While the Congress and DMK headquarters bore a desolate look with party supporters shocked at their dismal performance, the AIADMK and BJP offices were in a celebratory mood. Ladoos, drums playing and dancing on the streets were seen outside the party headquarters. Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com presents the different scenes.
'All sorts of tactics are used on political adversaries.'
'They are going to create so many nations within one nation.' 'If you do this exercise without a clear vision, it will have far reaching repercussions. It will end up in disaster and that will be dangerous.'
Kudumbashree is a revolution worth replicating wherever there are women in need of help. Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com travels to Thrissur to learn about the success story of the largest network of women in India.
Sri Lankan Tamil poet and journalist Theepachelvan Pratheepan shares the experiences during his petrified childhood days spent in the war-torn island nation with Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier.
'Those who hope for a strong united Opposition are disillusioned at the way in which the INDIA alliance has already been caught in debilitating squabbles.'
Our economic growth was never broad based. We have not been able to harness technology for the overall development of industry.
Our economic growth was never broad based. We have not been able to harness technology for the overall development of industry.
Our economic growth was never broad based. We have not been able to harness technology for the overall development of industry.
'Our prime interest is to help the victim get justice. When we speak of justice, what we mean is, all the people who exploited her should be punished,' KK Shailaja, general secretary of the All India Democratic Women's Association, tells Shobha Warrier
Growth in manufacturing sector is very important for any economy.
Cho Ramaswamy talks about the Sri Lankan Tamil issue, the DMK walking out of the UPA and also his thoughts on the next Lok Sabha elections.
'The Railways decided to go for kavach three years back, but the progress has been very slow.'
The Web portal of the Organiser, the RSS mouthpiece, published an article (withdrawn later) that the Christian community holds many acres of land, far more than Waqf property.'
'No retaliatory tariffs now. You can retaliate after a few months.' 'Today, there is no need to retaliate because it is a question of long term benefits.'
Well known writer and social commentator, Paul Zacharia is always in the forefront to voice his opinion on the various issues that affect the very social and political fabric of Kerala. In this exclusive interview with Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier, he takes a look at the Suryanelli case that is being talked about in Kerala once again, after 17 years.
S Kabilan, former chairman of the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission, talks about what he could do as chairman and what ails the power sector in Tamil Nadu.
'What does Indira Gandhi want from me? At this age, what will I do to her?'
'...he had to take his exams in Hindi at IIT-Kharagpur.' 'You wouldn't have got someone like Sundar Pichai because Hindi is not a friendly language for a person from Tamil Nadu.'
In the second part of an exclusive interview to rediff.com's Shobha Warrier, S Gurumurthy talks about why he found Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari "morally and legally clean".
Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com meets the parents of Major Mukund Varadarajan, who was killed during an operation against terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir on April 25.
Sheeroy Desai, CEO of PAC, was in India recently. In an interview to rediff.com, he made some interesting observations on the recent recession and its impending recovery.
'To those who have just finished engineering or MCA or BSc, BBA, I will say they should take up whatever internship opportunities they are getting.' 'They should look for opportunities to learn the latest tools.' 'They should think innovative and try to solve problems. Only when you sharpen your skills, you will remain relevant.'
Aruna Anand on her husband's World Championship triumph in Sofia and the build-up to it.
'It is our duty to keep space sustainable and free of debris.'
'Another term for the government under the prime minister would likely be a step forward on the path to Hindu Rashtra.' 'No question of going back or any slowing down.'
'I have serious doubts about the longevity of the NDA government and the longevity of the 18th Lok Sabha itself.'
'For the first time in this country, perhaps the first time anywhere, we are going to use backwardness index.' 'It is a fundamental shift in the discourse in the country's social justice.'
'Don't get stressed if you are not able to do your work.' 'If you feel you do not have the skill or capacity to do some work, accept it.'
'In today's political spectrum, it is the Bharatiya Janata Party that always says, nation first.'
'The boys allowed themselves to become tools of politicians.' 'That age is a dangerous one, children or young men and women can easily be moulded to hate.'
'You need hard work along with talent to reach exceptional heights.'
'In a country like India where entrepreneurship is not common except in commercial or merchandise families, the situation is different today.'
'For a meaningful alliance, every party has to do some sacrifice.' 'That sacrifice will come only when you persuade people.' 'And that task can be done by only a leader like Sharad Pawar.'
'80% of start ups fail because they don't have a support system to help them in the very early phase.' 'It's not just an idea that takes an entrepreneur through the initial three years of journey.' 'What plays a definitive role in making a start-up successful is idea+team+capital+mentors+access to a larger ecosystem.'
'My protest was in the interest of the nation.' 'I am just doing my duty as a citizen of this country.'
'Nitish may take such a decision because he was the first person who was with the INDIA front.' 'He went back only because he did not get proper encouragement from the Congress.' 'Nitish will take a decision provided there is a strong alternative.' 'If he feels ours is a weak coalition, he will not come.' 'Then, this government will continue for five years.'
'April 9 announcement of slapping a 125% tariff on Chinese goods has brought the focus back to China, making this new phase feel like a repeat of the original conflict.'
'Remember, they are all volunteers unlike other forces, and they said they would not come out of the forest until they finished the job. That was the kind of dedication and perseverance they had.' says former STF boss Walter Dawaram.
