Imagine being a part of a country, but being discriminated against by the majority community and atrocities being committed against you by the state. This is the deplorable conditions that the Rohingyas of Myanmar live in where they are cut off from their livelihoods and sources of income, unable to access markets, hospitals and schools, and have little or no access to relief aid. In order to understand the situation and the genesis of the tragedy unfolding, Rediff.com's Archana Masih speaks to Ambassador Vijay Nambiar, the United Nations' Chef de Cabinet (Chief of Staff), who had served a long stint with the UN in New York on the issue.
Everything about ISIS had indicated that this would be a violent Ramzan. A violent, divisive Ramzan sends out exactly the message that ISIS wants to send to religious Muslims outside its folds: It plays on their faith and fears, says writer Tabish Khair.
'The Bodos and the Assamese were at each other's throats, the Assamese Muslims and the Bengali Muslims were at each other's throats, the Bengali speaking Muslims and Hindus were coming together against the Assamese speaking caste Hindus and the plains tribes and vice versa.'
The BJP, which leads the ruling coalition at the Centre, hit right back, dismissing her allegation as 'baseless' and asserting she will be ousted from power 'democratically' after the assembly elections due next year.
'We are telling them we have isolated them and their religion as not only unwanted,' says Aakar Patel.
Sadhvi also said "there is no such thing as saffron terrorism," adding that "saffron means dedicated life for the nation and dharma."
'It is only because of the Congress that we became a secular republic.' 'As we enter a period where another political force has became dominant, it will be interesting to see if this legacy of Nehru and the Congress is sustained or we are taken in a new direction,' says Aakar Patel.
Aseem Chhabra lists his favourite Indian films of 2021.
'The Nagas want a flag of their own, to share the Kohima skyline with the national tricolour.' 'The the government says you can have a flag for cultural and ethnic occasions.' 'The Nagas say that will be a bit like an NGO having its own flag,' argues Shekhar Gupta.
'We should not have waited for the political crisis in Nepal to erupt before being galvanised into action,' says Shyam Saran. 'We should have seen what was coming and not accepted assurances from the leaders of the political parties at their face value.'
He also emphasised that those giving shelter to terrorists and using them as political instruments must be condemned, an apparent reference to Pakistan.
Many anticipate that by the 2021 assembly elections in West Bengal, the BJP may come to power, says Mohammad Sajjad.
With a staff in one hand and the other on his granddaughter's shoulder, the old man briskly takes the lead as the sun breaks over the horizon.
No nation is fully sovereign to do what it wants to do in the face of opposition from others, points out Aakar Patel.
Crackdowns on bloggers often signal the ominous rise of religious fundamentalism
'These protests are not just about the CAA. It is against allowing fascism and religious discrimination to creep into our legal system.'
India's majoritarian regime is now making a dangerously fast-paced move towards theocracy, like its western counterpart did a few decades ago, warns Mohammad Sajjad.
Peace and reconciliation cannot go forward in an atmosphere of terror, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin said in the United Nations on Tuesday.
A 7-hr debate was held over the contentious bill. Oppn amendments rejected.
The only thing more dangerous than a killer who thinks he is acting to protect his faith or community is the killer who knows he is acting with the sanction of his faith or community
Kumar's comments at the party's national executive meeting came amid a strain in his ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party and appears to be a message to his ally, some of whose leaders have been linked to alleged communal tensions and violence in the state.
'If you look at peacekeeping right now, it is fraught with accusations of sexual abuse or peacekeepers involved in deals that are outside their purview, human trafficking.' 'When a contingent of women walk through a camp, the women in the camp and the children respond to them, talk to them. Women are more open to talking about sexual violence and domestic violence to other women.'
A war hero looks back at the men and the moments that forged India's greatest military victory.
'I believe Modi mentioned Balochistan only to embarrass Pakistan and also divert attention toward the situation in Kashmir.' 'I think from now on, India intends to raise Balochistan whenever Pakistan brings up Kashmir or upsets them on the issue of terrorism.' 'Balochistan is the least developed of Pakistan's four provinces. It is the least educated and least economically developed. People are agitated that a region so rich in mineral resources and a sea-port is still so poor.' Baloch political analyst Malik Siraj Akbar on why the province wants freedom from Pakistan.
'As a governor, I have every right to speak my mind if I feel the security of my country is at stake.' 'Why is it that we would have to shed tears when Muslims are killed or tortured, but have to keep mum when the Hindus receive the same treatment?'
Gurung is worth his weight in gold to the BJP which is trying hard to make inroads in West Bengal
'Not only the poor in India want sons, but even in the Indian community in the US and Canada. The more educated they are, the more access they have to money and use of technology in gender choice.'
'What needs to be pursued as the operations progress is a degree of reconciliation amongst the other parties, less the more orthodox Al Qaeda affiliates.'
Resettlement of refugees elsewhere is not the morally correct solution to the problem for it lets the perpetrators off the hook.
Indian diplomatic sources said that India abstained from voting on the resolution in line with its traditional approach that it does not mix humanitarian issues with political issues.
A day after total shutdown in Assam to protest against the CAB, fresh protests erupted in the state and neighbouring Tripura and other parts of the nation.
In its interim order, a Madurai bench directed the Centre to file counter in 4 weeks.
Mohammad Sajjad profiles Professor Riazur Rahman Sherwani, 94, versatile mind, intrepid intellectual.
'China's growing nexus with Pakistan and the two countries' unresolved territorial disputes with India continue to pose a formidable national security threat to India,' says Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
'The Pakistani military has encouraged and supported terrorist organisations, especially in Kashmir, as a means of waging proxy war against the Indian military and the country's superior economic resources.' 'The evidence is irrefutable with the recent killing of 46 paramilitary troops being just the latest example.'
Bharati Dutt witnessed life-changing events that shaped India on the threshold of freedom. Her memories are an account of how ordinary Indians saw India change.
Rohingyas settled in Jammu tells how they are facing a battle for survival
There appears to be inadequate appreciation of the freedoms and rights that are guaranteed and practised daily in a vibrant democracy, India says.
'For years, a whispering campaign against the non-Nagas -- and occasional violence -- has dominated the local discourse, but Farid Khan's lynching was unprecedented in its ferocity.'
'Most Hindus believe in living in peace with their Muslim neighbours and vice versa.' 'It is this India we have to preserve.'
