'When compared to many of America's treaty allies in Asia, Modi 3.0 is on a much stronger footing.'
'A less tense US-China relationship would make Beijing less likely to provoke India -- including on the border -- in retaliation for its close defence ties with the US.'
The United States has deported a group of Indian migrants on a military transport aircraft, marking the first such deportation to India as part of President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration. The US embassy in New Delhi confirmed that Washington is tightening immigration laws and removing illegal migrants. The deportation comes as India and the US are finalizing details for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Washington in February. India has indicated its willingness to work with the US on addressing illegal immigration, and has said it will take back all Indians who have overstayed or are in the US without documentation.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh resigned on Sunday, following months of ethnic violence in the state. BJP leaders have begun closed-door meetings to decide the next course of action. The opposition welcomed Singh's resignation, while the BJP hopes the move will help restore peace in the region.
It would be the prime minister's first bilateral visit to the US after Trump became president for a second term.
The real intention of the 'Tariff Man' (as Trump calls himself) may not even be to put the 'Tariff King' (as he describes India) on the mat with a knockout punch but to arm-twist the Indian leadership to agree to some multi-billion dollar mega arms deal, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The United States has approved the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, accused of involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, to India. The decision was announced by President Donald Trump during a joint press conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the White House. India is currently working on the logistics of Rana's surrender and extradition, with several final steps to be completed before he is sent back to India. The joint statement issued by India and the US during Prime Minister Modi's visit reaffirmed their commitment to fighting terrorism and eliminating terrorist safe havens. The leaders also called on Pakistan to bring to justice the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai and Pathankot attacks. Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, is currently lodged at a metropolitan detention center in Los Angeles. He is associated with Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main conspirators of the 26/11 attacks.
'Trump's aggressive stance towards China and preference for military posturing could shift the Quad's balance towards overt militarisation.'
We the people are left in the wind, waiting on the whims of an unengaged president and an oligarch with a nearly bottomless wallet, observes Sree Sreenivasan.
'Trump administration wanted a positive tone at this summit, but there was still some anxiety that there could be some awkward moments -- and there were not.'
The Congress on Wednesday expressed sadness over 'pictures of Indians getting handcuffed and humiliated' while being deported from the United States and recalled that America had to express regret over the treatment meted out to India diplomat Devyani Khobragade in 2013 after the then United Progressive Alliance government retaliated sharply.
United States President Donald Trump has announced a 25 per cent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico, as well as a 10 per cent tariff on goods from China, citing concerns over illegal immigration and the smuggling of drugs, including fentanyl.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order withdrawing the US from the UN Human Rights Council and prohibiting any future funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. Trump also directed the US to review its participation in UNESCO, citing concerns about anti-Semitism and anti-Israel sentiment within the organizations. The executive order argues that the UNHRC, UNESCO, and UNRWA have drifted from their missions and act contrary to US interests. Trump previously halted funds for UNRWA during his first term, and President Joe Biden put a block on US funds for UNRWA in January 2024 over allegations that staff for the agency participated in Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack against Israel.
The Hindu Munnani staged a protest in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, against a group of people consuming non-vegetarian food on the sacred Thiruparankundram hill. The protest, which was initially banned, was allowed by the Madras High Court with some restrictions. Several thousands of devotees, Hindu Munnani functionaries, and BJP members participated in the protest, raising slogans hailing Murugan (Lord Subrahmanya). Hindu Munnani state president Kadeshwara Subramaniam and scores of activists were arrested.
'It was a disaster on his part to give an oral remark which allowed ascertainment of the religious character of places of worship.' 'This disrupted the social harmony of the country.'
India is working with the US on an "early" visit to Washington by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to further deepen the comprehensive global strategic partnership between the two countries, the External Affairs Ministry said on Friday. Following a phone conversation with Modi this week, US President Donald Trump said the Indian prime minister "is going to be coming to the White House, over next month, probably February". It would be Modi's first bilateral visit to Washington after Trump became US president for a second term. While confirming discussions between India and the US on the proposed visit, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal did not mention any possible time-line for the trip. In their phone conversation on January 27, Modi and Trump vowed to work towards a "trusted" partnership with a focus on boosting India-US cooperation in areas of trade, energy and defence. "PM Modi and President Trump had a telephone conversation recently. The two sides are working on an early visit of the PM to the US to further deepen India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership," Jaiswal said at his weekly media briefing while replying to a question. "Specific dates for the visit would be announced at the appropriate time," he said. It is learnt that both sides were initially looking at the window between February 12-14 for Modi's visit but there has been no finality on it yet. The prime minister is set to travel to Paris to attend the Artificial Intelligence Action summit on February 10 and 11. Though the US president has also been invited to the summit, his participation is not yet confirmed.
