in scoring over the BJP on Twitter and Facebook, it has failed to match the Sangh Parivar's finesse at utilizing WhatsApp as its primary medium to send its message across to the Karnataka electorate, reports Archis Mohan.
The move is being seen as an attempt to forge opposition unity to defeat the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.
Trade analyst Vinod Mirani gives the box office verdict for the week.
Vora was admitted to the Escorts Hospital in Okhla a few days ago with a urinary infection. He also had a lung infection and was put on ventilator support, his family said.
'We have the technical expertise, and international collaborations. We also have robust real-time data. We are a university of pandemic management. If the ministry neglects the role of NCDC, it is the loss of the country'
The division bench of the court, hearing the dissident MLAs petition against the Speaker's notices, adjourned Friday evening. It fixed the next hearing for 10 am on Monday. The counsel for the Speaker assured the court that no order shall be passed on the notice till 5.30 pm on Tuesday.
Rajasthan Assembly Speaker C P Joshi confirmed that disqualification notices have been sent out Tuesday on the basis of the complaint made by the party. The dissidents have to reply by Friday.
He has also convened the first meeting of the extended CWC on July 22 to chalk out the party's future strategy.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed strict action in the case as Opposition leaders targeted his Bharatiya Janata Party government over the crime. Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said the case should not be politicised.
Getting a ringside view of the action were Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Indian Premier League commissioner Rajiv Shukla, Olympic champion boxer MC Mary Kom, star wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, cricketers Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina.
The hits and misses of the week.
The parties also said that the decision has come in late and had the Modi government shed its 'arrogance earlier' and repealed the laws opposed by farmers, a number of precious lives lost during the nearly year-long agitation could have been saved.
Rahul Gandhi, in turn, thanked all the leaders for reposing faith in him and said he would apply his mind on their request of becoming the Congress president, the sources said.
The assembly session comes days after the top leadership of the Congress announced the return of Pilot and 18 other dissident MLAs to the party-fold. Referring to Pilot's open rebellion while addressing the legislators, the CM asked them to 'forget what has happened'.
Admitting its defeat, the Congress on Friday said it was "very disappointed" with the poll outcome but hit out at Narendra Modi for pursuing "politics of polarisation".
Several leaders, including many MPs, wrote to Sonia Gandhi, either calling for her to continue or urging Rahul Gandhi to take charge.
'What do you think the Congress is today?' 'Is it a political party heading for a life-and-death battle?' 'Or an NGO, just doing its thing and hoping it will improve the state of the world?' asks Shekhar Gupta.
Check out the cool Holi pictures.
Maharashtra registered over 64 per cent voter turnout while a record 76 pc polling in Haryana, which witnessed stray incidents of violence, in the first eight hours of polling on Wednesday in the riveting contest to elect assemblies in the two states.
Cinema halls have been ordered to shut down in many cities after the COVID-19 scare, so films are being screened only at a limited number of cinemas.
Like the rest of India, film folk like Lata Mangeshkar, Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar and Karan Johar came out on their balconies to clap and give a shout-out to people, who have been providing medical and other essential services during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, as part of PM Narendra Modi's Janta curfew initiative.
The BJP stalwart continues to be in the intensive care unit of the Cardio-thoracic Centre at the hospital.
'Rahul is misguided by a handful of family retainers who don't want him to show unrestrained initiative in forming allies.' says Sudhir Bisht.
Members of the Congress also walked out of the Lok Sabha and staged a sit-in in the Parliament House complex after they were not allowed to speak following a statement by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on the border standoff with China in eastern Ladakh.
'A poorly conceived reboot that's overlong, overdramatic and overdone, Love Aaj Kal simply cannot differentiate between pyaar and parody,' says Sukanya Verma.
The top posts on social media from your favourite Bollywood celebrities.
Priyanka has been told that if she stays beyond August 1, she will have to pay penalty.
What makes Dhankar so outspoken? Could it because as governor he will be in the driver's seat if the Trinamool Congress performs below par in the elections next year? Shikha Shalini reports.
