We sorted through countless photographs taken around the world to come up with the top photos of 2019. Together these images tell the story of the year -- capturing moments of hope and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy.
Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti warned that there could be a backlash if the force loses patience.
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A country as diverse as India has some of the strangest rituals and traditions. From bizarre ways to cure illnesses to an unusual matrimony to please the rain gods...the things people do here must be seen to be believed.
Pussy Riot protest band members Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova said they were detained on suspicion of theft in the Winter Olympics host city of Sochi on Tuesday, less than two months after their release from prison under an amnesty.
The Qatar women's basketball team forfeited a game at the Asian Games on Wednesday after being refused permission to wear the hijab, saying they were taking a stand against what they say is a discriminatory policy against Muslim women.
Seeking to strengthen Indo-UK economic ties, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday arrived in Britain on his first visit to the country during which he will have a hectic schedule that will start with talks with his British counterpart David Cameron.
You'd wonder what madness seized Rahul that he has decided to play to the BJP's strengths, says Shekhar Gupta.
Bollywood inspired weddings, Dharmendra's cringe-worthy attempt at realism, Sridevi and Aishwarya's painful connection and more in Sukanya Verma's Super Filmi Week.
'The question of survival depends on several factors because this country is divided vertically and horizontally.' 'There will always be demands and ups and downs.'
'On presents, deciding what will pass muster, considering the closeness of the people concerned and the state of the wallet, is one headache,' says Subir Roy.
President Pranab Mukherjee's visit to Israel is a final and critical step in the normalisation of relations between the two countries.
Glimpses of I-Day celebrations across India.
'I bow to the 125 crore citizens of this great nation and promise to stay true to the trust they have bestowed on me.'
'How will we pay for their education now?' asks a grandmother about her two grandchildren who lost their father in Mumbai's liquor tragedy.
.There are other things in the socio-economic arena which becomes more important than becoming an athlete.'
'I went away from the industry because all the people I enjoyed working with, like Manmohan Desai and Prakash Mehra, are no more.' 'They left this world and went away, so I lost interest in my work.'
'What is forgotten but is actually as important for a society's long run success is morality.' 'Morals and trust are the nuts and bolts of an economy.' 'Without those you can get short run success, but not long-run development.'
'Nobody is killing you in Kerala because you are Hindu unlike in North India where Muslims have been killed only because they are Muslims and were carrying some meat.'
Every major awards ceremony in the West this year has seen celebrities talk about diversity, inclusion and politics, sometimes even mentioning US President Donald Trump and his policies by name.
Minister of State for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Ansari believes a national debate on a Uniform Civil Code is a must. 'The need of the hour is to debate this issue at length in order to create a consensus,' Ansari tells Rediff.com, adding, 'Such a debate must take place at the grassroot level. We must understand all the divergent viewpoints before any draft can be prepared.'
'For the last 10 years the Congress made the RSS an idea of intolerance, anti-minority, especially anti-Muslim, and an idea of fascism.' 'That has been demolished now by Pranab Mukherjee.'
While the BJP believes that Muthalik will help the party secure more votes in northern Karnakata, many of the party's supporters in urban areas are uncomfortable with his induction, says Vicky Nanjappa
Claude Arpi gives a fascinating firsthand account of the Dalai Lama's arrival in Tawang in March 1959 and explains why he will once again receive a grand welcome, whether Beijing likes it or not.
'I'm a rascal, I'm going to play a paramahansa?!'
Yakub Memon, who was convicted for helping finance the serial blasts in Mumbai in 1993 in which 257 people were killed, was hanged at the Nagpur Central Jail on Thursday morning shortly before 7am.
'When you go through the ups and downs of life you need someone who says that no matter what happens to you, whether you are successful or not, I am there with you.' 'In the absence of that person and that love, you have a society which is depressed.'
India is observing the sixteenth anniversary of the Kargil War this week.
The death of Muhammad Ali, the former heavyweight champion known as much for his political activism as his boxing brilliance, triggered a worldwide outpouring of affection and admiration for one of the best-known figures of the 20th century.
Brutal and ruthless, with terrible human rights records, these autocrats will welcome Narendra Modi to their realm this coming week.
'The real danger in India right now is that identity politics is being stoked in extremely dangerous ways.' 'The narrative you get about churches in the mainstream Indian media and the narrative you get in the social media is very different.' 'Many Americans today want to appropriate Indian culture. They want yoga, but they say yoga has nothing to do with Hinduism. They want Ayurveda, but they say it's got nothing to do with Hinduism.' 'Hinduism has been failed by political constituencies in India -- seculars and the right-wing.'
'Be responsible, don't use a condom tonight' goes an advertising campaign that is an insult to the intelligence of a community that is by no means ignorant or illiterate, argues Sherna Gandhy.
Unlike in the past, Modi made candid, frank and direct remarks on his hosts by suggesting that the Chinese side is holding back on further improving relations, says Srikanth Kondapalli.
When the bench asked Sibal 'shouldn't we hear the matter', he replied, 'Yes. You shouldn't.'
'My great grandfather Henry Ford would have been very happy with the lifestyle I am leading and the things I believe in.' He's a servant of god. A temple builder. Manu Shah meets the Ford who spreads word about the glories of Krishna.
Expelled BJP ideologue Prof Hari Om speaks to Pervez Majeed.
If Modi and Shah did not project Adityanath as CM, it was out of expediency, says Radhika Ramaseshan.
The India card is now almost obsolete. There are more pressing challenges. People of Pakistan are fed up with years of bad governance, corruption and broken promises of successive governments. However, the politicians and former generals are still provoking sentiments on what is happening on the Line of Control for petty political gains, says Shahzad Raza.
Raja Chari is in training to go to space in 2019. Vaihayasi Pande Daniel presents the story of his journey from Cedar Falls, Iowa, to NASA. A Rediff.com Exclusive!
'Ashok Singhal was an amazing missionary, a monk in civil dress. His personal ego and pride simply evaporated before the national cause.'
