Although the credit for acquiring the technological skill must be given to India's outstanding nuclear scientists, the decision to go nuclear was a political one that entailed clarity of vision, courage and resolve, points out Rup Narayan Das.
Grappling with the intractable issue of Aligarh Muslim University's minority status, the Supreme Court said on Thursday the 1981 amendment to the AMU Act, which effectively accorded it a minority status, only did a "half-hearted job" and not restore to the institution the position it had prior to 1951.
Ministers in UPA-II had undertaken over 460 official foreign trips in the first 18 months of its tenure and spent more than 1,800 days abroad.
Neither the BJP, nor the Congress before it, made any manifesto commitments on defence spending, even though allocations have plummeted from 4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the late 1980s to less than 2 per cent today, points out Ajai Shukla.
Narendra Modi on Sunday dubbed the United Progressive Alliance government as "remote controlled" and "lame" as he raised the pitch for a strong and stable government at the Centre.
An opinion poll survey conducted by CNN-IBN shows that people are dissatisfied with the present UPA government and majority believe the UPA-II government does not deserve another term to rule.
The Congress leader also said that the BJP wants to change the Constitution, and reduce and weaken the rights given to the people through the statute book.
They noted that the exercise had begun in 2011 and an Inter-Ministerial Group submitted its recommendations in 2012 after meeting for 10 times.
Launching an attack on the economic policies of the UPA government, Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the main reason behind the "despair" prevailing in the country was that nobody takes responsibility.
Voting for the second phase of Lok Sabha polls will be held on Friday for 88 seats in 13 states with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi seeking a second-straight term from Wayanad in Kerala.
Key United Progressive Alliance ally Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday said the Centre's ruling coalition had become "vulnerable" after the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's pullout and that elections were round the corner.
An institution of national importance must reflect the "national structure", the Centre told the Supreme Court on Tuesday while pointing out that around 70 to 80 per cent students studying at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) are Muslims even without reservation.
Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde on Tuesday tore into the Uddhav Thackeray faction for 'abandoning' Hindutva and Bal Thackeray's ideology and even recited the Hanuman Chalisa in Lok Sabha as his party opposed the no-confidence motion against the Modi government.
Official said a CBI inquiry has been recommended against Aman Biradari for violation of various provisions of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act.
Thank God for the United Progressive Alliance. Without its comic blundering, hiss-worthy arrogance and world-class smugness, we would really be gloomy. A parade of errors and puzzling decisions keeps us angered and entertained -- but most importantly, distracted. Or we would notice our economy's problems are less to do with this or any conceivable government, and more a set of principles and circumstances that aren't being questioned and addressed.
What is most troubling is that not a single party that is part of INDIA has talked about any kind of reform and economic sense, argues R Jagannathan.
The Samajwadi Party on Tuesday said it was not supporting the UPA government due to any compulsion, a day after Union minister Beni Prasad Verma claimed that SP and Bahujan Samaj Party will continue supporting the dispensation at the Centre.
'For the last two elections, the Congress manifesto has been thrown into the dustbin.' 'This manifesto will also be thrown into the dustbin.'
Doddamani has maintained a low profile; he has always worked actively behind the scenes in managing and strategising for Kharge's successive electoral campaign.
The poverty ratio in the country has fallen steeply during the UPA regime to 21.9 per cent in 2012 from 37.2 per cent in 2004, said the UPA government's Report Card released by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Neerja Chowdhury analyses why BSP supremo Mayawati is bargaining hard with the UPA government
"The remark is disgraceful and unfortunate," Dr Singh told reporters in Parliament when asked to comment on Advani's statement in Lok Sabha.
Odisha Chief Minister and Biju Janata Dal supremo Naveen Patnaik on Thursday ruled out his party's support to the UPA government at the Centre which was facing "instability" following Trinamool Congress' decision to withdraw support.
In an exclusive interview with IBNLokmat, Union Agriculture Minister and Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar has blamed the United Progressive Alliance for the spiralling prices of food items.
Ahead of the monsoon session of Parliament, leaders of the UPA allies on Monday met in New Delhi to discuss their strategy to counter the Opposition which is geared up to target the government on price rise and a host of other issues.
Biju Janata Dal supremo and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday termed as "baseless rumours" reports that his party would support the United Progressive Alliance government following the Trinamool Congress's pullout. He also made it clear that there was no question of the BJD abstaining if the UPA government seeks a trust vote in Parliament.
The launch coincides with the birthday of Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.
Trinamool Congress strategy of opposing the United Progressive Alliance candidate has raised question mark over its continuance in the Congress-led coalition.
In his absence, the party stares at uncertainty as many of its other senior leaders are either in jail or in political obscurity.
Troubleshooter for the Congress and the government not long ago, Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday refrained from making any comments on UPA-II at a time when it is accused of non-performance.
Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani on Friday lashed out at the United Progressive Alliance government describing it as "indecisive and incompetent."
Agriculture credit jumped seven-fold to Rs 7,00,000 crore (Rs 7 trillion) in the past ten years of UPA government, boosting foodgrains output to a record and enabling enactment of food law.
Manmohan Singh, reveals the former President, was keen that either P Chidambaram or Montek Singh Ahluwalia be the finance minister.
The mere fact that some part of administration of an educational institution is also looked after by non-minority officials does not "dilute" its minority character, the Supreme Court observed on Wednesday while hearing the hugely disputed minority status of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).
Bharti accused the media of distorting her statement, attributing it to the BJP's agenda.
Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee declined to attend the dinner being hosted by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on the eve of Presidential elections.
The RSS has accused Congress-led UPA of dilly-dallying over the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru to appease the minority community.
Lalu was apparently referring to his wife Rabri Devi.
Appreciating the central government for conferring Bharat Ratna to Charan Singh, he said that this decision proves that Modi understands the sentiment and character of the nation.
For the entire UPA regime, from 2005-06 to 2013-14, the average annual farm growth according to the GDP back series data is 3.8 per cent, which too is higher than the first four years of the NDA, though these two periods aren't comparable because one spans nine years and the other four.
