'Last Tuesday's bombing might best be interpreted as an attack against the tolerant, cosmopolitan character of modern Varanasi, which also characterises India at its best.'
The issue came up at the quarterly meeting of the standing committee on Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanwapi security in Varanasi on Wedmesday.
'We are very close to become a theocratic State where Hinduism is the official religion of the government.'
Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa, who has extensively covered Election 2014, reports from Varanasi on voting day
The TDP and JD-U will have a lot to answer inside Parliament, day after day, session after session, notes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Five members of the Muslim side also participated in the survey. Its advocate Tauheed Khan said advocates of the Intezamia Masjid Committee Akhlaq and Mumtaz accompanied the survey team.
Escalating his attack on the Election Commission, Narendra Modi questioned the poll body's neutrality over denial of permission for a public meeting at a venue of his choice in Varanasi even as appealed to party workers to maintain peace while protesting the move.
Do you, our dear readers, think Arvind Kejriwal should take on the BJP's prime ministerial candidate from Varanasi? Or do you believe Kejrwal is fighting a losing battle?
A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com visited many polling booths in Varanasi on polling day. This is what he discovered.
Javed, who arrived from Kolkata early in the morning, visited Sarnath and the Banaras Hindu University and took a boat ride in river Ganga before winding up his visit.
On speculations of Priyanka Gandhi contesting in the 2024 election, Rai said that Priyanka Gandhi will contest from wherever she wants to.
A court in Varanasi on Monday convicted gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari in the murder of Congress leader Awadhesh Rai more than 30 years ago.
The Allahabad high court on May 12 ordered determination of the age of the structure claimed to be 'Shivling' using modern technology.
Narendra Modi's candidature from Varanasi will help the Bharatiya Janata Party gain more seats in eastern Uttar Pradesh as well as neighbouring Bihar and lay the foundation for a National Democratic Alliance government, his close aide Amit Shah said on Monday.
These days, a good dose of Narendra Modi is served along with piping hot cup of tea at Varanasi's favourite melting pot, Pappu ki Adi. Differing voices are silenced at once, discovers Anita Katyal.
Yadav, who is seeking a second successive term in office after stitching an alliance with Congress, in wilderness in the state for a long time, led a roadshow with Rahul through the city, but not before he had paid a visit to the 'Kashi Vishwanath' temple of Lord Shiva, the presiding deity of Varanasi.
Aam Aadmi party on Thursday released manifesto for its most important contest - Varanasi Lok Sabha seat where party chief Arvind Kejriwal is taking on BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
Firing a fresh salvo at Narendra Modi, Aam Aadmi Party National Convener Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said his decision to enter the electoral fray from Varanasi was not a "symbolic gesture" but to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate.
The stars performed a series of pujas at Varanasi's famous Kashi Vishwanath temple and the Sankat Mochan temple during the early hours of Monday.
The Allahabad high court on Friday ordered authorities to determine the age of the Shivling-like structure inside the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi using modern technology.
'Someone who cannot even take his cabinet into confidence, how will he take the NDA alliance into confidence?'
Muslim body Anjuman Intezamia Masjid committee on Thursday moved the Supreme Court against the Allahabad high court order permitting an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey at the Gyanvapi mosque.
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) is gearing up for the senior National camp after almost 15 months with Delhi likely to replace Patiala as the venue because of the ongoing farmers' protest.
One infant and 22 others, including some foreigners, were injured in a blast that rocked the crowded Shitla Ghat bank of the Ganga river in Varanasi , about 300 km from Lucknow on Tuesday evening.
The NTA denied any irregularities and said the changes made in the NCERT textbooks and grace marks for losing time at the examination centres were some of the reasons behind the students scoring higher marks.
Political parties are getting battle-ready, nominating their best candidates to contest Election 2014... Rediff.com's incomparable Sheela Bhatt begins a new column where she reveals the ground realities in the Battle for India, as only she can. Don't miss it!
Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe attended the spectacular sunset Ganga Aarti at the fabled Dashashwamedh Ghat in Varanasi on Saturday.
Abdulla Zubair was arrested after a tip-off by another LeT operative.
The UP police will now seek the help of an ace Mumbai artist.
'Akhilesh Yadav made voters think why is the BJP asking for 400 paar.' 'They understood his words and believed the BJP wanted 400 paar only to demolish the Constitution and end reservations.'
As the election campaign for the 16th Lok Sabha drew to a close on Saturday, May 10, Varanasi looked like a city undergoing an exodus. According to the Election Commission guidelines, those engaged in campaign activities -- if they were not voters in the constituency, irrespective of their party or candidate affiliation -- would have to leave the city after canvassing ended. A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com takes stock as the whirlwind campaign in Varanasi ended.
In order to strike a balance between the diverse communities in Varanasi, the Aam Aadmi Party will focus on tree major issues -- river, weaver and sewer -- when it takes on Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
The Allahabad high court on Thursday allowed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to conduct a scientific survey at the Gyanvapi premises in Varanasi to determine whether the 17th-century mosque has been constructed over a pre-existing structure of a Hindu temple.
Gandhi said Modi's top priority now is to get his Speaker in Parliament and is not bothered about NEET .
Walking, cycling and even skating! Covering long distances amid bone-chilling cold, people from all over the country and cutting across religions are flocking to the temple town of Ayodhya ahead of the consecration ceremony on January 22.
'We should not underestimate the power of Hindutva.'
Breaking his silence over the reported row in the Bharatiya Janata Party over a move to field Narendra Modi from Varanasi, Murli Manohar Joshi on Sunday said he would accept any decision the party takes like a "disciplined soldier" and hoped it would neither dent the PM candidate's prestige nor hurt party's electoral chances.
A 30-member Archaeological Survey of India team halted a survey here of the Gyanvapi mosque -- just hours after beginning the exercise Monday morning -- following a Supreme Court order.
