Opinion

There was a subtle shift in Modi's argument in Varanasi — though he did not let up on the lurking dangers of terrorism, he linked such acts of carnage and bloodshed to development.

The Congress seems to have taken up the crucial Lok Sabha polls in a half-hearted manner and succumbed to the pressure of its allies — Rashtriya Janata Dal, Rashtriya Loktantrik Samata Party and Vikassheel Insan Party.

The entire stretch between Kashi and Kishanganj has over 20 constituencies, with high concentration of Muslim population varying between 18 per cent and 70 per cent.

MNS chief Raj Thackeray, who was once a great admirer of PM Narendra Modi, has been roped in by NCP chief Sharad Pawar to spearhead an anti-BJP agitation in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections.

Instead of debating issues in the public speeches, the leaders of today call each other names, they try to drag the personal weaknesses of each other out in the public.

The BJP, which proudly proclaims its antipathy to the ‘dynasty culture’ of Congress and insists that it has made a 'chaiwala' as the Prime Minister, is also not immune from the disease notwithstanding its claims of being a "party with a difference".

Pakistan has become a hotbed for proxy war, being led by Saudi Arabia against Iran, but Islamabad ignores this and looks away, perhaps due to its economic dependency on Saudis and their allied partners in the Middle East.

The only clarity that emerges from the faux war rooms of TV studios is that there is no “credible deterrence” against competitive jingoism/liberalism on-air. All that counts is ratings.

Mayawati has learnt from her previous experience of alliance with Congress that the vote of the Congress is non-transferable. Either, it will go to the Congress or it will be divided between various parties.

India has periodic spikes in H1N1 outbreaks every few years, owing to the nature of the human immune system. When the protective effect on the community gained from the previous outbreak reduces over time, a large number of people are prone to infection.

Actress Kareena Kapoor Khan has been proposed by two Congress leaders, Guddu Chouhan and Anas Khan, as a possible candidate for Bhopal parliamentary seat where the grand old party has not tasted success since 1984.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, a dyed-in-the-wool Communist, who has been doggedly fighting communalism and the RSS, has ironically emerged a polarising figure himself after the Supreme Court’s Sabrimala verdict allowing women’s entry into the shrine.

The Delhi government, having blamed one and all for the bad air of the national capital, has now ordered a study to find out the reasons for the cloak of pollution hanging over the national capital.

Medical research and big data suggest that despite pro-Ayurveda evidence in preclinical models, research under AYUSH has largely produced ill-researched and ineffective drugs for humans.

The PM's announcement in the same week as the scheduled meeting of the GST Council, merely shows why this could be a game of one-upmanship, with Congress announcing farm loan waivers in the three states it wrested power.

While Shivraj Singh Chouhan was affable and accessible, Kamal Nath is a far cry from his ‘on-of-the-soil’ image. In Rajasthan, the genial and low-key Ashok Gehlot replaces Vasundhara Raje.