'I cannot imagine that any NSA before Ajit Doval would have given us this kind of time and this kind of engagement. They would have offered slogans, or nothing at all. That, too, tells you something.'
'The next five years are crucial because Assam, West Bengal and Bihar are either governed by or politically aligned with the BJP.' 'This gives us a strong platform to take decisive steps to secure our borders.'
India is the only significant power that all parties trust, or at least do not distrust, notes former defence secretary Ajay Kumar.
Hopefully, the BJP will realise that it's the right time for parivartan (change) in its polarising poll strategies after achieving the impossible-looking goal of winning West Bengal, argues Sheela Bhatt.
What lessons opposition parties need to learn post defeat of Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal elections? The election saw spectacular victor of BJP which rose from 3 seats in 2016 to 206 seats in 2026 assembly elections.
If Trump doesn't like India, that is his choice. But to use such distasteful language on a public platform is deeply offensive and needs to be called out, points out Amberish K Diwanji.
The BJP's West Bengal unit chief, Samik Bhattacharya, criticised the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, accusing it of crushing democracy and fostering lawlessness in the state. He highlighted alleged political violence, economic decline, and disrespect for constitutional posts under the TMC's rule.
The Dhurandhar movies will undoubtedly shape the minds of the audience much more than news reports, court investigations, books and documentaries. But it is worth remembering that Pakistan's irridentist claims against India's national security have succeeded due to strategic planning, diplomacy, and the unsung heroines and heroes across government agencies, not due to a single maverick leader, points out Shweta Desai.But it is worth to remember that Pakistan's irredentist claims against India's national security have succeeded due to strategic planning, diplomacy, and the unsung heroines and heroes across government agencies -- not a single maverick, points out Shweta Desai.
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat stated that the Sangh's objective is to unite society, not to seek power or become a pressure group. He emphasized that the RSS is not against anyone and aims to support positive efforts in the country.
All along, we were told SIR was an essential exercise carried out as part of the Election Commission's regular duties. But now that the ideological mentor of the ruling party has declared that SIR is a means of detecting infiltrators, one understands the unseemly haste with which it is being carried out, notes Jyoti Punwani.
This new year will bring, once again, a repetition of both intent and apathy, expects Aakar Patel.
Radical Islamist networks are deliberately targeting Muslim youths embedded within the country's professional and academic ecosystems, leveraging their skills, mobility, and digital reach to quietly strengthen operational capabilities. This trend highlights a dangerous evolution in terror recruitment -- one that exploits ideological faultlines, online echo chambers and transnational radical Islamist influences to attract individuals who outwardly embody India's modern and aspirational narrative, points out Dr Kanchan Lakshman.
The hope is that the film raises significant issues about the rights of women, and does not become a diatribe against a minority community that has happened with some recent films, points out Deepa Gahlot.
A woman arrested for allegedly promoting Al-Qaeda's agenda had appealed to Pakistan's Army chief to invade India to unify Muslim lands under Project Khilafat, officials said.
'This is just the beginning. You have to wait and watch to see things getting better.'
The Union home ministry on Tuesday asserted that Indian Muslims need not worry as the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) will not impact their citizenship and has nothing to do with the community which enjoys equal rights as their Hindu counterparts.
For Malegaon's Muslims, Rahul Gandhi's remarks were simply one more indication that the party they once supported no longer cares for them, notes Jyoti Punwani.
His post got a lot of heart emojis and one follower thanked him for taking a stand on the matter of unity.
Asserting that religion should not used to get political mileage, Azad said whoever takes refuge in religion in politics is weak.
' Hakim Khan Suri sacrificed his life in the battle of Haldighati, fighting against the Mughals. Madari, a Muslim youth, was Shivaji Maharaj's bodyguard'
'A terrorist has no religion -- they are nothing but the face of evil. When you offer namaz for a terrorist, attend their funeral, or give them a grave, you affirm that they belong to a religion. That must stop'
'I am ashamed that you and I were born into the same faith -- because we are nothing alike. My religion is humanity. The Islam I know teaches me to protect the innocent. Yours celebrates slaughter, you #&$#@#. 'My Islam teaches me to serve my nation. Yours tells you to tear it apart,' writes Major Dr Mohommed Ali Shah (retd).
He added, "You can never trust Pakistan as long as the Pakistani deep state, Pakistani ISI, Pakistani military's objective is to destabilise Bharat."
Pratinav Anil is able to foresee some agency and assertion on the part of India's Muslims. His hope emanates from the citizenship rights movement of Muslims in 2019-2020, notes Mohammad Sajjad.
'There's no transparency in work (of the Wakf Board), in property transactions (of the Waqf).'
Shah, in a video that has gone viral on Twitter, said every Indian Muslim must introspect if they want 'reform and modernity' in the religion or live with dated 'barbarian' values.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 was passed in the Lok Sabha early Thursday, with 288 members supporting it and 232 against it.
'Muslims need to work according to strategy and not fall into the trap of Opposition parties.'
'If Pakistan has fired one bullet at us then we have to respond by firing 10 bullets at them. It is our right to do so.'
The ISI strategy has been to use its proxies to target Hindus in India. They want an outrage and counter-targeting of India's minorities. Further, even the whiff of it restores the Pakistan army's popularity, especially when it's in the dumps, like now, points out Shekhar Gupta.
'The new Waqf bill sows the seed for conflict in every town and village of India.'
'The irony of this country is that the party in Opposition and the party in power both depend on Muslims.'
'No country or society ever prospered or remained secure by marginalising more than one-sixth of its own,' warns Shekhar Gupta.
After being elected president of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in 1999, Najma Heptulla rang up the then Congress chief Sonia Gandhi from Berlin to convey the news but had to hold the phone line for an hour as a staff told her that 'madam is busy'.
'How does relief in the form of citizenship to a persecuted Hindu in Bangladesh put the citizenship of an Indian Muslim in danger?', asks Dr Sudhir Bisht.
A meeting of the joint committee of Parliament on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill on Friday witnessed fireworks with members vociferously opposing certain provisions of the draft legislation, leading to a brief walkout by opposition members.
Over 100 people in the Washington, DC metropolitan area gathered to hear Indian Muslim leader Syed Shahabuddin at a dinner hosted in his honour by the Association of Indian Muslims of America.
'Not afraid to look Muslim, not shy of flaunting her nationalism.' 'With a willingness to fight carrying the Constitution, the Flag, the Anthem, Ambedkar, Gandhi and the chant of 'Hindustan Zindabad',' notes Shekhar Gupta.
According to Owaisi, the CAA was only made towards making India a Hindu Rashtra.
Citing that many Muslims fought in Mewar king Maharana Pratap's army against Mughal emperor Akbar, Bhagwat suggested that in India's history people from all faiths stood together whenever there was an attack on the country's culture.
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