Posting a picture of Gandhi walking with the girl wearing a hijab, Patra tweeted in Hindi, "When votes are accounted for on the basis of religion then it is called appeasement."
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, known for his hardline Hindutva views and 'bulldozer justice' approach, has spoken out about his policies toward Muslims, the Waqf board, and his vision for India. He asserts that Muslims will receive a fair share of development in Uttar Pradesh, but not special concessions. He also criticizes the Waqf board for its alleged appropriation of government properties and calls for its reform. Adityanath defends his 'bulldozer justice' policy, claiming it is necessary for infrastructure development and removal of encroachments. He also discusses his vision for India, emphasizing the importance of Hindi as a national language and the need for unity across different linguistic groups.
'It could take the form of sporadic LoC violation through heavy artillery and mortar fire, focusing on border villages where the Hindu Dogra population is predominant.'
'So, they have taken away the word Waqf from the Bill.' 'It will now be known as the UMEED Act.'
Temples across Uttar Pradesh were packed with devotees on Sunday for Ram Navami, with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath leading prayers at the Gorakhnath Temple. Heavy crowds were witnessed at temples in Lucknow, Gorakhpur, and Varanasi, where security was heightened. In Gorakhpur, Adityanath performed the traditional kanya pujan ritual, while in Varanasi, a 51-foot statue of Lord Ram has become a major attraction. The festival was celebrated with enthusiastic fervor across the state.
Asim Munir and his brand of short-sighted army officers give no inkling of paying heed, changing course or learning lessons from the past, observes Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
Modi alleged that the Congress government in Karnataka gave reservations in tenders based on religion, "snatching the rights of SCs, STs and OBCs." But Ambedkar had said there would not be reservation based on religion and there is a bar on giving reservation on the basis of religion in the Constitution, he stressed.
'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 way opposition parties such as the Nationalist Congress Party, Shiv Sena, the Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Jharkhand Mukti Morch have supported her, if she wins, she will be the biggest opposition face for 2024'
The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party and the Communist Party of India-Marxist dubbed it a "cheap poll gimmick" to woo minority votes.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said the people of Gujarat have given an unprecedented mandate to the party by rejecting those who do politics of hollow promises, freebies and appeasement.
Hours after Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje's assertion that the suspect involved in the March 1 blast at The Rameshwaram Cafe was from Tamil Nadu, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader issued a retraction and offered an apology.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday clarified that the administration was only contemplating lifting the ban on wearing hijab in educational institutions in the state and a decision will be taken after holding discussions at the government level.
Terrorism and insurgency in J&K had subsided when India demolished East Pakistan -- for the simple reason that Pakistan understands power. We need to follow Chanakya's dictum of Saam, Daam, Dand, Bhed for strategising against Pakistan, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd). The ground truth is that unless we are prepared to acknowledge our shortcomings, including massive intelligence failures, punish those responsible and take corrective actions, we will continue in the same vein, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd).
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday said the results of the assembly elections were historic, and they decided to whom the Nationalist Congress Party and Shiv Sena belong.
Modi also said the BJP has "not just today but never" acted against minorities.
'...to think apna time aa gaya after the 2024 election.'
Modi, while addressing a rally in Barasat, said whatever happened with women in Sandeshkhali "is a matter of shame".
Bengal, where the electoral discourse has mostly steered clear of divisive agenda, has been drawn into the vortex with the TMC and the BJP accusing each other of fanning communal sentiments ahead of elections.
In an apparent barb at Modi, the Sena said, "Special efforts are being made to bring in burqa-clad women faces to (Modi's) public rallies. Everyone is in a hurry to appease minorities."
Political battle over 'Pujari Granthi Samman Yojna' announced by Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal intensified on Tuesday, as he launched registration process for the scheme at a temple in Kashmiri Gate in New Delhi.
The Sabarmati Report is so flimsy in its execution, taking offence to it would be dignifying its existence, notes Sukanya Verma.
Bharatiya Janata Party's national spokesman and veteran journalist-turned-politician, M J Akbar on Thursday criticised the Congress for resorting to its old practice of treating the Muslim community as a 'commodity' to be bought during election time.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury accused the ruling dispensation of resorting to diversionary tactics.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 was passed in the Lok Sabha early Thursday, with 288 members supporting it and 232 against it.
His comments came amidst a fierce attack that BJP mounted on the UPA for its range of plans aimed at the uplift of minorities, especially Muslims, in the light of the Sachar committee report.
The stakes are significant for the BJP in this round as the party had in 2019 won an overwhelming majority of these seats, including all in Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, that will go to polls on May 7.
He said the then prime minister Manmohan Singh had given a speech in which he had said Muslims have the first right to the country's resources.
'I don't think the state administration has shown the resolve to enter Muslim neighbourhoods and arrest offenders in the last decade.'
In a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday said when the elections are over, people will only remember him as the PM who indulged in 'divisive and communal speeches filled with lies' to avoid an inevitable defeat.
'By the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, they moved back to the BJP almost totally and later their backing helped us win the local body elections.'
Modi, sources said, noted that some opposition members had described the voting in Rajya Sabha as a semi-final before the 2024 Lok Sabha polls as he exuded confidence about the BJP's prospects in the national elections.
Uddhav Thackeray claimed the new Narendra Modi government at the Centre, which was sworn in on June 9, will collapse and will be replaced by an INDIA bloc dispensation.
In a statement, the Population Foundation of India said it is deeply concerned about recent media reports "misreporting" the findings from the study to spread alarm regarding the growth of the Muslim population in the country.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday urged people to celebrate the Hanuman Jayanti festival peacefully, and said while religion is a personal choice, festivities were an occasion for all to join in.
"We will complain. He can meditate, but televisions cannot show it," she said, alleging that this will amount to "violation of the MCC."
Bihar MP Pappu Yadav said he could 'finish off within 24 hours' the network of Lawrence Bishnoi who is suspected to be behind the assassination of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddiqui.
Alleging that there had been politicisation and criminalisation of government officers in the state, the BJP leader, who was on a two-day visit, said the TMC government had stopped sending crime statistics to the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) after 2018.
The assault allegedly took place over playing Hanuman chalisa, a Hindu devotional hymn in praise of lord Hanuman, at a shop in central Bengaluru area.
In the question paper, issued in an exercise book of a Bengali-medium school for Madhyamik aspirants, the paper setter has asked them to identify several places on the map (Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (referred to as 'Azad Kashmir' in Pakistan), the place where Gandhiji had first undertaken the Satyagraha movement, and the Chittagong battleground.
