However, the tilting factor still remains: Can the rivalling 'Modi brand' of 'soft Hindutva' and 'hard-sell nationalism' garner more votes for the NDA in Tamil Nadu, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
He pointed out that such a restriction is not prevalent in many Islamic countries.
Will Malik's worldview, shaped by his years with the socialists, Charan Singh, the Congress and V P Singh, help him govern the troubled state? Or would his rule have the imprint of the party he joined in the latter years of his chequered political career?
Nitish Kumar has said the only remarkable thing during the period was that prime minister has more selfies than all his cabinet colleagues put together.
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.
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has said the party cannot afford the spectacle of its ministers and state presidents running away from a tough contest. Anita Katyal reports
'The government is in no hurry to talk to the separatists and would like to approach the Kashmiri people directly through various other organisations.' 'Officials in charge of J&K affairs at the Centre are clear that there would be no let up in the operations against terrorists,' reveals BharatShakti.in founder Nitin A Gokhale.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Sparks flew in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday as the raging Jawaharlal Nehru University row and suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula was taken up for discussion, with opposition accusing the government of muzzling the voice of the youth and "mercilessly crushing" the principles of democracy.
She also said that the government was committed to a fast-track trial in the case of killing of the Congolese national Masonda Ketada Oliver and 'harshest possible punishment' for the culprits.
'This was the worst phase yet in the state's human rights history.' 'Notorious interrogation centres were set up, large numbers died in firing on civilian mobs.' 'This is what today's generations might identify better as the Haider phase in Kashmir's history,' says Shekhar Gupta.
Gandhi also took a potshot at the RSS, saying it was bent on changing the country's Constitution.
Government tenders could soon go to bidders who promise to train highest number of youth.
'While all would agree on the need to be ready to launch cross-border strikes on terror camps, there is sharp disagreement on how best to do it.' 'Through IAF fighters, or surface-to-surface missiles?' 'Or should army Special Forces be created to do the job?' 'If air strikes are the agreed priority, additional funding must be made available for the purchase of fighters and missiles.' 'If it is to be Special Forces, the army must be facilitated in raising a Special Forces Command,' notes Ajai Shukla.
Most of the opposition parties blamed Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-affiliates for the cow vigilantism.
Flowing from an inadequate understanding of Tamil history and politics is an urban elitist mindset that does not seem to be able to touch and feel the real angst of the larger Tamil-speaking masses, cutting across the social and economic status of the individual, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The year threw up quite a few shockers, some rather rude one. Below are Rediff.com's 12 picks that made us sit back and think, 'Did that really happen?'
'Aggravated fears about the fate of Article 370 and Article 35A of the Constitution have reopened old wounds and laid bare the widening emotional distance between Srinagar and New Delhi,' says Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
'If there are provocations and people try to exploit and manipulate the situation along linguistic, religious lines, then Assam might relapse into its troubled past.'
Lack of opportunities coupled with a desire to get rich quick in the West is fueling Punjab's human trafficking problem.
'...Take him in the sense that I will defeat him. This is just our military term... If there's anybody today who's anti this government, it is the youth of Punjab. All of them are being coerced, there are no jobs being created, all of them are taking to drugs because of frustration... There is no Narendra Modi factor, there is no national anti-incumbency. In Punjab there in only anti-Akali incumbency.' Former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh, once the Maharaja of Patiala, pulls no punches when taking about his rivals, especially his BJP opponent from Amritsar Arun Jaitley and the Badals, in this no-holds-barred interview with Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com
Speaking to the media a day after he was released from Tihar Jail after he was charged for sedition, Kanhaiya thanked everyone who supported him and alleged that a conspiracy was afoot to malign the JNU campus and its students.
Rajeev Srinivasan on whom the Congress might put forth as its leader in 2014.
BJP-supported students' union, aided by a friendly government, is aggressively settling historical scores with Leftist students' organisations.
He has left no one in any doubt about his ability to take bold, even out-of-the-box, decisions, to gauge the feelings and aspirations of the common people at the grassroots and to ensure that polices and schemes do not remain on paper, but are implemented, says B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
As he took oath of office on Sunday night, Nara Chandrababu Naidu has earned a unique distinction of becoming the first chief minister of a new state in addition to being the longest-serving CM of Andhra Pradesh.
Both Houses were adjourned multiple times as Opposition members kept on shouting slogans against the PM.
'At least 6,000 people attended a meal at Shahabuddin's residence in a feast to celebrate his bail. As if the community has no other priorities of channelising such funds for better purposes!,' says Mohammad Sajjad.
'I felt like a used and discarded rag.' 'The pro-dialogue constituency has shrunk in the valley.' Academician and author Dr Radha Kumar was among the three interlocutors which the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government appointed on Kashmir in October 2010, speaks of how the panel report was never acted upon.
Rediff.com takes a look at some personalities who are likely to win the prize this year.
Modi also made a call for European Union unity and said India would play a positive role in enhancing that through Germany.
Opposition parties on Monday staged a walkout in the Rajya Sabha after their demand for a resolution on Gaza was not accepted.
'A President who is a living embodiment of high principles can tone up the entire national fabric,' says B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
The decision to take to the streets and demonstrate support for beleaguered former PM Manmohan Singh could be a turning point for the Congress.
'No right thinking student of politics can name one state where the BJP gains in double digits.'
M K Stalin might not have his father's charisma, but he has learnt the ropes the long, hard way, says T E Narasimhan
Opposition on Monday picked holes in various government decisions like demonetisation and surgical strikes as well as allocation of funds for MNREGA, agriculture sector and Scheduled Castes, saying it has failed on all fronts despite which it is trying to "fool" the people.
After five decades of existence, the Shiv Sena's support base seems to be shifting towards the rural electorate but there it has to contend with the network of Sharad Pawar and the BJP.
Narendra Modi, says T V R Shenoy, is 'busy trying to woo back two constituencies that were crucial when the BJP won power in the elections of 1998 and of 1999, namely UP (and the Hindi belt in general) and educated youth.'
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