The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to consider a plea of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi seeking the implementation of the 1991 places of worship law, which asks to maintain the religious character of a place as it existed on August 15, 1947.
Can a culture survive as a way of life, even as the language and writing at its core, alter with time? Can we be rational and Malayalee or do we have to necessarily be religious and proudly cultural to be Malayalee? asks Shyam G Menon.
'Iranians admire Indian cinema and often mention Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan when you meet them.'
The Gujarat high court on Thursday put a stay on the operation of some sections related to interfaith marriages of the state's new anti-conversion law.
'When Hindus converted through inducements there was no hue and cry, but when reconversions took place, everyone cried foul. If re-conversions are bad, so are conversions.' 'Our government is not getting involved either in conversions or re-conversions. The BJP has nothing to do with it.' Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu in a candid interview.
He further said that people were converted from Hindus to Muslims and appealed Muslims to reconsider whoever considers Arabs as ideal.
The Madhya Pradesh cabinet on Tuesday gave nod to an ordinance on the bill against religious conversion through fraudulent means, including those for the sake of marriage, that stipulates a jail term of up to 10 years for violators.
Former AAP minister Rajendra Pal Gautam was questioned for three hours on Tuesday in connection with a complaint received against his presence at a religious conversion event where Hindu deities were allegedly denounced, officials said.
A US federal government commission has flagged the alleged worsening of religious freedom in India and called for it to be designated as a "Country of Particular Concern".
The Committee of Management, Shahi Jama Masjid, moved the high court challenging the suit and the Sambhal court order which directed the survey through an advocate commissioner.
India's hospitality sector is rolling out the red carpet for investors. A flurry of upcoming IPOs, or initial public offerings, the entry of new players, and ambitious expansion plans by Indian and global hotel brands are ushering in what could be the industry's most formalised era yet. Leading the charge are real estate titans, who are turning their hotel arms into global hospitality chains.
"Both the women have claimed themselves to be adults on the basis of official documents and married youths of other community on their own accord. These incidents have nothing to do with love jihad," Bareilly's Senior Superintendent of Police Rohit Singh Sajvan said on Saturday.
Commencing hearing on pleas challenging the constitutionality of the Places of Worship Act, 1991, the Supreme Court asked the Centre to reply to cross-pleas against or seeking implementation of statute.
From the standoff with China to the government's response to the farmers' protest, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh holds a freewheeling talk.
The aim is to ensure that such crimes are checked and effective action is taken against the culprits.
The ruling Congress is seeking to retain power in Chhattisgarh by banking on the welfare schemes of the Bhupesh Baghel government, while the Bharatiya Janata Party is hoping to corner it on the issues of alleged corruption, religious conversions and unfulfilled poll promises.
Trump couldn't care less anymore about the Israeli demand for Iran's 'de-nuclearisation' and 'de-militarisation.' Trump pins hopes on a grand bargain with Iran as a partner in America First, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The Mathura Shahi Masjid Eidgah Committee has approached the Supreme Court, requesting the court to prevent the central government from filing a response to a petition challenging the Places of Worship Act's constitutional validity. The committee accuses the BJP-led government of intentionally delaying its response. The court had previously issued a notice to the government in March 2021, but the government has yet to submit its reply despite numerous opportunities. The committee argues that the government's delay is intended to obstruct those opposing the challenge to the Places of Worship Act from filing their own responses. The petition also states that the pleas challenging the law's validity are scheduled for hearing on February 17, and closing the government's right to respond would serve justice. The Supreme Court previously issued a ruling in December 2022 that stopped courts from entertaining new lawsuits or issuing interim or final orders regarding the reclaiming of religious places, particularly mosques and dargahs. The ruling halted proceedings in 18 lawsuits filed by Hindu groups seeking surveys to confirm the original religious character of 10 mosques, including the Gyanvapi Masjid in Varanasi, the Shahi Idgah Masjid in Mathura, and the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal. This decision was made in response to six petitions, including one filed by lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay, challenging various provisions of the Places of Worship Act. The 1991 law prohibits the conversion of places of worship and guarantees the preservation of their existing religious character as it stood on August 15, 1947. Notably, the dispute regarding the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid in Ayodhya was excluded from this law. There are also several cross-petitions advocating for a strict enforcement of the 1991 law to uphold communal harmony and maintain the current status of mosques that Hindu groups seek to reclaim, claiming they were temples before being destroyed by invaders.
