Narendra Modi represents a change that embraces efficient delivery mechanisms, integrity, innovative solutions to governance and a welcome discourse away from Hindutva and Pakistan, says Jaya Jaitly.
The two leaders had some firm convictions in defence matters and are idolised by their respective people because they salved the scarred collective psyches of their societies.
The government also announced creation of a special open forum on the website mygov.nic.in for suggestions on the new institution.
'If the government does not take any action soon, 21 cities of India will become like Cape Town, with no water.' 'Four cities -- Delhi, Gurgaon, Meerut and Faridabad -- will suffer the worst.'
Has New Delhi internalised the truth that it does not matter, asks Saeed Naqvi. Such deafening silence from the government, principal opposition, even the pundits!
'The BJP and Congress are like those Bollywood lovers who are kept apart by their families where it is a generational problem of different values: The older ones think differently from the younger ones,' argues T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
During the meeting, the parties also decided to unitedly move forward in fielding a joint candidate for the post of deputy chairman of Rajya Sabha, which fell vacant after the retirement of P J Kurien on July 1.
'Was he afraid that his answers during cross-examination would land him in trouble under the new ruling dispensation?'
'His secularism merely declared the equality of all religions in India under fundamental rights.'
He also said in the Rajya Sabha that the people of the country have a predominant wish of retrieving the parts of Jammu and Kashmir occupied by Pakistan since 1948.
Nitish Kumar's decision to resign as the state chief minister was as dramatic as the time he decided to tie up with old foe Lalu in 2015.
'Somehow, I don't see the Modi government shutting down Air India.' 'So, Mallya may prove to be luckier than the government; at least his financial clock has stopped ticking,' says T N Ninan.
'All that Mr Modi needed to do was to call Urjit Patel over for a cup of tea and ask him nicely, and this fuss would never have happened.'
To mark his 50th death anniversary, rediff.com has launched a special series to evaluate Jawaharlal Nehru's legacy.
There are signs of China's external behaviour becoming more aggressive in the coming years. If that happens, strategic implications for neighbours having territorial disputes with China can become deeper and imperatives can rise for the former to counteract, says D S Rajan
Americans would elect 435 members of the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 Senate seats in the mid-term polls.
The government declared NSCN-K, all its front organisations and formations as a terrorist organization under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, a home ministry spokesman said.
Aseem Chhabra lists his 10 favourite non-Indian shows streaming in India -- classics as well as recent shows.
Within hours of the government announcing a new body to replace Planning Commission, the Yojana Bhawan staff began hectic preparations to welcome new Vice-Chairman of Niti Aayog and other members who are likely to be appointed shortly.
'Mr Modi may have the aura of an irresistible conquistador now, but he is human. He isn't an 'avatar,' argues Shekhar Gupta.
'Except for the Akali Dal and Shiv Sena, the BJP has not found any permanent friends.' 'This is because most parties are genuinely concerned about what Hindutva politics does to Indian society,' argues Aakar Patel.
The Congress, which had fought nine, lost all but managed to retain Kishanganj.
Sena President Uddhav Thackeray who is said to be upset over the recent meeting between MNS chief Raj Thackeray and Nitin Gadkari, on Wednesday ruled out the possible inclusion of any new players in the 'Mahayuti' (grand alliance) even as he took a dig at the former BJP chief by calling him an "apt businessman".
While Yechury feels CPI-M should unite with others to fight the 'growing danger of fascistic forces', Karat camp says it should fight the BJP, but not have any leaning towards the Congress or other opposition parties.
It would be a huge achievement if the new administration manages a successful transition to some sense of domestic and international normalcy in these frantic times marked by the pandemic and rise of illiberal regimes across the world, observes Shreekant Sambrani.
The military delegation will be in Delhi "shortly" and confer with top Indian Army officials as well as those in the ministry of external affairs to evolve a road map for a counter-insurgency strategy, reports Nitin Gokhale.
Articulate segments of Muzaffarpur have been at the the forefront of all anti-establishment mobilisation, which makes their silence over the atrocities in a shelter home in the town puzzling. Could it be that if those accused of horrific crimes belong to dominant castes and if the victims belong to the vulnerable groups, then the middle classes become mute, asks Mohammad Sajjad.
Bhattarai said his party 'Naya Shakti Nepal' would bear the "historic responsibility" of making Nepal prosperous and developed.
The desecration of Vidyasagar's statue during Amit Anilchandra Shah's rally, which the TMC projected to be a 'Bhojpuri' and 'Dhokla' invasion on West Bengal's culture, may help her gain some favour with middle-class and erudite Bengalis in the last phase of the polls.
12 years after he was sacked form JD-S, Siddaramaiah, offered Karnataka's CMship to his political foe Kumaraswamy.
Committed to secularism; wouldn't remove the word, says M Venkaiah Naidu
Karan Singh, Janardan Dwivedi and Parvez Hashmi would be retiring later this month.
The combined vote share of the Left Front was also reduced to nearly 24 per cent from 41 per cent in 2011.
'What aspect of the air strikes would make it possible for a voter to change her mind?' asks Aakar Patel.
'If some measures are implemented quickly, they can help revive growth.'
'Good economics isn't necessarily bad politics, or vice versa,' says Shekhar Gupta.
Xi has already been elected as general secretary of the ruling Communist Party of China at its once-in-five-year congress in October last year.
The government wants to introduce a nationwide goods and services tax to revive its stalled reform programme.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah will soon get around to reworking their organisational set-up and administrative priorities to regain lost ground in the wake of the Delhi electoral debacle, but there's third course available to them as well. That is to introduce the presidential form of government, which prime ministers Indira Gandhi and A B Vajpayee flirted with before abandoning it. Will Modi go further than them? N Sathiya Moorthy analyses the scenario.
