India is ready to give Pakistan "the benefit of the doubt" as the two neighbours pursue peace amid a series of ceasefire violations along the Line of Control, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid has said.
Law Minister Salman Khurshid also made it clear that there was no question about anyone from the government ever saying that they don't care what happens to Hazare's health. "The main concern for me and the prime minister is Anna's health. We are very concerned about it," he told reporters outside Parliament.
The Sachar Committee report is not sacrosanct like the Quran and has to be looked at with a critical eye, Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said. "The Sachar Committee report is not Quran. It could be wrong and its recommendations and observations need to be looked at with a critical eye. The recommendations should not be seen as a special thing given to Muslims," he said. The Rajinder Sachar Committee was appointed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
India on Tuesday demanded punishment for those responsible for the barbaric killing of two Indian soldiers by Pakistanis along the Line of Control, insisting that it was "extremely determined and serious" on this and that ties would not remain unaffected.
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid has written to his United States counterpart Hillary Clinton, condemning the killings at an elementary school in Connecticut and expressed solidarity with the American people. "I was deeply saddened to learn the terrible news of the shooting at an elementary school in Connecticut. The killing of children is a particularly abhorrent act; one which leaves the whole world diminished," he said in the letter.
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Saturday said that all procedures were followed by the United Progressive Alliance government in the controversial VVIP chopper deal. "I don't think it is right to politicise the issue. It is a matter of national interest. All procedures were strictly followed by the government," he told n journalists accompanying him on a two-day visit to Bangladesh.
Bharatiya Janata Party President Rajnath Singh on Sunday demanded cancellation of External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid's May 9 visit to China till it withdraws its army personnel from DepsangValley in Ladakh where they intruded a fortnight back
Advocating deeper economic ties in the Indian Ocean region and emphasis on maritime security, India on Friday pitched for more robust "cooperative regionalism" and said the geo-strategic importance of the area cannot be underestimated.
Asserting that it will not be influenced by "jingoistic conversations" in sections of the media, the government on Sunday said peace process with Pakistan was back on track "considerably" but made it clear that "atmospherics" have to be right to move forward.
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The creation of the High Level Political Forum was one of the key decisions of the Rio+20 Conference.
A delegation of opposition party leaders on Friday met the top brass of Election Commission to raise its concerns over poll code violations by the ruling party leaders, and also flagged concerns over delay in release of voter turnout figures for the first two phases of the polls.
With its manifesto in Uttar Pradesh remaining silent on the exact percentage of Muslim sub quota, Congress on Wednesday suggested the announcement of nine per cent reservation to backward minorities by Law Minister Salman Khurshid was his personal view.
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Saturday hosted a lunch for Pakistan Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf but did not discuss issues like terrorism with him.
Adopting a wait and watch approach, India on Saturday said its Norway mission will do whatever is "appropriate" in the alleged child abuse case involving an Indian couple there but made it clear that the incident relates to a private citizen and the local law.
Salman Khurshid, the minister of external affairs, talks to Nayanima Basu on Pakistan, China, trade and various other challenges on his plate.
India on Thursday expressed disappointment over the United States' refusal to extradite Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorist David Headley even as it vowed to continue to pursue with its demand for bringing him here for his role in 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court on Thursday issued notice to a television news channel -- directing it to produce all documents related to the matter of the Dr Zakir Hussain Memorial Trust run by Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid -- on the basis of which a Public Interest Litigation was filed.
Corporate Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Wednesday downplayed fears that investors would lose confidence due to the row between SEBI and IRDA over market-linked insurance policies, as the issue will be resolved in favour of either one regulator or the other by the courts.
The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court on Friday issued a notice to Dr Zakir Hussain Memorial Trust, run by Union minister Salman Khurshid and his wife Louis, on a PIL seeking direction for the lodging of an FIR and also monitoring by the court in the case relating to the Trust.
Over 6,000 Indians are currently languishing in foreign jails with maximum of 1,691 being lodged in Saudi Arabia. External Affairs Salman Khurshid, replying to a question in Rajya Sabha, said a total of 6,293 Indians are imprisoned in various countries.
The minority affairs ministry wanted use of the Public Premises Act, 1971, to remove unauthorised occupants from Waqf properties, but the law ministry, which is also under him, shot down the proposal on the ground that the Act is for summary evictions from "public premises" and not from the Waqf premises.
Sources within the INDIA bloc said appointing Nitish Kumar as convenor would lend credibility to the INDIA bloc's demand for conducting a nationwide caste census.
Ahead of United States envoy Nancy Powell's meeting with Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Wednesday hoped America will apply with regard to the Gujarat chief minister the standards consistent with its policies in dealing with issues like human rights.
Against the backdrop of indefinite fast by Anna Hazare coming to an end, Law Minister Salman Khurshid has said the government is "much better equipped" now to deal with such situations even as he underlined that the Lokpal will be created before the 2014 elections.
"During this month, the SFIO will begin the prosecution on those or those areas of company laws that the SFIO is expected to and have been authorised to proceed with," Corporate Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told a press conference in New Delhi.
Opposing any external military intervention in Syria, India today said all parties to the conflict should join an inclusive political dialogue to find a comprehensive political solution to the crisis.
Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid's remark about Congress president Sonia Gandhi getting emotionally moved by Batl a House pictures might have created a furore in the Congress circles.
The government is working towards reducing the number of cases pending before various courts through initiatives like e-courts, Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid said on Thursday.
The fourth Strategic Dialogue between India and United States next week would set the tone of engagement between the two countries during the second term of President Barack Obama, eminent American experts have said.
India on Friday said the composite dialogue with Pakistan will be resumed after the new government there settles down, and pending confidence building measures between the two countries are implemented.
A delegation of Congress leaders met EC officials and raised several issues, including the use of pictures and large cut-outs of the prime minister in government buildings and colleges and demanded that those be removed to maintain a level-playing field in the upcoming parliamentary election.
Referring to China's reported discomfiture over the close Indo-Japan ties, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid Wednesday said just as Beijing's ties with Islamabad did not affect our relations with it, similarly warmth between India and Japan was no cause of concern.
A Delhi court on Wednesday dismissed a plea seeking registration of an FIR against Union Minister Salman Khurshid and his wife Louise for alleged criminal misappropriation of funds meant for a family-run trust, saying it has no "territorial jurisdiction".
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Tuesday backed Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde's statement on "Hindu terrorism" saying it was based "entirely on facts" made available by investigative agencies.
Law Minister Salman Khurshid on Friday rejected a demand for initiating a probe against a Union minister, belonging to Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam, reportedly involved in a company which has been allocated a coal block. "Somebody must come with an allegation that requires investigation, somebody must say that this is what has caused undue influence," he told reporters outside Parliament.
Rubbishing reports of confusion within the Congress on its prime ministerial candidate, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Saturday said Rahul Gandhi is the party's "consensus leader" and it was up to him to decide about taking on the leadership role in the government.
Seeking to re-assure Italy, India on Friday said any doubts on Italian marines being put on trial for committing a terror act should be set aside as the National Investigation Agency is the only agency available to the government for investigating the killing of two Indian fishermen in high seas. External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said he would read the assignment of the task to the NIA, not through the NIA Act but by nomination made through the order of the SC.
Stating that she shared the concerns of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi regarding Sri Lankan Tamils issue, United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi has told him that she "shall take up the matter" with the external affairs minister.
As reports filtered in about the United States and the United Kingdom finalising plans for a limited military strike in Syria, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said India is not in favour of an external intervention but would go along with the decision of the United Nations.
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