'Mark had such a profound understanding of India, which was, of course, the land of his birth as well as of his death... He loved India, and lived two-thirds of his life here.'
Ex-finance minister Madhu Dandavate dead
Amid this unrest came the verdict of the Allahabad high court on June 12, 1975 that found Gandhi guilty over discrepancies in the electoral campaign, which led to the Emergency on the night of June 25.
When the country has been at war, the Opposition has buried its differences with the government, points out Aditi Phadnis.
At this poignant historic moment one can only wish that institutions are not built by bricks and mortars, but also by the rich Parliamentary traditions which have stood the test of time which needs to be strengthened by all stakeholders, notes Rup Narayan Das, a former joint secretary of the Lok Sabha Secretariat.
Take a look at government subsidies and their growth as a percentage of GDP over this period.
'Today, the BJP is using power in such a manner that they not only crush the Opposition, but even their own supporters can't rebel.'
As the 2019 Lok Sabha election approaches, some rare photographs from the 1996 election campaign, which saw a Bharatiya Janata Party prime minister for the first time in India's history, albeit only for 13 days.
He also re-opened the issue of a fresh enquiry about the mysterious disappearance of Netaji and felt it would be more effective to have an investigative inquiry by experts to find out the reality.
Former Shiv Sena leader Suresh Prabhu on Sunday formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party before being sworn in as Cabinet Minister in the first expansion of the Narendra Modi government.
The dividends for the economy from such a rapid rise in capital expenditure would be huge, observes A K Bhattacharya.
Former colleagues recall the veteran political leader as a visionary with strong ground connect.
Founded in 1966 by Bal Thackeray, the Shiv Sena in its more than five decades long journey has allied with the Congress, formally and informally.
Besides late Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray and former prime minister Indira Gandhi, NCP president Sharad Pawar also figured in the posters.
'The BJP has shown signs lately of returning to its trader mindset.' 'Several strong emotions get meshed in this: Nationalism, protectionism, mercantilism, and arrogance,' points out Shekhar Gupta.
The 64-year-old Planning Commission, a vestige of the socialist era, will soon become history.
On the 40th anniversary of the beginning of one of the darkest periods in our history, here are six painful facts about the Emergency.
'George was a politician with a difference. He had the ability to stand alone, take a position, however extreme, and sustain that position,' remembers Arun Jaitley.
29 years ago, Karnataka was hurled into a huge political crisis after MLAs withdrew support to S R Bommai's Janata Dal ministry. As the governor recommended that the chief minister be dismissed and President's Rule imposed in the state, then President R Venkataraman disagreed with Rajiv Gandhi's Cabinet and argued that 'the question whether a ministry commanded the confidence of the assembly should be tested in the House and not by the governor.' A fascinating excerpt from President Venkataraman's My Presidential Years, published with the kind permission of the publishers HarperCollins India.
Sharad Yadav, President of the Janata Dal (United), is one of the architects of the proposed merger of six political parties who trace their roots to the erstwhile Janata Dal. Yadav tells Archis Mohan how the grand alliance with Left parties and even the Congress is the need of the hour.
'There is too much news about film stars. There is too much fawning over wealth and power. There is a grey area between seriousness and triviality in news reporting now.' 'Mumbai is still a magnet. All the politicians have property in Mumbai. Politicians are the biggest racketeers here.' Olga Tellis, the legendary reporter who completed 50 years in journalism, tells A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com about her life and experiences.
'High denomination cash notes which was 1.4 lakh crores of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in 2004 became Rs 15.5 lakh crores in 2016.' 'If it had been allowed, by 2022, it would have been Rs 34 lakh crores, and that would have been the end of the Indian economy.' 'Demonetisation was a huge hit on the head of the economy, but without the hit, you could not U-turn the economy.'
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