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.
'The mobilisation is nothing but a political ploy -- a sort of a fixed match between Hindu and Muslim communal forces, towards polarisation, in a run-up to the next election,' argues Mohammad Sajjad.
Amidst a row over eating beef, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju said no restrictions can be put on food habits in a secular country like India but the sentiments of the majority should be respected in Hindu-majority as well as Christian and Muslim-majority states.
Radhika Ramaseshan reports on why the Karnataka chief minister risked crossing swords with his party, the Bharatiya Janata Party, and its ideological wellspring, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
India witnessed religiously motivated killings, arrests, riots and coerced religious conversions and the police in some cases failed to respond effectively to communal violence, according to the US State Department report on International Religious Freedom.
The manner in which a large proportion of common people have mortgaged their rationality and questioning spirit to let hatred, prejudice, and bigotry take over their minds is a cause of worry, observes Mohammad Sajjad.
Stirring the political cauldron, controversial BJP MLA Sangeet Som on Sunday visted Dadri where he attacked Samajwadi Party government, alleging it was appeasing the minority community and innocent people were being framed for lynching of a man over beef eating rumour.
'Does Deepika not have the right to raise her voice in a democratic and peaceful manner on an issue she considers important?' 'Why should one view her only as an actor and not appreciate her role as a concerned citizen of the country?' ask Aftab Alam and Mohammad Asim Siddiqui.
Religious minorities in India have been subjected to "violent attacks, forced conversions" and 'Ghar Wapsi' campaigns by groups like the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh after the Modi government assumed power in 2014, a US Congress-established panel has said.
Facing opposition criticism over alleged inaction by the Delhi police during the violence last month, Shah appreciated the police for not allowing the riots to spiral.
Indians ought to be all Indian nationalists first and those talking about Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian nationalisms are really anti-national, Press Council of India Chairman, Justice (retd) Markandey Katju said in Nagpur on Friday.
'The BJP will get the lion's share of the Opposition vote. I would give the Congress-Left around 15 per cent.'
A three-member fact-finding team of the Bharatiya Janata Party, that was going to visit the violence-hit areas of Malda district in West Bengal, was detained at the Malda railway station.
Opposition members in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday sought to rake up an issue accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of not greeting Muslims on the occasion of Eid while noting that he had offered prayers in Nepal's famed centuries-old Pashupatinath Temple on Monday.
She used her speech in the Lok Sabha during a special discussion on the Quit India movement to underline the contributions of the Congress and Jawaharlal Nehru to the landmark episode in India's struggle for independence.
'Hindu middle class doesn't like anti-Muslim rhetoric'
This will also be his first August 15 address after coming back to power with a huge mandate.
Taking a jibe over the reported row in Bharatiya Janata Party over a move to field Narendra Modi from Varanasi and Rajnath Singh from Lucknow, Congress on Monday wondered as to why Opposition party leaders were looking for a safe seat if there was a Modi wave across the country.
'Around 10 pm, a senior police officer from Hazratganj police station came and started abusing me with the choicest words...' 'He said he will ensure that I rot in jail all my life.' 'This police officer then told a lady constable to slap me.' 'She did that, but he was not happy with the force of the slap.' 'He got up, pulled me by my hair and hit me in my stomach and knees.' 'He was abusing me as a bastard non-stop.'
With the situation showing improvement, curfew was relaxed for five hours on Wednesday in riot-hit Muzaffarnagar while Baghpat witnessed a communal clash leaving a constable injured.
President Mukherjee said the "sensitivities" of the minorities must be respected "in letter and spirit" to ensure every community is part of the "national narrative"
'Sometime back, there was not much empathy for communal sentiments or traditions in Kerala.' 'The situation is totally different now.' 'The forces which were not so powerful earlier are getting more powerful now.'
Taking note of the "revenge" remark made by Narendra Modi's close aide Amit Shah while campaigning in riot-affected areas of Uttar Pradesh, the Election Commission on Monday issued notice to him for prima facie violation of the Model Code of Conduct.
'I think the educated middle-class Indian has to take a stand and understand that the only thing which can stop \n\nIndia from being the greatest superpower in this world is the misuse of communalism,' says Shah Rukh Khan.
The Congress on Tuesday accused Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party of trying to appropriate Sardar Patel's legacy, which "belongs to Congress", and reminded that Patel had said that it was the "communal poison of RSS" which killed Mahatma Gandhi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday took a dig at his "secular friends" over his gifting a copy of the holy Hindu text Bhagvad Gita to Japanese Emperor Akihito, saying they could kick up a storm and trigger TV debates back home.
The Modi govt is continuously indulging in theatrics on issues related to Dalits and backwards and any more drama on the issue will not get them any political mileage, Mayawati said.
The issue of intolerance is set to reverberate in Lok Sabha on Monday with the Speaker accepting notices of CPI(M) member P Karunakaran and Congress MP K C Venugopal for a discussion on the matter.
'Gandhi was ambivalent about the RSS; the Sangh, for their part, actively distrusted him.'
'Ours is a diverse culture and we ought to respect each other's customs. People must not be coerced into exhibiting their patriotism in one particular way'
The Election Commission had earlier asked Twitter to remove the tweet by Mishra, a candidate from the Model Town seat.
"We will ban cow slaughter in Bihar if the BJP comes to power," former deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi said.
Akhilesh said that the defeat of the Dalit candidate would cement his party's relations with Mayawati-led BSP.
Nitish Kumar had a week's time to prove his majority, but Laloo Yadav made full use of Siwan don Mohammad Shahabuddin. A revealing excerpt from Rajesh Singh's Baahubalis Of Indian Politics: From Bullet To Ballot.
Taking a serious view of the "growing criticism" of the party and the government, TDP general secretary and state Information Technology Minister Nara Lokesh has asked his fellow leaders to initiate criminal action against those "tarnishing our image".
The Congress party on Saturday moved the Election Commission over Narendra Modi's controversial khooni panja (bloodied hand) barb at the party during a poll rally in Chhattisgarh, seeking "stern action" against Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate.
The Delhi high court had on February 27 adjourned till April 13 hearing the PIL filed by activists Harsh Mander and Farah Naqvi for FIRs against BJP leaders Anurag Thakur, Kapil Mishra and Parvesh Verma for their alleged hate speeches in connection with protests over the amended Citizenship law.
Sharat Pradhan secures exclusive access to the Justice Vishnu Sahai report and discovers it blames two BJP MLAs, a former BSP MP and his cohorts, local intelligence officials and the media for the horrific Muzaffarnagar riots of 2013, but attributes no blame to the Samajwadi Party government in the state.
As the BJP moved the EC against Rahul Gandhi over his remarks linking Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh to Mahatma Gandhi's killing, Union Minister Kapil Sibal on Monday hit out at the opposition party saying their reaction is a result of the "fear of discovery".
BJP leader Kailash Vijaywargiya said Rohith did not commit suicide due to expulsion from hostel.