Punishment under the new law is a jail term from one and five years, and a fine of Rs 15,000.
While acknowledging that they needed strong allies for a chance in the assembly polls, AIADMK cadres seemingly prefer actor-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam to the BJP, owing to the latter's 'communal agenda' and consequent hardline Hindutva image, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Uttarakhand assembly on Wednesday passed a stricter anti-conversion Bill making unlawful conversion a cognisable and non-bailable offence punishable with imprisonment for a term of at least three to a maximum of 10 years.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Telangana president and MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar on Wednesday said his party, when it comes to power in the state, would abolish minority reservations and provide the benefit to Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and others.
The escalating military tension between the two nations, a deluge of information, and the inability to sift through fake and real news can significantly affect the psychological well-being of individuals, said mental health experts.
A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde refused, however, to stay the controversial provisions of the laws and issued notices to both state governments on two different petitions.
The Haryana committee will also study laws enacted by other states on the issue, Vij said.
Two more people have been arrested in connection with the alleged rape and forced religious conversion of a young woman in Meerut taking to five the total number of arrests in the incident even as the situation in the Uttar Pradesh district is tense but under control.
Rishi Ajay Das, the founder of Kinnar Akhada, has expelled both Mamta Kulkarni and Acharya Mahamandaleshwar Lakshmi Narayan Tripathi from the Akhada.
Even as the BJP government in Karnataka prepares to table the anti-conversion Bill during the ongoing winter session of legislature, state's energy minister V Sunil Kumar on Monday said that a law prohibiting 'love jihad' will also be introduced in the days to come.
It is unusual in democratic countries two decades into the 21st century for laws to become regressive instead of progressive. But that is clearly what is happening in India today and more of this is ahead, asserts Aakar Patel.
The case involving an inter-faith couple was filed in Vadodara under the amended Gujarat Religious Freedom Act and the interim relief granted by the court to the four, including the main accused, will be pending the disposal of a petition filed by them seeking quashing of the FIR against them.
'It is important India to stay focussed on its primary national objectives: Combating terrorism; not losing sight of other security and strategic concerns (on the Sino-Indian front for instance); ensuring a strong economy and registering growth which includes improving the lot of common people; and finally making certain that the social fabric remains intact and harmony among people is not jeopardised, at least any further,' asserts Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
'...it was an awkward situation for both of us. I was in a hurry that day and really forgot. I want to wish good luck to both of you,'
BJP and RSS leaders are once again pushing to remove the words 'secular' and 'socialist' from the Constitution's Preamble, showing a deeper effort to change India's identity from a diverse, multi-religious republic to a Hindu-first nation, even though they don't have the numbers in Parliament to officially change the Constitution, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'I am not an aspiration-oriented politician.' 'This is the time to redefine politics.' 'Politics of power is not real politics.'
The move comes days after Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's directive for restricting the volume of loudspeakers at religious places in order to avoid trouble to people living nearby.
'We are Indians irrespective whether we are Punjabi, Gujarati, Bengali, Malayali or Tamilian.' 'I am the best example of this integration.'
Amid opposition Congress's protest and walkout, the Karnataka legislative assembly on Wednesday okayed the anti-conversion bill, passed by the legislative council last week with minor amendments, that seeks to replace the ordinance that was in place to give effect to the bill.
'Those were not kind days for a woman with a break-up. The world has changed; today, nobody cares.'
An official said the SIT will examine if the money was used on any illegal activities, like terrorism or forcible religious conversion.
The Lok Sabha passed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, with the ruling NDA defending it as beneficial for minorities while the opposition called it "anti-Muslim". All amendments moved by the opposition were rejected and the bill was passed with 288 votes in favor and 232 against. Union Minorities Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju asserted that India is the safest place in the world for minorities, refuting claims of their insecurity.
