Two years into power, there is very little to show for the Modi government by way of 'achievements' on the foreign policy front, and his China, Pakistan policies are gasping for breath, says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'One big problem for the RSS is, while they spread their ideology of hard, Hindu-ised Indian nationalism, the absence of their own pantheon of modern nationalist giants. They missed out on the freedom movement quite comprehensively, in some ways comparable to the Muslim League and latter-day Communists. They have to find heroes elsewhere.' 'They borrow who they can from the Congress, like Madan Mohan Malviya and Sardar Patel, and then steal the entire lot of revolutionaries, from Bhagat Singh to Netaji, never mind that many of them were extreme leftists.'
The Land Acquisition Bill, passed by Parliament last month, will either make projects unviable or expensive for large infrastructure or real estate projects.
The Queen has retired, the bosses have left, long live the prince as king, says Shiv Visvanathan.
Secretary Tillerson met with Foreign Secretary Jaishankar on Friday to discuss the US-India relationship and the agenda for Prime Minister Modi's meetings at the White House on June 26, a State Department spokesman said told PTI.
In a live chat on rediff.com held on Friday, July 11, well-known equity specialist Devang Mehta discussed what effect the Budget will have on the stock markets -- from how NOT to lose money in the markets to which are the safest stocks.
'The BJP politics of appropriating icons from its ideological adversaries could only be a desperate attempt to extend the Jat-Muslim divide in Uttar Pradesh. Why this desperation when it can comfortably get votes on the plank of economic development?'
'The Budget has maintained fiscal prudence while announcing a number of steps to boost growth, particularly in infrastructure and rural sectors.'
'Disparity is not only in Mumbai; you see it in every city. The other day, I saw right next to the mansion of Mukesh Ambani worth Rs 5,000 crore for one family, thousands of people sleeping on the pavement. This is the urban India you have created!'
Launching a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Opposition parties on Wednesday alleged that selective leak of information on demonetisation of 500 and 1000 rupee notes to 'friends of BJP' and demanded making public the names of those who had bought gold and foreign exchange of over Rs 1 crore since April.
Is Hyderabad the reason Telangana wants separation from Andhra Pradesh? Or has perceived backwardness of the Telangana region fuelled demand for a separate state? Mayank Mishra reports
'We saw how vigorous democracy was when it dislodged authoritarianism under Indira Gandhi. We saw its vigour again when it voted Mr Modi out of humble origins as prime minister. It was Nehru who laid that foundation for India and what is worrying today is Modi's rather imperial style of functioning,' says writer Nayantara Sahgal.
Veteran Telugu film producer Dr Daggubbati Ramanaidu passed away into the ages on February 18. In an interview he had granted Rediff.com in September 2010, he tells us how he started making movies.
What is the road ahead for Rahul Gandhi? Shehzad Poonawalla offers a blueprint.
It was a multi-million rupee scam whose extent and reach are still being unravelled, so why did the chief of the scam-tainted Saradha group Sudipta Sen plead that he was unable to pay Rs 30,000 as bail fee? Where could all the money have gone? Indrani Roy finds out.
Raghuram Rajan is correct -- the RBI's monetary response to inflation in the past has been too weak.
'The prime ministership needs a statesman, not a politician, and 18 months into the job Modi is yet to learn the difference between the two,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
There is no alternative for the party and the state to wait for CM Jaya to return home as CM Jaya, and make her call, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Don't forget to make your pick for the newsmaker of 2015.
An airport in Noida could lead to higher user fees and diversion of traffic from Delhi, which has huge unused capacity.
An active politician for over four decades, Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday completed one year in office as a copybook President, a period that was marked by proactive steps within and outside Rashtrapati Bhavan.
'Sonia is trying to become a politician again. Will she succeed?'
On the basis of many conversations with stakeholders on the Telangana issue, Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt presents an FAQ to help understand the politics of posturing and realpolitik on the ground to win seats. The questions are many and the answers are not straight
A journalist must perform various roles, be passionate yet detached, feels Gopalkrishna Gandhi
With the arrest of the film censor board's CEO on charges of demanding bribes to clear films, the regulatory role of the panel is in focus once again
India needs to come up with new ideas to make the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas more appealing to overseas Indians. The Diasporas talents should be used for the country's development, says Thomas Abraham, founder of the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin
he has to demonstrate the ability of his government to take a quantum leap, almost tantamount to setting the Ganga on fire, in the next six months, if not in 100 days, if the people were to take seriously the cascade of commitments spewing out of the President's address to both Houses of Parliament on June 9, says B S Raghavan. B S Raghavan suggests five practical propositions through which the Modi government can bring in paradigm changes.
The new ordinance on land acquisition will allow land grabbers to deprive millions, destroy agriculture, horticulture, rivers, forests, tree cover and mangroves to extract minerals as well as ground water, without replenishment at a pace that will not leave anything for the next generation, warns activist Medha Patkar.
I-T lens on current account deposits over Rs 12.5 lakh. All the news and more post demonetisation.
Following is the full text of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi's speech at FICCI's 86th annual general meeting on Saturday:
IIM-B, professor R Vaidyanathan talks to Shobha Warrier about black money, Mudra Bank and Jaitley's Budget.
'Since Pranab Mukherjee is the Custodian of the Constitution, he should present practical ideas to solve the problems he has been so outspokenly highlighting,' feels Sudheendra Kulkarni.
How far did the existing air of permissiveness may have contributed to those like the Indian Mujahideen targeting Tamil Nadu for setting up base, is a question that the state's law and order machinery would have to ask itself, and stall them on the track and for good, says N Sathiya Moorthy
India's five leading wilful defaulters are Winsome Diamonds & Jewellery Ltd and associate Forever Precious Jewellery & Diamonds, Zoom Developers, Kingfisher Airlines, Beta Naphthol and Raza Textiles
Sunil Bharti Mittal, bottom, left, says he is fond of Bill Gates' famous quote: "Success is a lousy teacher." Back from a long foreign business trip, the founder-chairman of Bharti Enterprises talks to Malini Bhupta and Kiran Rathee about the challenges posed by Reliance Jio and how he is determined to come out on top once again. Mittal says , today, Airtel is as ready as Jio in pure-play 4G operations.
'There is no change in the overall story of economic recovery.'
NDA government has shunned populism.
The government has provided a long-term vision.