'As far as Kashmir is concerned, a 'solution' was very much in play, and had brought endemic violence across the Jammu and Kashmir regions very much under control before the disruptive adventurism of the present regime resulted in a limited and localised escalation.'
India's snooping programme is officially underway and multiple agencies will use internet surveillance system Netra and National Cyber Coordination Centre to keep a tab on suspicious activities on the internet, says Vicky Nanjappa.
Calculated or otherwise, if Azhagiri's firing of the first salvo after Karunanidhi's death does not create some space for him to politico-electorally exploit at a later date, there may not be any space left for him at all, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Part of funding for 9/11 attacks in the United States had originated from India, according to a former top police officer Neeraj Kumar, who has based his claim on the "revelation" made by a terrorist.
'There has to be strikes on the ISI headquarters to raze it to the ground figuratively and otherwise,' says Group Captain Murli Menon (retd).
'The cooperation of Yakub with the investigating agencies after he was picked up informally in Kathmandu and his role in persuading some other members of the family to come out of Pakistan and surrender constitute, in my view, a strong mitigating circumstance to be taken into consideration while considering whether the death penalty should be implemented,' B Raman had written in August 2007.
'These ISIS terrorists want to smash Western civilisation, smash India. For the time being though, their main target would be the US and Europe.'
'The army has been open about its determination to keep the PML-Nawaz out of power at all costs.' 'Both the military and the higher judiciary have indicated a preference for Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehrik e Insaaf,' says Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan Desk at the Research and Analysis Wing, India's external intelligence agency.
Experts trace the reasons for the 26/11 attacks to the Pakistan's military interest in three key areas: Kashmir, Afghanistan and nuclear armaments.
'Our only child. A Communist.' 'There was an encounter by the police inside this room, five years ago. He was shot in one arm, but managed to escape.' 'Missing since then. May Jesus keep him alive.' A revealing excerpt from Asim Mukhopadhyay's Half Man: A Novel On The Naxal Movement.
'There is simply no evidence of any new or clear policy direction in internal security, and mounting evidence of policy incoherence.' 'Worse, the promise of giving the common man -- and, more importantly, woman -- a greater sense of security has been utterly belied. Indeed, with an escalation of communal posturing and rhetoric, there is a broader sense of uncertainty,' says Ajai Sahni.
'While military acts such as the Uri surgical strikes are one option, cultural, economic and diplomatic isolation should also be part of the arsenal,' argues Sankrant Sanu.
Will China's new military reforms endanger Xi Jinping's rule?
'If you destroy the assets in Pathankot, you degrade the combat potential of India; you degrade the war potential of India.'
Innovative methods like transfer of funds through the RTGS banking system and concealment of currency wads inside car bonnets were detected by Election Commission as it took steps to curb the use of black money during the just-concluded Lok Sabha polls.
England's World Cup 2018 team, and remarkable similarities emerge between the XI expected to start the semi-final against Croatia
'Once the violence is contained, the politicians must play their role, but unfortunately that is not happening.'
'It would not be incorrect to say that the Chinese-Pakistani strategy of containing India began in the aftermath of the 1965 war.'
It's perverse to rationalise 'controlled' killings or torture -- without going down a slippery moral slope. Once the state stoops to torture, it's liable to sink into tyranny, says Praful Bidwai.
Saroj Kumar Rath, author of the newly-published book Fragile Frontiers: The Secret History of Mumbai Terror Attacks, speaks to Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa.
'Headley's confirmation of certain aspects of the conspiracy, its planning and what his role was will definitely matter.'
'Against the backdrop of difficult administrative, political and economic problems, Imran's temperament and staying power will be the subject of intense expectation and public scrutiny,' says Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan Desk at the Research and Analysis Wing, India's external intelligence agency.
The developments in Af-Pak region, particularly the fall out of Pak political paralysis, would make President Xi Jinping's task a little more complicated, says Colonel R Hariharan.
'The ISI doesn't trust the Kashmiris. They hate them...' 'We can never take Kashmir for granted, so there is that element of unpredictability. Anything can happen anytime.' 'The next chief minister will still be from the Valley. Even if a BJP chief minister or a BJP chosen candidate comes, he will be from the Valley. And he will be a Muslim.' A S Dulat, the former R&AW chief, on why he is perplexed by the BJP's Mission 44 plan for the J&K assembly election.
Separatists and their wide network must be neutralized for peace in the Valley
Aziz Haniffa, who has covered every Indian Prime Minister's visit to the US since Rajiv Gandhi in 1985, gives us a peek into what's happening in Washington, DC on the eve of the Modi-Trump summit.
'Other countries go out on a limb to save even a single life.' 'What to talk of civilian accidents and disasters, even our military does not have a priority for Combat Search and Rescue,' says Group Captain P I Muralidharan (retd).
Rediff.com's Prasanna D Zore and Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com travelled 650 km in Chhattisgarh's Sukma and Bijapur districts to report on the situation that exists 11 days after the Burkapal ambush, where 25 CRPF troops were killed by the Maoists.
'A master politician who excelled in the politics of intrigue, Subash Ghisingh kept winning election after election, sending a clear message to the state and central governments that he remained the undisputed king of the Darjeeling hills.'
When it came to dealing with the media and academia, it has been a roller coaster ride for the National Democratic Alliance, observes Nitin Sethi.
'The era of conventional wars is almost over in the Indian context.' 'In such a scenario, special forces could play a decisive strategic role in the spectrum of conflict.'
The roots of the problem lies in the alienation of the tribals. Extreme sensitivity is required to tackle the issues involved. Rough and ready methods of using force may prove counterproductive in the long run, says Colonel (retd) Anil Athale.
Countries in the region like Afghanistan, Pakistan and Maldives face serious existential threats from a mix of terrorist groups active in the region and elsewhere
'No private citizen can be prevented from holding or propagating in India or abroad, a view contrary to that of the government of the day. The government, it seems is misreading the mandate in the Lok Sabha as being a mandate to crush dissent. In times when ruling parties have brute majorities in Parliament, the true test of safeguarding democracy is its ability to allow dissenting voices to be heard,' says Indira Jaising, the former additional solicitor general.
'US counter-terrorism policy was encouraging and emboldening the Indians to deal with the problem of Pakistani-supported terrorism once and for all.' 'The US had been trying to browbeat Pakistan into doing what it wants, with very limited success.'
'For years American academia has used the concerns about Hindutva in India to almost completely trash the concept of Hinduism.' 'In the American debate, Wendy Doniger's point of views perpetuated Hinduphobia.' 'Americans were willing to change... Indian intellectuals let us down badly.'
A K Bhattacharya digs into the yet-to-be-public report on ways to curb black money and finds out that Modi's next moves could include action on dabba trading, hawala, and education.
Cristiano Ronaldo renewed his personal battle with Lionel Messi by scoring his 71st Champions League goal, putting him three behind the Argentine's newly-set record, in Real Madrid's 1-0 win at FC Basel on Wednesday.
The sluggish legal system in India makes it extremely difficult for law-enforcing agencies in the ministry of finance to punish violations of foreign exchange laws. Unfortunately, it is not just FEMA. The Prevention of Money Laundering Act too has significant infirmities, say Paranjoy Guha Thakurta and Pranati Mehra.