Food security, minority welfare and legislation to deal with communal violence ranked high in the 14-point focus area listed by the newly-constituted National Advisory Council (NAC) headed by Congress President Sonia Gandhi at its first meeting in New Delhi on Thursday.
Actor and social activist Rahul Bose launched a campaign by writing a postcard to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to fulfill the nine-year old promise of tabling The Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence (Access to Justice and Reparations Bill). Bose launched the send to PM postcard campaign as member of 'Justice for All' organisation.
Action has been initiated on making the Communal Violence Bill a law to protect minorities from targeted attacks, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde on Monday said, but was not sure if it will be tabled in the Winter Session of Parliament.
The bill will be finalised after consultations, Minister of State for Home Affairs Sriprakash Jaiswal said Parliament.
EU special representative for human rights Eamon Gilmore said on Friday that in his meetings with the Indian government he has discussed issues such as the use of sedition and anti-terrorism laws, condition of minorities, communal violence and the situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) has appealed to the United Nations to intervene on behalf of religious minorities in Pakistan and Bangladesh, citing human rights violations.
Tension gripped Sihora town in Jabalpur district after a communal clash involving stone-pelting and vandalism, leading to police intervention and multiple arrests.
Pitching for the safe passage of Communal Violence Bill in the current session of Parliament, Minorities Affairs Minister K Rahman Khan on Thursday said it is not a divisive bill and efforts are on to arrive at a consensus on the issue.
Questioning the timing of bringing the Communal Violence Bill, Narendra Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, describing the proposed legislation as "ill-conceived, poorly drafted and a recipe for disaster".
Mounting a frontal attack on the Narendra Modi government, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday said there has been an increase in communal violence in the country since it came to power and alleged this was part of a "deliberate" attempt to divide the people.
As time went by, different facets of the Hindi cinema started showing the complicated identity of Muslim -- sometimes tendentious and at other times perverse and unreliable.
Gujarat Chief Minister and BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Friday wrote letters to fellow chief ministers, urging them to oppose the Communal Violence Bill saying it was a blatant intrusion upon the powers of the state governments.
A bill allowing the Centre to declare an area in a state as communally disturbed on its own and send central forces without the state's request, is likely to be introduced in the ongoing session of Parliament.
A young Hindu tea garden worker was found murdered in Bangladesh, raising concerns amid upcoming parliamentary elections and a series of attacks against the Hindu community.
Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee has accused the BJP of instigating violence during Ram Navami rallies in West Bengal, alleging the party is disrupting the state's tradition of communal harmony. He also criticised the BJP's governance record and promises in other states.
Extending support to communal violence Bill, Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav on Friday said he was disheartened that it was "put on hold" in Parliament by the Congress, which buckled under the pressure of communal forces like the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Communal violence is like a lava erupting from a volcano which scars the ground it touches, senior advocate Kapil Sibal told the Supreme Court on Wednesday while arguing for Zakia Jafri who has challenged the SIT's clean chit to 64 persons including Narendra Modi, the then Gujarat chief minister during the 2002 riots there.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has accused the BJP of engaging in divisive politics and attempting to incite violence in Punjab for electoral gains, while reaffirming his government's commitment to peace and communal harmony.
A Hindu temple caretaker was found dead in southeastern Bangladesh, prompting calls for a thorough investigation and justice from a minority group.
Meghalaya's opposition leader, Mukul Sangma, has called for an independent inquiry into the Garo Hills violence, citing the need for accountability and due process to restore public confidence.
The blockade of Facebook and WhatsApp has been imposed from mid-night following violent incidents between the minority Muslim and majority Sinhalese communities, officials said.
Three persons were on Wednesday killed in fresh outbreak of communal violence in Budhana area of Muzaffarnagar district, hit by riots last month which had left over 60 dead.
Ajmer Sharif cleric Syed Sarwar Chishti has urged the Centre to declare the cow as the national animal and impose a nationwide ban on its slaughter and sale for sacrifice.
Roopa Unnikrishnan's The Jasmine Murders is a novel that understands that the most unsettling mysteries are not solved in police files, but in the silences people learn to live with, notes Ragashree D Nair.
A 25-year-old Hindu man died after jumping into a canal to escape a mob which accused him of theft in northwestern Bangladesh, in the latest incident of violence targeting the minority community. The incident highlights rising concerns about communal violence in the lead-up to general elections.
Courts cannot be the only hope for those fighting hate speech. Countering its effects on the ground takes more effort. With our political parties unwilling to put in that amount of effort, it's left to citizens to do so, points out Jyoti Punwani.
Nagaland Police have urged citizens to maintain peace and communal harmony amid concerns over the law and order situation in Manipur and the possibility of disturbances spilling over into Nagaland.
If the ruling BJP stresses on Hindu nationalist themes ahead of the general election in May, there will be communal violence'
Two people were killed and five others injured after a mob stormed a CRPF camp in Manipur's Bishnupur district following a protest against a bomb attack that killed two children.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has accused the BJP of orchestrating the recent blasts in Amritsar and Jalandhar as part of their strategy for the upcoming assembly elections in the state, alleging the party seeks to create an atmosphere of fear to gain votes.
West Bengal Police have registered an FIR against Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee for allegedly making inflammatory statements during the recent assembly elections, based on a complaint filed by a social activist.
He said 52 people have been arrested from "both sides", and after reviewing CCTV footage about their involvement in the incidents like stone-pelting and torching of vehicles and properties, cases will be registered against them.
A dispute over sacrificial goats in a Thane housing society led to clashes, slogan-shouting, and heightened security, raising community tensions.
A Delhi court acquitted 12 men accused of abduction and murder during the 2020 northeast Delhi riots, citing a failure by the prosecution to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.
A minor dispute between teenagers in Pune escalated into a clash between two communities, resulting in a mob attacking police with stones in the Kondhwa area.
A Hindu temple caretaker was found dead in Bangladesh, sparking outrage and demands for justice from minority groups. The caretaker had been missing for three days before his body was discovered.
Prohibitory orders have been imposed in Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh, following clashes and stone pelting over a dispute regarding the naming of a centre. Two groups clashed over whether to name the junction after Tipu Sultan or Lord Hanuman, leading to unrest and the imposition of Section 144.
The opposition on Wednesday scuttled the introduction of the controversial Communal Violence Prevention Bill in the Rajya Sabha, contending that Parliament does not have the competence to legislate this law, as it will violate the spirit of Federalism.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has accused the BJP of attempting to destabilise the state and create an atmosphere of fear ahead of upcoming elections, following twin blasts in Amritsar and Jalandhar.
