Everyone, it seems, has a question to ask the BJP's prime ministerial candidate these days. Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt asked some well-known Indians what they would like to ask Narendra Modi, to gauge what emotions he evokes in them.
'He always avoided eating non-vegetarian food in presence of his deputies if they were fasting for the month of Shravan.' 'There were no Hindu, Jain, Parsi and Swaminarayan festivals he would forget.' 'He was a conservative Muslim and therefore could get along well with conservative Hindus.'
The President asked many questions on the treasure found in the temple, however, he wasn't shown the actual treasure since it's sealed under a Supreme Court order. Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com, who accompanied the President, reports from Thiruvananthapuram.
Sheela Bhatt recounts the tension, suspense and disruptions during P Chidambaram's interim budget in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
'Whoever thought that building toilets and providing free rations to the poorest of poor Indians would give Modi a halo other political leaders would envy?' asks Sheela Bhatt.
Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt speaks with Vishwanath Chaturvedi, a petitioner in the disproportionate assets case against Samajwadi Party supreme Mulayam Singh Yadav and his family who says that the CBI may shut the case prematurely
If Modi's political retreat -- he has tried to avoid a pre-1984 type of situation in Punjab -- helps soothe Sikh sentiments, nobody should complain Modi, asserts Sheela Bhatt.
Joginder Tuteja looks at Bollywood's new lot of actress-turned-producers.
Both countries are closer than before due to these two leaders's public display of mutual connectivity and warm exchanges of words, but how it will help India to serve its interests will be known on Tuesday.
Barack Obama is expected to ask for India's support to create a global coalition against ISIS when he meets Narendra Modi on Monday. Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com reports from New York.
A Congress MP reveals to Sheela Bhatt the Congress plan to protect the Speaker and home minister and muscle through the tabling of the Telangana bill in Parliament.
'Neither Modi nor the BJP have lost control over the minds and votes of their original supporters due to their tremendous political ability to play upon baser communal instincts.' 'But this buoyant support will melt away if the economic scenario remains depressing.' 'That makes 2020 an interesting year to watch out for,' notes Sheela Bhatt.
'The border has stayed the way it was for over 30 years, and they are now trying to change it'
It's a mandate of young India, for young India, by young India, says Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com in her 43rd and concluding column on Indian Elections 2014.
'Some people chose to describe it as the Pakistan army's permanent presence, as if it's another Kargil. The reports were highly exaggerated.' Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt, who is travelling with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on his two-nation trip to Brunei and Indonesia, reports.
'What the interview with Modi told me was that now he is open to granting interviews.' 'And in this connection let me offer our credentials for being considered in this election season,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Studies in China claim that traditional Chinese medicines seem to be working effectively on patients with mild or moderate symptoms of coronavirus.
Sheela Bhatt drives from New Delhi to Agra and Firozabad to capture the stories of an India under lockdown.
'The young generation will find its own Mandela when they fight and struggle for a just society,' says Tridip Suhrud, director, Sabarmati Ashram, Ahmedabad.
Weakened by two fierce political opponents and the army in Pakistan, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's United Nations speech was to address his domestic audience.
'It is my job to resolve the issue, and we are looking at all options,' Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid tells Sheela Bhatt.
On Friday, during his interaction with the media, the prime minister is expected to present his aggressive and confident face. Sheela Bhatt reports
For one, the prime minister's residence will go vegetarian for the first time; Amitabh Bachchan, deservingly, will be conferred the Bharat Ratna; and the people can expect a lot of emotion-loaded communication from the prime minister, feels Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com
Sheela Bhatt visits a large urban basti a mere 20-minute drive from the prime minister's home to discover a story of grim struggle in the time of lockdown.
Sheela Bhatt reports on the tortuous negotiations to form a Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government in Maharashtra.
On Election 2014: 'So far it looks like a one horse race. The difference between the first and the second challenger is so large that if the first one looks back in the last round, he'll probably not see the second one anywhere.' On the AAP prospects: 'They should be happy if they're able to open their account.' On Rahul Gandhi: 'He has a confused message. His campaign is in the abstract. And his campaign has nothing to offer.' Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley in a free and frank conversation with Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt.
In a sudden development, S Jaishankar, India's Ambassador to the United States, was on Wednesday night appointed Foreign Secretary, replacing Sujatha Singh whose tenure has been abruptly 'curtailed" by nearly 8 months.
If and when India and Pakistan bilateral talks take place any issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir will not be on the table. Any future talks with Pakistan will be only about PoK, tactically or otherwise.
The current crisis has forced the government to announce measures to ensure that India becomes self-sustaining for any kind of bulk drug. The government says India will not depend on any other country for vital key ingredients for drugs within six years, reports Sheela Bhatt.
It's possible that to counter the onslaught of the saffron aggression in the upcoming assembly elections in Maharashtra, both Congress and NCP will checkmate Narendra Modi by pitting Sharad Pawar as the chief ministerial candidate. However, the Congress wants the NCP to merge first, and only then it will be ready to nominate Pawar. Sheela Bhatt reports.
At the best of times, ticket distribution in India's political parties is a tough business. The post-election result has to be judged, and judged correctly. It's an impossible job in view of the 814 million voters for whom the party bigwigs have to perform. Sheela Bhatt presents this light-hearted assessment of what's top of the mind for our political heavyweights.
Everybody seems to be expressing regret about the smog to everybody else in Beijing, observes Sheela Bhatt
Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt analyses the three takeaways from Dr Singh's interaction
In this conversation with Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt, former Army Chief V K Singh refutes the allegations made in the Indian Army's Secret Board of Officers Inquiry report, which accuses him of misusing of his position
Dr C P Joshi, the rising star in the Congress party, explains his strategy for the Rajasthan poll.
With the lengthy battle over his appointment finally settled by the apex court, the ball is now in Justice Mehta's court. He has been non-committal over his appointment as the state legal ombudsman. All eyes are now on his return from abroad on August 5. Sheela Bhatt reports.
Sheela Bhatt reveals how the BJP and Amit Shah have halted -- for now -- the Shiv Sena's dream of forming a government in Maharashtra.
'...If people follow the lockdown well.'
Narendra Modi will turn 64, playing host to the visiting Chinese leader in Ahmedabad on Wednesday
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