While acknowledging that they needed strong allies for a chance in the assembly polls, AIADMK cadres seemingly prefer actor-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam to the BJP, owing to the latter's 'communal agenda' and consequent hardline Hindutva image, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
'They (BJP) think that they can do anything in this country. The Constitution is being subverted'
Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya on Tuesday resigned as the party's national general secretary accusing the leadership of discriminating against him and not defending him over his remarks.
'It has the potential to sow seeds of furthering discord when the direction of the discourse is aimed at propagating the perceived supremacy of 'cultural nationalism' from a distant past over the prevailing dominance of 'Constitutional nationalism',' argues N Sathiya Moorthy.
'We would try our best that the temple structure becomes visible in the next two years.'
The Act prohibits conversion of any place of worship and to provide for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on August 15, 1947.
RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale has criticized the Karnataka government's decision to provide four per cent reservation for Muslims in government contracts, stating that the Constitution does not allow religion-based quotas. He also said that such reservations go against the wishes of B R Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution. He also spoke about the controversy over Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's grave in Maharashtra, stating that people who went against the ethos of India were made icons. Hosabale lauded figures like Rajput king Maharana Pratap for resisting Mughal emperor Akbar and said those who resisted invaders were also "freedom fighters". He also spoke about the RSS's idea of 'One Nation, One Culture', stating that it draws inspiration from India's rich cultural heritage and ethos.
'He was a nobody then.' 'And whatever little his contribution was there, it was restricted to Gujarat.'
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has hit out at the Opposition for initiating impeachment notices against Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar and Allahabad high court's Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav, saying 'whoever speaks the truth' is threatened in this way.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has vowed to reclaim every inch of land taken under the pretext of Waqf, stating that the state government will actively investigate all "occupied" land. He also criticized the Samajwadi Party (SP) and its leaders, alleging that they failed to uphold the principles of socialist leader Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia. Adityanath praised the Maha Kumbh, highlighting its significance as a symbol of India's spiritual heritage and national unity.
The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday removed R M Srivastava from the post of Principal Secretary (Home), close on the heels of suspending IAS officer Sarvesh Chandra Mishra in connection with a controversial letter on "reconstruction" of Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
With the judgment in the Ayodhya court case just round the corner, the Bhartiya Janata Party is striving to raise the pitch on the controversial issue. This was amply demonstrated at the party's two-day long state executive meet that concluded in Lucknow on Sunday.Spelling it out in the valedictory address, amidst reverberating cries of Jai Shree Ram, former national BJP president Rajnath Singh declared, "The Ayodhya temple is bound to be a reality -- come what may."
Taking to Twitter, Singh said, "My house has been attacked. Listen carefully BJP supporters, no matter how much hooliganism you indulge in, I will not allow the funds collected for constructing the Ram temple to be stolen even if I am killed."
They said it was then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi who on February 1, 1986 got the permission for starting prayers at the disputed site and got the locks opened.
'In Independent India's politics you will not find any leader of a political party who has not contested elections or not held a powerful post.' 'It was only Balasaheb who never contested elections or held a post.' On the occasion of Balasaheb Thackeray's 99th birth anniversary, close aide Subhash Desai recalls vignettes about the Shiv Sena founder.
NDA convenor George Fernandes said an early and amicable resolution of Ayodhya issue will promote national integration.
Tamil Nadu's Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin has reacted to Andhra Pradesh counterpart Pawan Kalyan's out-of-turn taunts with a one-liner, 'Let's wait', and thereby hangs a tale, notes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Whether Lord Ram is a historical person is not the subject before the court.' 'The court was asking every time if can anyone show the exact birthplace of Lord Ram on the basis of documents.' 'I have shown that on the basis of documents. And these documents are not (based) on my beliefs.'
'Our culture and faith is glorious, intricate and nuanced. And we have to be careful that it does not get defined by trivia which takes the focus away from the real and the true.'
Around 10 hoardings have been put up near the disputed land which says that Muslims want the construction of the Ram Mandir
Mishra, a 1997-batch officer, was the Home Secretary of Uttar Pradesh before he was shunted out on Saturday.
The rulers of the day need to be sensitive and involved in managing the identities of sacred spaces and the ongoing dialogues about the past in diverse societies, suggests Colonel Nikhil Apte (retd).
Four BJP leaders and former Supreme Court judge S Abdul Nazeer, who was part of the Constitution bench that upheld the archaeological report on Ayodhya, were among six new faces appointed as Governors on Sunday.
The carving work by artisans had been carried out uninterrupted since 1990 when Mulayam Singh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party was Uttar Pradesh chief minister.
The principal opposition party though appeared content securing 99 of the 543 seats in the 2024 national elections as against its all-time low of 44 in 2014 and then 52 in 2019.
During the discussion on the issue, the opposition in the Lok Sabha singled out Vajpayee for saying that a temple existed at the disputed site.
Maurya resigned as the party's national general secretary on February 13, accusing the leadership of discriminating against him and not defending him over his controversial statements on the Ramcharitmanas and the Ayodhya temple consecration ceremony.
BJP leader Vinay Katiyar said like a Shiva temple, water drips from the ceiling in the Taj Mahal.
IPC Section 153 (wantonly giving provocation with the intent to cause riot) was invoked against the professor.
'Babur has been facing gross historical injustice for the last two centuries, when he had no role either in the demolition of any temple or in the construction of the so-called Babri mosque at Ayodhya.'
Mani Shankar Aiyar says the Congress party and not then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi was responsible for unlocking the Babri Masjid gates and claimed that the "Bharatiya Janata Party-planted" Arun Nehru was behind it.
'When the Babri Masjid was demolished, we didn't take permission from anyone.'
Banners terming Kejriwal "anti-Hindu" and showing him wearing a skull cap surfaced in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat, and Vadodara cities on Saturday.
It is not much of an issue just now, but it could become one if the idea of caste census captures socio-political imagination, going beyond electoral tags and identities, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
"We Ram-bhakts, today, as part of this programme, take this pledge that at the earliest, the Ram Mandir be constructed. Jai Shri Ram," the video showed him saying.
20 years after the Babri demolition, Ayodhya stands disabled, dilapidated with no development and no jobs. Devjyot Ghoshal reports
After clamping down on its yatra on the Ayodhya issue, the Uttar Pradesh government on Monday banned Vishwa Hindu Parishad's proposed 'Sankalp Diwas' stir on October 18 to press for a parliamentary legislation on building Ram temple, fearing a communal flare-up.
The government has identified three circuits -- Ramayana Circuit, Krishna Circuit and Buddhist Circuit - to boost religious tourism. The Ram museum will be a part of the Ramayana Circuit for which the Centre has sanctioned Rs 225 crore, with Rs 151 crore exclusively for Ayodhya, which is the hub of the circuit.
Clashes broke out between Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janata Party workers in Dadar area in Mumbai on Wednesday after the youth wing of the BJP took out a protest march against 'offensive' remarks in the Sena mouthpiece Saamana about the land deal controversy in Ayodhya.
What should be made out of the Madras high court order involving non-Hindus' entry into Hindu temples, when many non-Hindus are among the hundreds of thousands that have been worshipping at these temples for generations, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
