'This is just the beginning. You have to wait and watch to see things getting better.'
Those who continue to think that the 2024 election will see the BJP pursuing a more militant line are being alarmist, argues Rajeev Mantri. The BJP, Mantri believes, is not about to shoot itself in the foot. If anything, he says, the BJP may be more inclined to push a harder secularism.
A revealing excerpt from Rahul Shivshankar and Siddhartha Talya's book, Modi & India: 2024 and the Battle for Bharat.
Miss England, Milla Magee reportedly expressed disappointment with the pageant's environment, which she said did not align with her expectations of 'beauty with a purpose'.
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.
After they reached the site, some women were seen in the video pouring water on the feet of the contestants, who were seated in a row, to wash their feet.
'Maharashtrians are facing a dual battle -- numerical battle with North Indians and financial battle with Gujaratis and Marwaris.' 'This has created anxiety about survival and ownership over Mumbai and Maharashtra.'
'If there can be more than 50 Islamic countries and more than 150 Christian nations, why can't India be declared a Hindu Rashtra given that Hindus constitute a majority of its 100 million people?'
A case has been registered against the organisers of a Hindu Rashtra Panchayat held in north-east Delhi, which was rocked by the 2020 riots, for not taking permission to hold the meeting, the police said on Monday.
Experts say the state's economy is grappling with hidden debt, rising welfare costs, and lack of transparency.
If we have already excluded Muslims from political office by default, and if we are already harassing them daily through laws, like Nazi Germany did and like Pakistan did, then why do we need a Hindu Rashtra or a change from the present set of laws? argues Aakar Patel.
A handwritten feedback letter purportedly written by BRS leader K Kavitha to her father and former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, highlighting both the negative and positive aspects of the party's recent meeting, has sparked discussions in Telangana's political circles. While the authenticity of the letter has not been confirmed, Kavitha's letter suggests that the party might be aligning with the BJP. She also criticized KCR for his silence on key issues such as 42 per cent reservation for backward classes, Scheduled Castes categorisation, and omission of Urdu from his address at the BRS Silver Jubilee event.
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.
Senior Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Kamal Nath on Tuesday asked whether it is needed to say separately that India is a 'Hindu Rashtra' given the fact that 82 per cent of Hindus live in the country.
In a mistaken zeal to bolster the BJP's electoral base, the party - or at least its rabid followers - appear to have convinced themselves that the Hindu rashtra is already here. It's grave mistake, warns Amulya Ganguli.
A special court in India has reserved its verdict in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, which killed six people and injured over 100. The trial began nearly 17 years after the bombing in the town of Malegaon, located in Maharashtra. The prosecution concluded its final arguments on Saturday, marking the end of the hearings. Seven individuals, including Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit and BJP leader Pragya Thakur, are facing charges under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The verdict is expected to be delivered on May 8th.
The veteran socialist leader, who ended his long alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party last year, was responding to queries from journalists about the 'Hindu Rashtra' clamour, which was openly endorsed earlier this week by his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath.
The Telangana government has issued orders for teaching Telugu as a compulsory subject for students of 1st to 10th classes in Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), International Baccalaureate (IB) and other boards affiliated schools in the state from the 2025-26 academic year.
'In today's political spectrum, it is the Bharatiya Janata Party that always says, nation first.'
A resolution to this effect was passed at the party's general body meeting in Hyderabad, party sources said.
The Uddhav faction was shocked to see Pawar felicitate Shinde with an award.
There is a proposal from the BJP camp that they would resort to a proportion-based increase in the number of Lok Sabha seats for individual states, based on what they now have. On the face of it, this sounds like a fine argument that those demanding a 'freeze' now cannot oppose without reasons and justification, avers N Sathiya Moorthy.
Many states are realising that hosting mega events puts the spotlight on them and raises their profile.
'Why can't the Supreme Court say that secularism is part of the basic structure of the Constitution, and therefore, steps must be taken to operationalise it?'
The murder of a man who had filed complaint against former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and others alleging corruption in the Kaleshwaram irrigation project, kicked up a political slugfest on Thursday with the family members of the deceased and the ruling Congress in Telangana pointing fingers at the Bharat Rashtra Samiti over the killing.
'If we were to change the name of our country officially and become a Hindu Rashtra, will the treatment of Muslims change?' asks Aakar Patel.
Political sources say Modi is 'keen' on getting the NCP (SP) over to the Mahayuti to counter Eknath Shinde's 'demands' and to act as a cushion against his present allies, Nitish Kumar and N Chandrababu Naidu, 'in case their relationship became untenable'.
TRS president and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is expected to announce the new name for the party on Wednesday, considered auspicious in view of Vijayadasami.
'The idea of a 'Hindu Rashtra' only emerged in the 1920s and 1930s.' 'The context at that time was the clear British attempt at 'divide and rule' between Hindus and Muslims and within Hindus on caste lines,' argues military historian Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Thursday, met with many Muslim intellectuals including Chief Imam Dr Imam Umer Ahmed Ilyasi.
'In his first speech in Parliament, Modi spoke about the slavery of 1,400 years, and though he didn't say in so many words, the meaning was that he had come to re-establish a Hindu Rashtra.'
The Shiv Sena (UBT) has strongly criticized its ally, NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar, for felicitating Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde at an event in Delhi. The party's spokesperson, Sanjay Raut, views the felicitation as an endorsement of BJP leader Amit Shah, who was instrumental in Shinde's split from the Shiv Sena. While Pawar's party maintains that the event focused on literature, BJP interprets it as an acknowledgment of Shinde's leadership. The incident has sparked a political controversy in Maharashtra, with both sides engaging in verbal sparring.
He also stressed that whether we look from the world point of view or from the national viewpoint, the responsibilities of each member of the BJP are constantly growing. "Each and every worker of the BJP is a representative of the country's dreams," added PM Modi.
In a democratic set up, a demand for "Hindu rashtra" does not amount to promoting enmity between religious groups, an accused in a case of allegedly communal sloganeering at an event at Jantar Mantar here argued before the Delhi High Court on Wednesday.
Naga Chaitanya's father and top Telugu actor Nagarjuna strongly condemned the minister's remarks.
Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K Kavitha on Thursday, August 29, 2024, met her father and former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao in Hyderabad, their first meeting after Kavitha was released from Tihar jail on Tuesday.
'The way discrimination against Muslims has become almost normalised is very upsetting.'
Like all politicians, Bharatiya Janata Party's Ramveer Singh dreamt of ending the losing streak of his party, but little did he know his victory would be so stylised, featuring a rout by 1.44 lakh votes of his nearest rival.
'That was my mistake.' 'Gautam Adani was not involved in forming the Maharashtra government.' 'Adani was not there in the meeting.' 'The meeting was at his guest house and we were sitting in his guest house.'
Among the national parties, the Congress, Aam Aadmi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Communist Party of India-Marxist opposed the proposal, while the Bharatiya Janata Party and the National People's Party supported it.
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