Although conventional political wisdom would decree that the construction of a 'magnificent' Ram temple at his 'birth-place' would bring the BJP a big yield of votes in the prospective elections, its leaders know by now that the mandir must not exist in isolation in its game plan, reports Radhika Ramaseshan.
Amidst Covid scare, hundreds of pilgrims paid obeisance at the famous Ragnya Devi temple in Jammu and Kashmir's Ganderbal district on Friday for the annual Kheer Bhawani mela, praying for peace in the union territory and for the pandemic to end.
During the freedom struggle, Shah had launched revolts in the Awadh region. He made the local mosque, Masjid Sarai, located in Chowk area of Faizabad his headquarters. As he liberated Faizabad and larger part of Awadh region, he used the premises of this mosque to hold meetings with rebel leaders.
As the Lok Sabha debates a no-confidence motion brought against the Narendra Modi government by the opposition, the 28th such motion to be admitted in the Lower House, data compiled by a think tank shows all previous ones have either been defeated or remained inconclusive.
The prime minister took a ride in the metro train between Zero Mile Freedom Park and Khapri stations with some students. Before boarding the train, he visited an exhibition on the project at the Zero Mile station.
Rajya Sabha chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar in his maiden speech in the House on Wednesday criticised the judiciary for scrapping the NJAC bill, terming it as an instance of "severe compromise of parliamentary sovereignty", and said the government's three organs should respect the "Lakshman Rekha".
PM Modi will arrive at 12.30 pm at the Ram Janmbhoomi and take part in various prayers including the main 'bhoomi pujan'. Govind Giriji Maharaj, treasurer of Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, said that the religious ceremonies will begin from 8.30 am in the morning and will continue till 12.30 pm.
Here is Rediff.com's selection of some stories from Thursday that you may not have read in the morning newspaper.
Top India batsman Shikhar Dhawan saw it as a historic day of celebration, while former cricketer Mohammed Kaif reminded the country of its culture of peaceful coexistence as sportspersons reacted to the bhoomi pujan ceremony for a temple of Lord Ram in Ayodhya.
Sidhu and Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi are the main contenders for the chief ministerial candidate. Both have assured Gandhi they will stand by the party's decision.
Brand India's societal divisions and distortions have remained as much relevant in 'liberal' America and Europe as it still is in the structurally stratified Indian society of the 21st century, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The mosque is coming up in the Uttar Pradesh district pursuant to the Supreme Court verdict in the Ram Janmabhoomi case.
The transformation of the Modi-Shah baiting Hardik Patel into saffron poster boy.
Iqbal Hossain was arrested from Cox's Bazar sea beach area on Thursday night and is suspected to be the one who allegedly placed a copy of the Quran at a Durga Puja venue in Cumilla, bdnews24.com reported.
'Attending roza-iftar with a skull cap is not secularism. People also know that this is drama'
The report said that collaborative efforts should be taken to renovate Terri Mandir (Karak), Katas Raj Temples (Chakwal), Prahlad Mandir (Multan) and Hinglaj Mandir (Lasbela).
He also said that infrastructure development in the country in the last eight years has been done with a human touch.
The bench said it is not inclined to show any indulgence in this application.
Since 2014, many of Mohan Bhagwat's speeches have acted as cues for government policy.
At least 70 houses and shops of the Hindus were torched in attacks at Pirganj following Mandal's Facebook post on October 17.
Fighting the coronavirus pandemic is hard, in fact it seems impossible. Doctors, nurses, carers and paramedics around the world are facing an unprecedented workload in overstretched health facilities, and with no end in sight. They are working in stressful and frightening work environments, not just because the virus is little understood, but because in most settings they are under-protected, overworked and themselves vulnerable to infection. The risk to doctors, nurses and others on the front lines has become plain: Italy has seen at least 18 doctors with coronavirus die. Spain reported that more than 3,900 health care workers have become infected. In dire times such as these, people are trying their best to show their appreciation to the frontline workers. Here are some images -- from clapping for them to singing for them.. A 'thank you' in any way goes a long way around.
The 71-year-old heir to the British throne, who himself recovered from the coronavirus at the end of last month, praised Britain's Asian community for the 'vital role' it has been playing during the pandemic as he called for the diaspora to donate generously to help the most vulnerable in their countries of origin.
'Jeymalyatha has suffered more than enough and that she deserves to spend the rest of her time on this Earth away from her abusive trainers, rehabilitating, and with others of her kind.'
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday instructed her home minister to initiate immediate action against those who incited violence using religion as she asked the people not to trust anything on social media without fact-checking.
Would have constructed Ram temple on 5 acre land if given to us: UP Shia Central Waqf Board
People who observed the way his wealth and political clout grew say his fortunes hchanged once the ruling establishment handed him control of sand quarrying in Vellore and Kanchipuram districts after 2011.
Modi said bribery was not possible as the money was transferred directly into accounts of the beneficiaries.
The MEA said at Lumbini, the prime minister will visit the sacred Mayadevi temple to offer prayers.
The composer thanked other artists for the making of the song.
"The Trust chose January 26, 2021 for laying the foundation stone of the Ayodhya mosque as on this day our Constitution came into effect over seven decades ago. Our Constitution is based on pluralism, which is the leitmotif of our mosque project," said Athar Hussain, secretary of the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF).
'While parliament has elected him, the people are demanding that he goes home.'
The chief minister who turned emotional twice recalled how affectionately he was fed 'Rotti' (Jowar Roti) and 'Navane' (foxtail millet) rice every time he came to his constituency as Basavaraj.
The government's ambitious gold deposit scheme can succeed only if depositors are paid a higher interest rate.
Thackeray, who assumed office on November 28, 2019, is visiting Ayodhya weeks after the Centre constituted a trust to oversee construction of a Ram temple at the once disputed site in the town.
Four people have been booked for making objectionable and inflammatory posts on social media sites, officials said on Friday.
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said he had directed the state Advocate General to approach the high court and request it to allow the annual procession. The HC had on Saturday stayed the procession in the light of coronavirus pandemic in Ahmedabad.
The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 provides for maintaining the 'religious character' of holy structures as it existed on August 15, 1947.
As dusk fell, volunteers lit up nearly six lakh diyas lined up on the Saryu riverbank. 'Representatives of the Guinness Book of World Records witnessed this grand festival. With 5,84,372 earthen lamps, the event made the world record,' a state government statement said.
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