In her third letter to Kumar since the SIR began, Banerjee accused the Election Commission of political bias, insensitivity, and high-handedness during the exercise.
This new year will bring, once again, a repetition of both intent and apathy, expects Aakar Patel.
Sarma also claimed that marriages of minors were registered by the Kazis earlier, but the proposed bill will prohibit any such move.
The country also mounted bids on some high-profile continental and global events, including the 2031 World Athletics Championships with Ahmedabad as the proposed venue.
Ask rediffGURU Reetika Sharma your insurance, mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
The apex court termed the prevalence of "social evil" of child marriage as "sobering" and passed a slew of directions to the Centre, states, district administrations, panchayats and the judiciary to eradicate the malaise.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court will decide whether Jain individuals can seek relief under the Hindu Marriage Act, including divorce by mutual consent. This decision stems from a family court's refusal to accept a divorce petition from a Jain software engineer, citing the community's minority status. The high court appointed an amicus curiae to assist in the case, and the next hearing is scheduled for March 18.
The Supreme Court on Friday held that the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act cannot be stunted by personal laws and that marriages involving children violate the free will to have a life partner of choice.
Made at a time when an insidious agenda can be read into it, Haq is an important film that deals with a contentious subject with maturity, observes Deepa Gahlot.
Beginning November 1, 2025, bank customers can name up to four nominees for their accounts and lockers.
The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Law Commission to consider a plea as a representation of a Buddhist group that certain sets of personal Hindu laws, which are applicable to Buddhists also, are against their fundamental rights, including freedom to practice religion.
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.
The Opposition in Maharashtra boycotted the government's customary tea party on the eve of the Winter session, citing its failure to appoint leaders of the opposition (LoPs) in both houses of the state legislature.
As the year draws to a close, Rediff's Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya takes a look at the hits and misses, the highs and lows, the newsmakers and the dealbreakers in alphabetical order.
Despite being a doctor, Mahendra allegedly did not perform CPR. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared her dead on arrival, Muni Reddy alleged. Postmortem and Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) reports later confirmed the presence of anaesthetic substances in her organs, police said.
When and how you can access EPF money before retirement without jeopardising your long-term retirement savings.
In May, 40 Rohingyas were blindfolded and flown to the Andaman and Nicobar islands and then thrown into the sea and made to swim to an island in Myanmar. And after the Pahalgam attack, at least 300 Muslims were 'pushed back' to Bangladesh from Assam.
Under the title of "legal enforcement", states and Union Territories were directed to appoint officers solely responsible for discharging the functions of Child Marriage Prohibition Officers at the district level.
Gujarat police rescued a 20-year-old woman from Assam, allegedly trapped in a 'love jihad' scheme. The woman was lured by an Assamese man and taken to Assam without her family's knowledge. Police tracked them down and reunited the woman with her family.
'Parsis are inclined towards people who work for the welfare of others.'
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma believes that the BJP could win more seats in the state by aggressively campaigning in minority-dominated areas. He attributed the party's recent success in the bypolls to its beneficiary schemes, which he claims have garnered support from the minority community. Sarma emphasized that the BJP will continue with its development work for all communities and has no plans for appeasement. He also gave an update on the Guwahati-North Guwahati bridge project, which is progressing well and is scheduled to be opened to the public in July 2025. Sarma also hinted at a possible cabinet reshuffle in the coming months.
The data compiled by the National Crime Records Bureau showed that the crime rate in 2023 stood at 39.9 per one-lakh child population, in comparison to 36.6 in 2022.
Opposing the criminalisation of marital rape, which is sought by many petitioners before the apex court, the Centre has filed its preliminary counter affidavit in the top court.
The Supreme Court stated that in a continuing marriage, neither husband nor wife can claim independence from their partner, emphasizing that marriage signifies the union of two souls.
The man, who was sentenced to 10 years in jail by the sessions court, claimed since the victim was his wife, their sexual relationship cannot be termed as rape.
Cal HC orders Md Shami monthly payment of Rs 4 lakh as maintenance to estranged wife, daughter
Diane Keaton's wit and honesty taught us that ageing and uncertainty aren't weaknesses, they are part of what makes us human and graceful, observes Sreehari Nair.
The case has drawn widespread attention as Nikki's family alleged she faced years of torture and escalating dowry demands since her marriage in 2016. They said they had already given a Scorpio SUV, a motorcycle, and gold jewellery to her in-laws, but the demands later increased to Rs 36 lakh in cash and even a luxury car.
India has slammed Pakistan at a UN debate by drawing attention to the heinous crimes of gross sexual violence against women in erstwhile East Pakistan in 1971, adding the pattern continues with impunity to this day.
As a protege of Shinzo Abe, Takaichi is expected to scale bilateral ties much higher. Trade and investment shall grow. People-to-people contacts shall be scaled up, points out Dr Rajaram Panda.
Two Union Ministers visited the family of a 23-year-old woman in Kothamangalam who allegedly took her own life due to harassment by her lover. The family is demanding an NIA probe into the incident, alleging forced religious conversion.
On October 17, a five-judge Constitution bench headed by the CJI unanimously refused to accord legal recognition to same-sex marriage, saying there was "no unqualified right" to marriage.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced reservation for Muslims in supplying goods and services up to a value of Rs 1 crore to various government departments, corporations and institutions in the state budget for 2025-26. The budget also increased the value limit of government contracts in which Muslims can avail reservation to Rs 2 crore. The reservation to Muslims under 2B category is in addition to the Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, and Castes coming under Category-1, Category-2A. The budget also included various welfare schemes for minorities, including Rs 50,000 to support simple marriages and Rs 1,000 crore under the Chief Minister's Minority Colony Development Programme.
India has previously rejected the US state department's annual human rights report on the country, saying they continue to be based on "misinformation and flawed understanding".
Marriage between minors is "valid" and it can be annulled only on the plea by one of the partners, the Delhi high court ruled on Wednesday.
If nominees pass away, distribution is governed by succession laws of insured's religion.
A case has been registered against a youth in Udupi on charges of 'kidnapping' a 20-year-old engineering student, based on a complaint filed by her father, police said on Saturday.
Leaders and members of the Hindu community rue the fact that they are not given proper representation and many are not even registered as voters.
The committee includes secretaries of the women and child welfare, minority affairs, law and judiciary, social justice and special assistance departments, and deputy secretaries of the home department.
As the police said they have a list of 8,000 accused and the drive will continue, women protested against the move in various districts saying they will face problems without livelihoods.
