Pitroda was reported to have said that he does not understand the threat India faces from China, claiming that it is often blown out of proportion.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has announced the formation of a panel headed by a retired Supreme Court judge to study the relationship between the Union and state governments and ensure state autonomy. The panel, which will submit its interim report in January 2026 and its final report in two years, will examine the transfer of subjects from the State List to the Concurrent List, citing the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) as an example of a subject outside state purview.
The government has to specify what it intends to do with caste census data. It will be closely tracked if the government would simultaneously move towards removing the present 50% bar on reservations using means which are permitted in law. If this is not done, the entire exercise will become meaningless and could boomerang on the BJP, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
Months before he demitted office as prime minister in 2014, Manmohan Singh had famously asserted that his leadership was not weak and history would be kinder to him than what the media projected at that time.
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said the Mumbai suburban railway would soon get new-design trains fitted with better features for passenger comfort and reducing overcrowding.
Veteran Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, in his latest book, argues that Pranab Mukherjee should have been made Prime Minister in 2012 instead of Manmohan Singh, who was then recovering from health issues. Aiyar believes this would have prevented the "paralysis of governance" and "doomed" any prospects the Congress might have had to form UPA-III. He also criticizes the government's handling of the Anna Hazare-led agitation and the Commonwealth Games scandal, which he believes contributed to the party's downfall in the 2014 general elections.
The Supreme Court of India has upheld a Bombay High Court order reinstating a woman as the sarpanch of a Maharashtra village, stating that bureaucrats cannot be allowed to "frustrate grassroot democracy." The court criticized instances of bureaucrats misbehaving with elected representatives and attempting to disqualify them by reopening old cases. The case involved Kalavati Rajendra Kokale, whose resignation from the sarpanch's post was withdrawn, but the Raigad district collector declared a vacancy and conducted a fresh election. The court found the collector's actions illegal and upheld Kokale's reinstatement, highlighting the importance of respecting the democratic process and elected representatives at the grassroots level.
'They want to keep the pot boiling all the time.' 'The BJP wants to set a political narrative that the Gandhis are doing wrong things.'
'If the BJP detoxifies the nuclear liability law, it will bring economic, environmental and, most of all, strategic benefits.' 'Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope that this Budget promise is met soon -- ideally, before Mr Modi heads to his first meeting with Trump 2.0,' observes Shekhar Gupta.
Opposition MPs in India's Rajya Sabha raised concerns about US President Donald Trump's tariff threats, demanding the government clarify its response and engage in discussions with opposition parties. Leaders like P Chidambaram and Sagarika Ghose warned of potential economic repercussions, including depressed exports, lower FDI, and a significant tariff burden. The debate also touched on other issues such as the government's economic policies, demonetization, and the impact of GST on common citizens.
Here are some facts related to the Budget presentation in independent India.
India needs another shot of difficult reform, of the kind only possible at gunpoint. Mr Trump holds that gun to our heads now. A drastic reduction in tariff protection, other elements of sarkari wet-nursing will force entrepreneurial India to become competitive again, argues Shekhar Gupta.
Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh passed away on Thursday night at the age of 92. He was brought to the emergency department of AIIMS Delhi in critical condition after "sudden loss of consciousness."
'There was no financing or even promise of finance involved in MoU, forget X or Y amount'
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1 will present a record eighth consecutive budget that is expected to contain measures to shore up weakening economic growth and ease the burden on the middle class struggling with high prices and stagnant wage growth while being fiscally prudent.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 was passed in the Lok Sabha early Thursday, with 288 members supporting it and 232 against it.
'The BJP lacks a credible mass leader who matches Mamata Banerjee's popularity.' 'Given the division of votes among Opposition parties, the West Bengal government's dole-giving strategy, and the consolidation of the poor, significant sections of scheduled caste groups and Muslim minorities behind the ruling party, it will be difficult to dislodge the Trinamool from power.'
The clarification came amid a demand, including from Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, that the landslide tragedy in Kerala's Wayanad be declared a national disaster.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said that India and Pakistan came closer to resolving the Kashmir issue during the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government. He added that he does not expect a return to that situation in his lifetime. Abdullah lauded Singh's efforts on Kashmir, including the setting up of working groups on the issue, and said he practically initiated measures for the return of displaced Kashmiri Pandits. The chief minister also praised Singh's contribution to India's economic development.
Sibal, a prominent Opposition voice and a former Congress leader, also said that instead of a common minimum programme, the Opposition parties should talk about a 'new vision for India'.