The President's office has condemned comments made by Congress leaders regarding President Droupadi Murmu's address to Parliament, stating that they hurt the dignity of the high office. The statement clarified that the President was not tired during her speech and that the comments were in "poor taste" and "unacceptable." The Congress leaders had reportedly discussed the speech, with Sonia Gandhi commenting on the President's alleged tiredness. The statement suggested that the leaders may have misunderstood the President's speech due to their unfamiliarity with Indian languages.
The US is currently Earth's most powerful country and a certain latitude of understanding -- a world view -- is popularly expected from its leadership. From a country identified with freedom, constitution, debate, democracy and the likes of Abraham Lincoln even as it had the most powerful military around, the US, following Trump's actions, seemed repositioned as militarily powerful with other qualities secondary, observes Shyam G Menon.
Zakia Jafri, the wife of former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri who was killed in the 2002 Gujarat riots, died on Saturday in Ahmedabad at the age of 86. Ehsan Jafri was among 69 persons who were killed inside Gulbarg Society, a Muslim neighbourhood in Ahmedabad, on February 28, 2002, a day after coaches of the Sabarmati Express train were burnt in Godhra, resulting in the deaths of 59 'karsevaks' returning from Ayodhya. The incident triggered horrific rioting across the state. Zakia Jafri hit the national headlines as she waged a legal battle all the way to the Supreme Court in a bid to hold top political leaders accountable for the large conspiracy for the riots post the Godhra train burning episode. Her son Tanveer Jafri said that his mother was visiting his sister's house in Ahmedabad when she complained of feeling uneasy. The doctor who was called in declared her dead at around 11:30 am. Social activist Teesta Setalvad, who was co-complainant in Jafri's protest petition in the Supreme Court, posted on X that Zakia Jafri was a compassionate leader of the human rights community.
DOGE Leader Elon Musk said, "My guess is that a lot of that money ended up in the pockets Hamas, not actually condoms.
A 36-year-old man diagnosed with Guillain-Barr Syndrome (GBS), a rare nerve disorder, died in a civic-run hospital in Pune, taking the number of suspected GBS fatalities to three in Maharashtra. The patient, a driver with a cab service, was admitted to the Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital (YCMH) in Pimpri Chinchwad on January 21. An expert committee at YCMH concluded that the cause of death was trauma to the respiratory system due to pneumonia, leading to severe difficulty in breathing. The committee also noted that the patient had been diagnosed with GBS, with a nerve conduction test done on January 22. The immediate cause of death was identified as severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). With the latest loss of life, the number of suspected GBS deaths in Maharashtra has reached three. According to health officials, the suspected cases of the rare nerve disorder have risen to 130 in the state. Most of the cases in the state are from Pune and surrounding areas, and these infections, including the latest case, are likely linked to contaminated water sources. Campylobacter jejuni, a bacteria found in contaminated food and water, is believed to be the reason for the outbreak.
The move comes as the Trump administration is taking measures to probe prosecutors who oversaw the criminal cases against January 6 defendants after Trump announced that he would seek retribution as a key pledge of his campaign.
Many unauthorised migrants originate from Punjab and Gujarat, states known for high migration aspirations rather than political instability.
'By his words, actions, and body language during their joint press appearance wanted to convey his personal respect and, more broadly, his desire to work closely with India.'
US President Donald Trump has called on Jordan and Egypt to take in more Palestinian refugees from Gaza, advocating for a "clean out" of the area ravaged by the Israel-Hamas war. Trump spoke with King Abdullah II of Jordan on this matter and plans to discuss it with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. He suggested housing for the refugees at a different location, potentially temporary or long-term, to enable a fresh start for the region. Trump also lifted the hold on sending 2,000-pound bombs to Israel, a decision made by the previous Biden administration.
'He needs to see results while he is in office.'
Earlier, Trump has already talked about slapping "100 per cent tariffs" on the BRICS grouping, a bloc that includes India as well.
