The real brilliance of this RSS campaign, therefore, lies in building a dominant power base with, and for, a mostly non-RSS leadership. That is why the rise of the BJP in Assam is their stand-out victory, says Shekhar Gupta.
The Congress scion will step into his mother Sonia Gandhi's shoes as the party president next week.
Lovers of good cinema should not miss this opportunity to watch one of the best Indian films of 2016, raves Aseem Chhabra.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday arrived in Xian on a three-day visit to China during which he will hold summit talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on a range of issues including the festering border dispute and China's plans for infrastructure projects in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Did you know the world's youngest director is an Indian?
'As China rises and India grows to reclaim their earlier positions on the world stage as two of the largest economies and most important countries, there will indeed be some contention between these two powers.' 'There will also be plenty of space and room for cooperation amongst the two of us.' 'As our economic size increases to match the fact that we are the two most populous nations on earth, it will be all the more important for us to keep the interests of our peoples as well as those of the rest of the world in mind.' 'We shall have to grow together rather than as separate and disparate entities,' points out Ambassador Gautam Bambawale -- who served as India's ambassador to China -- in the 7th annual lecture of the Indian Association of Foreign Affairs Correspondents on March 1, 2019.
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.
In his short speeches at various places, Gandhi assailed Modi over demonetisation and a host of other issues.
'Does the government help ordinary citizens like you and me with our marriages, birthdays and anniversaries?' Rashme Sehgal reports on the controversy over the the Art Of Living Foundation's plans for a cultural festival on the Yamuna floodplains.
Notwithstanding the claims and counterclaims of different political parties about riding the crest of a populatiry wave in Uttar Pradesh, Tuesday's results of the three bypolls out of the 403 state assembly seats have sprung surprises for all key political players.
'Not allowing people to speak or listen is the biggest act of anti-nationalism,' says Arvind Krishna Mehrotra, one of India's finest poets.
He was the army commander who planned Operation Bluestar. As army chief he planned Operation Brasstacks which rattled the Pakistan army. General K Sundarji was brilliant, ambitious and controversial, remembers Rahul Bedi.
'No, the liberals haven't lost because there weren't any liberals in the fray to begin with.' 'What has happened is that left-wing orthodoxy has lost to right-wing orthodoxy.' 'That is at best a Pyrrhic victory for India,' argue Sonali Ranade and Sheilja Sharma.
Will Katra's gain be Jammu's loss? Locals in the area are worried that the development of the new railway line will affect their livelihoods, as pilgrims heading to Vaishno Devi will be able to bypass Jammu completely. This will affect tourism, the main source of income for many in the area, observes Upasana Pandey.
It is said he worked towards losing weight in natural and safe ways.
Scientists believe the unique geological locations where they are situated makes them worthy of veneration.
Arsh Ali's work is about getting reliable evidence about the ancient Buddhist link between India and Egypt, discovers Veenu Sandhu.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said B R Ambedkar had never thought of leaving the country despite being subjected to insult and discrimination.
'Going from 5% to 8%, 10, 15% of the votes is not going to translate into seats -- so what's the point of going it alone in UP?'
A cow that speaks, a question on patriarchy and the story of a 17th-century poet - Sanskrit filmmakers are finding new ways to revive the 'dying' language.
'He is a BJP man among Dalits, not a Dalit man in the BJP.'
At a time when the Kashmir valley has been shut down, it is perhaps appropriate that we remember Lal Ded, Kashmir's best known spiritual and literary figure, someone remembered with divine adoration both by Hindus and Muslims in Kashmir. A fascinating excerpt from Sandhya Mulchandani's For The Love Of God: Women Poet Saints Of The Bhakti Movement.
The party's performance in the assembly polls in the state -- which is the most populous and hence sends maximum number of MPs to the Lok Sabha -- will have a bearing on its future prospects on the national level.
Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan and Prince Karim Aga Khan were among the eminent personalities awarded the Padma Vibhushan, country's second highest civilian honour, by President Pranab Mukherjee in New Delhi on Wednesday.
'Sachin Pilot has revived the Congress.' 'What goes in favour of Ashok Gehlot is experience.'
'There are so many dimensions to history that we need to attend to: We need more space for local and regional histories; we need to delve into the histories of particular communities; we need to emphasise gender history and environmental history.' 'We need to think about India's history beyond India's current borders.'
The bench said it was only the woman who can decide about her religious identity by exercising her right to choice.
'The problem of a Hindu rashtra is that it has no text which can be adapted to the modern world.' 'The most prominent element of the Hindu way of organising society and the State is through caste.' 'This is not acceptable to most Hindus.' 'Because a Hindu rashtra also erodes the power and the rights of the majority of Hindus, we can be assured that this is not something that the BJP, or any other force can do,' argues Aakar Patel.
September 12 marked the 122th anniversary of one of the most incredible battles in Indian history.
'Only the smoke is coming out now. Let us prevent the lava from coming out by taking proper measures.' 'I have told every leader that you cannot have a stable government without winning the confidence of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and the most backward castes.' 'Leaders feel that by giving a sop here and there and by symbolic actions, they can win votes. That's all they want. Votes.'
We sorted through countless photographs taken around the world to come up with the top photos of 2019. Together these images tell the story of the year -- capturing moments of hope and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy.
'Go to any village, you'll find a Dalit 15 years and above wearing jeans.' 'Earlier, Dalits were not allowed to wear a dhoti till the ankles. Jeans does not have this kind of restrictions or design. It is universal. So Dalits have also entered a caste neutral clothing zone.' 'Wherever you see Dr Ambedkar's statue in this country or abroad, he is always wearing a suit and with that English comes naturally. The Dalits' veneration of Western dress is very intense,' Dalit thinker Chandrabhan Prasad tells Archana Masih/Rediff.com
Here is your weekly digest of the odd moments from around the world
The scanning process was X-ray-based and completely non-invasive as the scroll is badly damaged from fire, and can not be physically opened.
'From his persistent fuelling of pan-Hindu nationalism to pandering to narrow Gujarati chauvinism, Rambo rides again, using fair means and foul -- and often foul -- to gain the battleground,' says Sunil Sethi.
Here's a collection of some of the best photos, taken last week, from around the globe.
A nation that aspires to be a superpower and wants to join the ranks of global leaders in knowledge, science and technology should declare an all out war on ills like superstition and black magic at all levels, says Dinesh C Sharma.
According personhood to the Ganga and Yamuna is probably the best way to ensure the protection of natural resources, says Arundhuti Dasgupta.
Jayapur, with a population of a little over 4,200, was like most other villages before Prime Minister Narendra Modi adopted it on November 7.
'All these people want is a secure home where they can live and earn in peace.'
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