The Congress on Wednesday expressed sadness over 'pictures of Indians getting handcuffed and humiliated' while being deported from the United States and recalled that America had to express regret over the treatment meted out to India diplomat Devyani Khobragade in 2013 after the then United Progressive Alliance government retaliated sharply.
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra D Modi, senior Cabinet ministers, Congress and Opposition leaders paid their respects to former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh, who passed into the ages on Thursday night, at his residence in New Delhi on Friday.
The Delhi assembly results have underscored that a section of Arvind Kejriwal's committed supporters abandoned him because they were let down by his refusal to take a stand on crucial issues that impinge on the security and Constitutionally enshrined rights of the people, notes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's mortal remains were brought to the Congress headquarters in New Delhi on Saturday, where top party leaders paid their last respects. Singh, who headed the Congress-led UPA government and is considered the architect of India's economic reforms, died on Thursday at 92. A seven-day national mourning will be observed throughout the country in his honor.
He drew the roadmap of India's economic reform, unshackled it from the licence raj and pulled it back from the brink when even its gold reserve was pledged.
The Indian government has announced it will allocate space for a memorial to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, following a request from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. The announcement comes after the Congress party criticized the government for not finding a location for Singh's cremation and memorial, calling it a deliberate insult. Singh, who served as Prime Minister from 2004 to 2014, passed away on Thursday at the age of 92.
It was a protest which held a mirror to the government of a state taking pride in its commitment to democracy, gender equality and social indices.One person, who in his employed days had known governments and political parties at close quarters, told me that public perception of how the Kerala government handled the ASHA workers' strike had been terrible, reports Shyam G Menon.
The landmark India-US civil nuclear deal of 2008, brokered during Manmohan Singh's tenure as Prime Minister, is seen as a crowning achievement in his foreign policy legacy. The agreement ended India's nuclear isolation, fostered a strategic partnership with the US, and opened doors to advanced technologies and defense cooperation. This historic deal also laid the groundwork for India's engagement with the global nuclear community.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched a scathing attack on the Congress party, accusing it of repeatedly "wounding" the Indian Constitution. He claimed that the Congress, driven by its "lust for power," has consistently undermined the principles of the Constitution. Modi, however, praised India's democratic journey since its independence, highlighting the country's strong democratic roots and its unwavering commitment to its founding principles. He underscored the importance of unity for India's future development and emphasized that the Constitution is the bedrock of that unity.
'All the big things happening today in economic development have their beginning in Dr Manmohan Singh's ideas.'
'Prime Minister Modi should sit with Trump and find a solution to this issue.'
The mortal remains of former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh were consigned to flames at the Nigambodh Ghat in New Delhi on Saturday amid the chanting of religious hymns. The funeral pyre was lit by his eldest daughter Upinder Singh.
Under his leadership, India launched the National Action Plan on Climate Change, passed the landmark Forest Rights Act to protect the rights of tribal communities and established the National Green Tribunal to safeguard the environment through swift legal action.
Many were hoping that with Vajpayee's NDA gone, there would be a return to the Congress normal. Nobody was prepared for the opposite. Sonia Gandhi was sceptical. This became the only issue over which Manmohan Singh took on his party bosses and risked his government. Politically, it was riskier than the 1991 reform, recalls Shekhar Gupta.
Rizwan Kadri, a member of the Prime Minister's Museum and Library (PMML) Society has written a letter to the Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi requesting to give back the documents, that he called are 'important aspect of its history' and were withdrawn from the museum allegedly on the order of Congress senior leader Sonia Gandhi.
The India-US nuclear deal was aimed at ending India's nuclear isolation and nuclear apartheid, recalls Rup Narayan Das.
After spending nearly 50 years in a colonial bungalow at 24, Akbar Road, the Congress moved into a new office on January 15. Rasheed Kidwai, who knows the history of the Congress better than the Congress, looks back at the people who breathed life into this address.
The Aligarh Muslim University's minority status issue will have to wait to reach a logical end after the Supreme Court majority verdict on Friday asked a regular bench to decide the issue.
'...still have lost the 2014 Lok Sabha polls but could have won 140 seats.'
What stood out in his 15-year journey as a member of the political executive at the Centre was his glowing record as India's most successful and effective finance minister. Both as prime minister and finance minister, he understood the importance of gradualism, except when the economy or the polity was in a crisis.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances