Rajesh Sharma

New Delhi: Thousands of protesters gathered on Kolkata streets Friday afternoon – after weekly prayers by the Muslim community – to protest the Waqf Amendment Bill passed by Parliament this week. Similar scenes were witnessed in Ahmedabad in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu’s Chennai, where actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam had earlier announced a statewide protest. Visuals of the protests from Ahmedabad suggested a more charged atmosphere; a video shared by ANI showed police trying to forcibly remove elderly demonstrators squatting on the road. From Tamil Nadu, TVK workers gathered across Chennai and major cities, like Coimbatore and Tiruchirappalli, and raised slogans like…

The lower house of India’s parliament has passed a controversial bill that seeks to change how properties worth billions of dollars donated by Indian Muslims over centuries are governed. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 – which brings in dozens of amendments to an existing law – was passed late on Wednesday night after a heated debate that went on for over 12 hours. The government says the bill will introduce transparency into the management of waqf, as the properties are called. But opposition parties and Muslim groups have called it an attempt to weaken the constitutional rights of India’s largest…

Amid a row over stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, who has been in the eye of the storm for his remarks at Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar stated Tuesday that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said that action will be taken as per the law. “Our CM Devendra Fadnavis had responded on this issue on behalf of the government… Our CM has said that action will be taken as per the law,” Mr Pawar told reporters while explaining the stand of the Maharashtra government on the matter. CM Fadnavis has taken a strong stand on the…

In the ongoing row over stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra’s recent remarks, several political figures, including Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan and Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs have come forward to defend Mr Kamra’s freedom of expression and criticise the actions of those who vandalised the Mumbai venue where his show was filmed. Ms Bachchan questioned the limits placed on freedom of expression in the country. “If there is a restriction on speaking, what will become of you? You are anyway in a bad situation. There are restrictions on you. You would be told to speak just on this and nothing else,…

Refuting the opposition BJP’s claim that he suggested amending the Constitution to allow religion-based reservations, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday asserted that he was ready to retire from politics if the accusation was proven true. He accused the BJP of “spreading false claims” due to their inability to tolerate his political stance. DK Shivakumar also mentioned that the Congress high command had inquired about his comments and, after reviewing the video of his statement at a news channel’s programme-where he defended his government’s decision to introduce a 4 per cent reservation for Muslims in public contracts-was…

the State that sends 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha, is at a crossroads. At least four major players have emerged to lay claim to 22-23 per cent of Scheduled Caste votes after the seemingly terminal decline of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). After a drastic drop in the BSP’s vote share in the last three Assembly elections and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections—from over 30 per cent in 2007 to just 9.3 per cent in the 2024 Lok Sabha election—Mayawati’s key support base of Dalits is up for grabs. What has made the BSP’s voters all the more restive…

The Parliament will hold a special screening of the blockbuster Bollywood film Chhaava at the Balayogi Auditorium this Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, along with Union Ministers and Members of Parliament, are expected to attend the event. The film’s lead actor, Vicky Kaushal, who plays Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, is also set to be present alongside producer Dinesh Vijan, director Laxman Utekar and more cast and crew from the film Directed by Laxman Utekar, Chhaava has been a massive success at the box office, crossing the ₹500 crore mark and becoming Vicky Kaushal’s highest-grossing film. The period drama, which also stars…

Under the Letter of Intent, both sides will collaborate on maritime digitalisation and decarbonisation projects, including identifying relevant stakeholders who could contribute to the effort, and work towards formalising the partnership India and Singapore on Tuesday (March 25, 2025) signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) on Green and Digital Shipping Corridor (GDSC) collaboration at the ongoing Singapore Maritime Week (SMW). India and Netherlands also discussed the possibility of utilizing Dutch global expertise to enable cargo movement in low draft rivers of Brahmaputra and Barak. India and Singapore on Tuesday (March 25, 2025) signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) on Green…

Yunus and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of BIMSTEC summit in Bangkok. Chief Adviser of the interim government of Bangladesh Professor Mohammed Yunus desired to travel to India before visiting China but Dhaka’s request for the visit did not elicit a “positive” Indian response, said Shafiqul Alam, Press Secretary to Mr. Yunus Yunus and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of BIMSTEC summit in Bangkok. Chief Adviser of the interim government of Bangladesh Professor Mohammed Yunus desired to travel to India before visiting China but Dhaka’s request for the visit did not elicit a “positive” Indian response, said Shafiqul Alam, Press Secretary to Mr. Yunus,…

The BJP-led Delhi government on Tuesday tabled present its first Budget in the Assembly after more than 26 years. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, who also holds the portfolio of Finance Minister presented the Budget 2025-26 . Chief Minister Gupta said, “Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP is presenting the Delhi Budget after 27 years. Just as Lord Ram returned to Ayodhya after 14 years of exile, we are returning after 27 years.” Attacking the Delhi government for making a Budget without an economic survey, the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Legislative Assembly of the National…

The Delhi Assembly elections of 2025 are in underway, and the results show a very competitive political environment. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is in second place with leads in 25 constituencies, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is leading with 45 seats, according to the most recent figures from the Election Commission of India. In this three-way race, the Indian National Congress is still a major contender despite its diminished influence. On February 5th, voting took place in a single phase in all 70 assembly constituencies. Strong campaigning from all major parties and a high voter participation have been…

In order to give the new vice president time to get acquainted with their new residence, Vice President Kamala Harris did not send out an invitation to the incoming Vice President JD Vance and his family. According to several Republican and Democratic sources cited by CBS News, Kamala Harris did not extend an official invitation to JD Vance for a tour or a sit-down. Usha Vance, JD Vance’s wife, contacted the staff in November to ask for information, including what they would need to childproof the Naval Observatory apartment they would be moving into on January 20. All three of…