A Republican lawmaker has introduced a House Joint Resolution to amend the US Constitution to allow a president to be elected for up to three terms. The move is aimed at facilitating a third term for President Donald Trump. Congressman Andy Ogles, who introduced the resolution, stated that the amendment would ensure the continuation of Trump's "bold leadership" and provide him with the resources to "correct the disastrous course" set by the Biden administration. He highlighted Trump's decisive leadership and his ability to "restore America to greatness." Ogles also praised Trump's actions in tackling the crisis at the southern border, lifting oil and gas drilling restrictions, ending birthright citizenship for children born to illegal aliens, and withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization.
Law enforcement officials from the US Department of Homeland Security have started visiting gurdwaras in New York and New Jersey to check for the presence of illegal immigrants, drawing a sharp reaction from some Sikh organisations which see such actions as a threat to the sanctity of their faith. The Trump administration has rescinded the Biden administration's guidelines that protected places of worship from immigration enforcement actions, leading to concerns that gurdwaras are being targeted. Sikh organisations argue that gurdwaras are not just places of worship but also vital community centres and that surveillance and raids by armed law enforcement would burden religious exercise and limit the ability of Sikhs to gather and associate with one another.
US President Donald Trump has imposed tariffs and a travel ban on Colombia after the South American nation refused to accept two American military planes deporting undocumented Colombians. The move comes after President Trump announced mass deportations of illegal immigrants and warned countries of consequences if they refuse to accept them. Colombian President Gustavo Petro, in a post on X, said that the US cannot treat Colombian migrants as criminals and denied the entry of American planes carrying Colombian migrants into Colombian territory. Trump responded by imposing a 25% tariff on all goods coming into the US, a travel ban and immediate visa revocations on Colombian government officials, and visa sanctions on all party members, family members and supporters of the Colombian government. The US also announced enhanced customs and border protection inspections of all Colombian nationals and cargo on national security grounds. In retaliation, Colombia announced a 25% import tariff on American products.
The Budget announcement of zero tax for earnings upto Rs 12 lakh per annum and the rejig of tax slabs across the board should prompt more than 90 per cent of individual taxpayers to embrace the new tax regime as compared to the about 75 per cent as of now, CBDT Chairman Ravi Agrawal said. Agrawal also highlighted the government's focus on "non-intrusive" tax administration through enhanced use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and simplified tax processes for common taxpayers. He emphasized the benefits of the new tax regime (NTR), which offers simple calculations and allows taxpayers to file their ITR without professional help. The CBDT chief stated that the Budget provisions related to income tax payment benefit all income earners, not just those earning Rs 12 lakh per annum, creating a positive sentiment in the economy and propelling growth. The department is also harnessing technology, including AI and data analytics, to widen and deepen the tax base, resulting in increased compliance and tax revenue. Agrawal further highlighted the positive impact of data availability and simplified tax processes on compliance rates, citing examples of taxpayers filing revised returns and paying taxes after being prompted by the department's data analysis.
The Guantanamo Bay facility, which has so far been used to hold terrorists, will now also house illegal immigrants with criminal records.
'If hundreds of VIPs are allowed to roam with passes and roads blocked for their movement, then that will cause trouble for the public and disrupt the Mela.'
The stage may be set for a recalibrated US-Iran relationship, suggests Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
A remote village in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district has been declared a containment zone after 17 people from three families died under suspicious circumstances. Prohibitory orders have been imposed on all public and private gatherings in the area. The village has been divided into three containment zones with varying levels of restrictions. The incident follows a visit by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to the village on Tuesday.
During his inauguration on Monday, President Trump declared a national emergency at the US southern border.
Billionaire Gautam Adani's younger son Jeet will wed next month in a simple and traditional ceremony, without any pomp and show and celebrity stars. Adani, on Mahakumbh pilgrimage with his family, scorched speculations of a star-studded wedding of his son Jeet with Diva Shah, daughter of Surat diamond merchant Jaimin Shah. "It will be a very simple, traditional marriage... just like common people," he told reporters in Prayagraj.
Several US companies, including McDonald's, Walmart and Facebook parent company Meta, have ended or scaled back their DEI programmes since Trump was elected in November last.
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order extending the operations of TikTok, the Chinese-controlled video-sharing platform, by 75 days. Trump intends to pursue a resolution that protects national security while preserving the platform used by 170 million Americans. The order instructs the attorney general to refrain from enforcing a law that would have forced TikTok's parent company ByteDance to divest from the app or face a ban from US app stores. Trump cited the national security concerns posed by TikTok and the need to review sensitive intelligence related to these concerns. He also emphasized the importance of finding a resolution that protects national security without abruptly shutting down the platform.
The China threat continues to resonate in the strategic partnership between India and the USA, points out Rup Narayan Das.
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