'This Ram Navami -- the birth anniversary of Lord Ram -- presents the majority community an opportunity to shed its minority complex and offer an olive branch and discrimination- free society to the minority,' suggests Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
With the matter snowballing into a political controversy, both the Janaat Dal-United and the BJP tried to play down the issue.
'Modi has shown political courage by instituting several economic reforms which include demonetisation, ushering in GST, eradication of benami transactions...'
'In India a strong leader with a majority has never yet been defeated by a challenger.' 'He (or she, as with Indira Gandhi in 1977) must defeat himself,' says Shekhar Gupta.
If the Modi government's approach to economic policy making is any indication, expectations of a sudden spurt in economic reforms after the assembly election results appear to be grossly misplaced.
BJP made inroads into the Congress and NCP strongholds, winning 851 seats. Shiv Sena won 514, NCP 638, Congress 643, MNS 16, BSP 9, unrecognised parties 119, local coalitions 384, CPM 12 and Independents 324 seats.
'This prime minister thinks he knows everything.' 'He has to consult, he has to talk and he has to mobilise the best people, but having seen him function, I have no expectations from him.'
The former UP CM also expressed his gratitude towards Mayawati, who was once his party's bitterest rival in UP.
No one expects the government to publicly concede policy mistakes. But it can shed denial; and, stop the point-winning debating style to the formulation of public policy, says Rahul Khullar.
The expectation that Mr Modi would be a major reformer, capable of reinvigorating the Indian economy, were based on a complete misreading of both his actions and his performance as Gujarat chief minister, says Mihir S Sharma.
'Initially, most people willingly stood for hours in queues to withdraw cash because they believed that after 50 days, black money would come out, some big men would be punished and perhaps jailed. Again, nothing happened.' 'Now the talk is that small people have been punished while the rich and the powerful have got away.' 'The RSS is not going out of its way to counter the view. Let the BJP explain.'
'What has taken the wind out of its sails is the government's own expectation management and its inability to strategise on delivery,' says Vikram Johri.
A total of 89 seats -- out of 182 -- spanning the Saurashtra and south Gujarat regions, are up for grabs in the first phase with 977 candidates in the fray, including Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.
Senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar also said that an alliance similar to the one stitched up in Bihar is needed at the national level for the next Lok Sabha elections.
Mersal is the first Vijay film to make Rs 200 crores. Some say credit for the star's most successful film goes to the BJP and its opponents.
It is time he stood up and assured the middle class that they can count on him as one of their own, says Dr Sudhir Bisht.
'The BJP has latched on to the idea of nationalism, but the nationalism they advocate is not nationalism as we have understood it since the time of the freedom movement.' 'This is not secular nationalism, it is Hindu nationalism.' 'It is a form of nationalism that is exclusionary and it tends to conflate national interest with the government.' 'So, if you disagree with the government, for example, on surgical strikes or demonetisation, you are anti-national or holder of black money.'
The winds of nationalism laden with religion will now yield to those of concern over the stalled economy, unemployment, and a general malaise and unhappiness, predicts Shekhar Gupta.
'The current crisis is a result of a clash between a coercive attempt by the government to justify demonetisation and rising digital transactions against the market and the economy fighting the unexpected pressure from atop.'
'Politically, Tamil Nadu has faced several setbacks in the past -- the water sharing issue with Karnataka, on Katchatheevu, on the Tamil fishermen issue...' 'In all these issues, the central and state governments acted in an inefficient and incompetent manner.' 'That must have stayed in the minds of the people.'
India's real risk is not that crony populism would fail, but that it would succeed, consolidating a path that is fundamentally a trap, both in terms of social inequalities and long-term growth, says Michael Walton.
'As demonetisation showed us, the Shah-Modi duo can take big risks.' 'Risking economic damage for political benefit, however, is one thing, stoking old fires in complicated Assam is another', warns Shekhar Gupta.
'If you are in Punjab, Modi is omnipresent as if he is going to be chief minister of Punjab.'
'If he is in Uttarakhand, he presents himself to be the chief minister of Uttarakhand.'
'When he is in UP, he is touted as the chief minister of UP.' 'There is a personality cult which is being built around a person... that he is the panacea of every democratic exercise in India, from panchayat to Parliament.' 'Modi at some point will pay the price for trying to build a very ambitious personality cult.'
'Deeply pained by your allegations against army,' Parrikar wrote in the letter.
The comments came in backdrop of the political crisis in Karnataka after some Congress-Janata Dal-Secular MLAs resigned and the 10 party legislators in Goa joining the BJP.
The complaints were filed by Bharatiya Janata Party leaders for allegedly calling Union Minister Amit Shah a "murder accused" and saying that "all thieves have Modi as surname".
With his strong views on Bharatiya economics, his appointment to the RBI board may well presage interesting times, says Archis Mohan.
The standard line that is used for anyone -- academics, minorities, farmers, dissident industrialists -- who points out that what the government is doing is wrong is being anti-national and separatists, reveals Aakar Patel.
CPI-M calls her bid 'desperate attempt to save herself'.
Yashwant Sinha explains where the Modi government has gone wrong in its handling of the economy.
Modi has been established by this election as the "clear and favourite winner" for the 2019 elections.
'The steady poverty reduction achieved over the last three decades could be largely reversed in this one financial year with hundreds of millions sliding below the red line,' warns Devangshu Datta.
'Now Mr Modi has been offered a more real but different kind of war, which he has likened to the Mahabharat,' notes T N Ninan.
Uncertainties like the bankruptcies bill, rising non-performing accounts at banks and political uncertainty are expected to drive gold demand higher in India.
The government had on Tuesday pegged GDP growth at a higher-than-expected 7.1 per cent for 2016-17 despite the cash blues.
The market last tumbled 10% or more in December 2016 following demonetisation. The decline was followed by a sharp rebound. This time the chances of such a v-shaped recovery are less.
Sops for middle class, poor and farmers on cards.
'The Modi government needs some big private sector trophies to affirm its anti-corruption credentials before the polls.' 'So on whose neck will the sword fall next?' 'To that extent, the outing of the ICICI Bank-Videocon story is cathartic,' says Shekhar Gupta.
Can Gandhi handle the rough and tumble of 24X7 Indian politics with aggressive rivals such as Modi and BJP President Amit Shah to counter?
In a scathing attack on the Opposition for stalling Parliament over demonetisation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday alleged they were trying to "rescue the corrupt" like Pakistan gives cover fire to terrorists to cross border and said the note ban will expose the kala dhan (black money) as well as 'kale mann' (ill-intentions) of many.
