Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and other ministers took charge of their respective offices on Thursday, a day after taking oath at a ceremony held in the Darbar Hall of the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Pledging full protection to minorities, Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday questioned the practice of conversions and advocated a debate on the need for an anti-conversion law.
'Being financially independent is crucial.' 'This spares women a lot of grief if the marriage, especially in large business families, breaks down.'
Union Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid, who has been elevated to Cabinet rank in Wednesday's reshuffle, had worked on many a party and governmental positions in the past. Khurshid, who is a Member of Parliament from Farrukhabad parliamentary constituency, had in the past served as junior minister of commerce and minister of state for eternal afairs during the 10th Lok Sabha (1991-96). Between 1996 and 2009,
External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the observation on India in the report is based on 'motivated inputs and biased views'.
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and former state BJP president Keshav Prasad Maurya had also dropped a hint in a recent tweet, saying Yaduvanshi (Yadavs), Ravidasiyo (Jatavs) and Pasmanda Muslims will be brought closer to the BJP so that the lotus 'blossoms' in every booth in UP.
It sent shock waves in the party -- a political greenhorn had taken on Modi in his home turf of Gujarat. Smriti had clearly tried to choose sides, in this case Vajpayee's camp. Many felt that this would end Irani's career. A revealing excerpt from Nidhi Sharma's new book She, The Leader: Women in Indian Politics.
Putting up a brave front, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday asserted the Harish Rawat government remains in a minority and it will be proved on April 29 when it takes the floor test, after the Uttrakhand high court restored the Congress government, revoking the President's rule.
The 15 ministers were sworn in on Sunday for the expanded Gehlot cabinet, fulfilling a key demand of former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot whose rebellion last year shook the state's Congress government.
Modernisation of Madrasas is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's plan that he laid out in run-up to Lok Sabha elections in 2014.
BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar distanced his party from Rane's view. "The situation in Maharashtra is grim, but it does not qualify for President's rule. We feel the state government is not serious enough about tackling the situation," the former state minister said.
India is in the cusp of a reverse brain drain as the country's great minds are flocking back to the resilient economy that has withstood the global meltdown, Salman Khurshid, minister of state for corporate and minority affairs, has said.
More screenings are expected to take place in some colleges in Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram later Tuesday, a senior police officer said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party in Kerala is aiming to use the PM's visit as a springboard for its outreach campaign aimed at bringing youth and minorities into its fold.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday received support from unexpected quarters over the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with senior Congress leader and former Kerala Chief Minister A K Antony's son Anil saying that placing the views of the British broadcaster over Indian institutions would "undermine" the country's sovereignty.
A resolution calls the US Secretary of State to designate India as a country of particular concern for alleged violation of religious freedom.
Asked about it, revenue minister Balasaheb Thorat told reporters that a complete lockdown for some period of time is extremely necessary to contain the spread of the viral infection.
Several blasts tore through a gurdwara in Kabul on Saturday, killing two persons, including a Sikh, and injuring seven others, while Afghan security personnel thwarted a bigger tragedy by stopping an explosive-laden vehicle from reaching the place of worship of the minority community in the war-torn country.
'Hamas is going to be prepared. There will be booby traps and tunnels; it's going to be door to door fighting.'
A 12-year-old girl was raped, bitten multiple times and brutalised allegedly by two men working for the trust managing a famous temple in Maihar town of Satna district in Madhya Pradesh, police said on Friday.
A Nationalist Congress Party minister in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra announced on Friday that a law will be enacted to give five per cent quota to Muslims in education, but a senior Shiv Sena minister said later that no such decision had been taken.
The government will introduce a bill in this regard in the upcoming legislature session, which starts on July 3.
"This is part of our policy to empower minorities with dignity and without appeasement," Naqvi said.
Gandhi said the govt "tried everything to stop" his 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', but nothing was working against the "effect" of the foot march.
Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla, who had crossed 75 years, resigned on Tuesday from the Union Cabinet along with Minister of State for Heavy Industries G M Siddeshwara.
The crisis surfaced on Friday when the Rajasthan Police issued notices to Gehlot, Pilot and the government chief whip, seeking time from them to record their statements over an alleged bid to destabilise the state's Congress government.
Birthday greetings poured in for him from all quarters, with his supporters and Bharatiya Janata Party workers offering prayers for him and organising events to mark the occasion.
'When Fadnavis takes our help, it was sabka saath.' 'But when we support his rival, the latter is branded as appeasing Muslims.'
Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla has rejected the contention that Muslims are feeling insecure under the Bharatiya Janata Party-led regime and said the community has felt alienated since Independence because of the policies of successive Congress governments.
No foreign entity or government has any locus standi to comment on the fundamental rights of Indian citizens, the government said on Thursday, rejecting a report by the US state department on the alleged curtailment of religious freedom in India.
Top Indian wrestlers have returned to Jantar Mantar in New Delhi to continue their protest
'Many Indians are not voting mostly on the basis of issues like the economy and their own well-being as measured by data provided by the government.' 'They seem to be as concerned and perhaps more concerned about other things, especially those that have to do with the harassment of India's minorities,' asserts Aakar Patel.
Uttar Pradesh Minority Affairs Minister Azam Khan wants the Taj Mahal to be handed over to the Sunni Waqf Board, which has jurisdiction over Muslim tombs and graves, since the iconic monument had the mausoleum of two Muslims.
Taliban cleric Sheikh Rahimullah Haqqani was killed in a blast which occured in Afghanistan's Kabul on Thursday, local media reported.
Sri Lanka's Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected Trudeau's statements, asserting that they contained outrageous claims of genocide relating to past conflicts in the country.
While churches burn in the capital and lawmakers spew rubbish, Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not think it important to utter a word against these atrocities.
Talking about the expectations from India, Jaishankar said that there are lots of expectations as New Delhi is seen as the one that solves problems.
The Delhi Commission For Women on Monday asked the police officials to appear before it later this week in connection with a probe into objectionable content on 'Bulli Bai' and 'Sulli Deal' apps.
Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde on Tuesday promised to take action against those responsible for the death of a 19-year-old student from Arunachal Pradesh and ensure a speedy probe.
Political and communal divide in Jammu and Kashmir has assumed such proportions that even the horrifying rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl is not bringing society together, writes Athar Parvaiz.
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