'It seemed it was more than an anti-incumbency vote; it was an outright rejection of the BJP by the people after due deliberation and an expression of their disillusionment with Modi's leadership,' says B S Raghavan.
The prime minister said he had kept this three-year-old programme away from politics and had tried to connect with the people without getting swayed by the (political) "heat" and "anger" that may prevail at any particular time.
The PM will spend much of Friday outside Delhi; will devote day attending official events in Jharkhand and a political rally in Banka, Bihar
'What Trump and Kim have demonstrated is that leaders need not remain prisoners of the status quo and they can, by showing the necessary will and courage, break out of the hang-ups and constrictions of the past and carve out a new pathway for themselves,' says B S Raghavan.
Braving attacks by pro-Telangana elements, nearly one lakh employees from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions congregated in Hyderabad on Saturday for a rally, which gave the call to keep the state united.
'All the political parties, should in order to deal with China, come together and formulate strategies to safeguard every single inch of Bharat.' RSS leader Indresh Kumar tells Prasanna D Zore/Rediff.com why the Sangh wants the Modi government to convene an all-party meeting on the Chinese incursions into Indian territory.
Thousands of people may have gathered at the Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday to attend a rally by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi but it remains to be seen whether the mammoth turnout will actually translate into votes for the Bharatiya Janata Party in Andhra Pradesh.
'When it vanishes as a national force (meaning when it can no longer get sufficient votes to hold onto its symbol, the hand) it will not have been the first large Indian party to die,' says Aakar Patel.
Violence erupted after some students, protesting against the alleged eve-teasing incident, wanted to meet the vice chancellor at his residence, according to police and university sources.
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.
'Modi should not feel shy of proclaiming as the meaning of secularism regard for all religions in proportion to their numbers in tune with the spirit of democracy and adopting it as State policy,' says B S Raghavan.
The Congress campaign is muted in Varanasi, but the party is hoping that anti-Modi votes and caste combinations will help Ajai Rai, the only local candidate in the fray. A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com reports from the Congress campaign headquarters.
Bharatiya Janata Party is making hectic preparations ahead of the visit by BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, who will undertake a "grand road show" before filing his nomination on Thursday for the mega battle in this holy city where he is challenged by AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal and others.
Asserting that Aligarh Muslim University is not a minority institution, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Saturday said the varsity is committing a "big crime" by not implementing the policy of reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs.
Addressing the Lok Sabha on the 75th anniversary of the Quit India movement, the prime minister said from 2017 to 2022, when India turns 75, there is a need to create the same spirit that existed between 1942 and 1947.
Shastri took the first big step to transform India's agriculture, the benefits of which his successors reaped in plenty, says A K Bhattacharya.
'It stands to reason that if a CM is hospitalised for long durations, and is perceived to be not fully functional, that it is the governor's Constitutional duty to ascertain by diligent efforts and arrive at a dispassionate conclusion about the CM being physically fit and mentally alert to discharge his/her Constitutional obligations,' says B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
Lieutenant Colonel Desmond Hayde was awarded the Mahavir Chakra, the second highest honour in battle, for winning an epic battle in Pakistan. In a brilliant and gruesome assault, what he and his men achieved that September 50 years ago had never been seen before.
Rohini Bhajibhakare won't waste a moment on this statistic because she has far more important things to do.
An article published by the party's Mumbai unit has caused a stir as it blames Jawaharlal Nehru for the state of affairs in Kashmir, China and Tibet.
Modi asked bureaucrats to imagine whether or not their life has become "robotic". "If it has happened than this impacts the whole government and system. We can't be robotic. That can't be our life," the prime minister said during an hour-long interaction with civil servants at the 9th Civil Services Day function at Vigyan Bhawan.
'Rahul is only making a pathetic public spectacle of his lack of judgment and good sense by hallucinating that somehow, the Congress, or whatever political combine is cobbled together, will displace the BJP at the coming Lok Sabha election by constantly harping on the Rafale deal,' argues retired civil servant B S Raghavan.
Why is a Katra-Chennai train known as Andaman Express? Since no capitals are involved, why should a Katihar-New Jalpaiguri train be called Capital Express? What about Matysagandha Express, Padmavati Express or Sanghamitra Express?
'Underestimating its potential implications, in the event of an 'adverse' verdict, could turn out to be a huge political blunder,' says Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir.
'If we can award Madan Mohan Malaviya who died in 1946, then why not the Mahatma who died in 1948?' 'Why not go a little further back in time and give the award to Rabindranath Tagore who died in 1941?' 'And should we mark Lokmanya Tilak's 100th death anniversary in 2020 by giving him a Bharat Ratna,' asks Amberish K Diwanji.
Remembering Verghese Kurien, a visionary who singlehandedly built world's biggest agricultural development programme.
A Union Cabinet note said, "There seems to be no scope for doubt that he died in the air crash of 18th August 1945 at Taihoku. Government of India has already accepted this position. There is no evidence whatsoever to the contrary."
'Modi's political economy is more inspired by Indira Gandhi than Vajpayee.' 'She so wanted an Opposition-mukt Bharat.' 'Sounds familiar?' asks Shekhar Gupta.
'The only effective defence against a suicide attack is 'pre-emptive' destruction of the attacker,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
From Swachh Bharat to spearheading the Make in India campaign, the PMO seems to be at the centre of all policies, writes Nivedita Mookerji.
Rediff.com takes a look at a few brilliant efforts which, unfortunately, were in a losing cause.
'For half a century, Delhi has not seen a truly powerful ruling party president.' 'The Cabinet, chief ministers, and even the heads of the most powerful departments and agencies now acknowledge where power lies, besides the prime minister's office,' says Shekhar Gupta.
The files, digitised and given "preliminary conservation treatment" by the National Archives of India, were released on the birth anniversary of Netaji.
Terming corruption as a "major stumbling block" in the country's progress, President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday asked the central vigilance commission to lead the way in cleansing the government.
If India is to follow a smart cultural diplomacy, it has unmatched advantages over both China and Pakistan, says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'When war is thrust on you as in 1962 and 1965 or is tempting as in 1971, ensure that all other fronts are kept quiet, leaving your army free to deal with one,' says Shekhar Gupta.
The AAP government on Tuesday moved a resolution against the Centre's notification giving absolute powers to the Lt Governor.
'The Indian Air Force wanted to fight. My squadron leaders and flight lieutenants, all of us were eager to fight. Unless they are keen I can't have confidence.' Marshal of the Air Force, the legendary Arjan Singh, on the 1965 War.
20 years ago this day, May 11, 1998, India conducted its second nuclear test at Pokharan in Rajasthan. In a fascinating interview on Rediff.com, K Subrahmanyam revealed how Indian PMs reacted to nuclear ambitions.
Having made farmer suicides a campaign issue, Modi and the BJP should have no complaints in now having to live with it, says Aakar Patel.
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