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Veteran by far among vintage Congress leaders, Mani Shankar Aiyar is used to reminisce, dive deep into his cup of life and like a magician with a hat pull something or the other from his cache of memories. The rabbits more often than not landing him in controversies with the butt of his off-the-cuff remarks a rung or two above his own station in the political firmament.

BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh is one of the leading states in food production in India. With fertile soil, diverse climatic conditions, and technological innovations, the state has excelled in the agricultural sector. It is among the top producers of wheat, chickpeas, soybeans, and spices. Additionally, it has a significant presence in organic farming. Due to these achievements, the state has been honoured with the ‘Krishi Karman Award’ seven times. However, despite these promising factors, investment in agriculture-based industries remains slow.

The Indian Army came up with a Request for Information (RFI) for the procurement of new-generation anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) in October last year, which seeks to procure over 20,000 new-generation ATGMs and 1,500 launchers, along with simulators to enhance training capabilities. The ATGMs are intended for strategic deployment along India's borders with Pakistan and China, enhancing the Army's operational capabilities in these critical regions.

A controversy has erupted centring around CPI(M)’s position expressed in the Draft Political Resolution for the ensuing 24th Party Congress that the present Narendra Modi Government is not fascist, but marked by fascist tendencies. This stand has been subjected to criticisms by other Left parties on the ground that this would amount to underestimation of the danger posed by the BJP and the RSS, the latter being an out and out fascist outfit, and this would weaken the fight against the present regime.

Politics in South India, especially in Tamil Nadu, has become hotter on the issue of delimitation of constituencies in India, after the first Census to be completed after 2026. Census process in yet to be started, though it was to be started in early 2025, a process which takes about 18 months to be completed. Registrar General and Census Commissioner’s tenure was extended until August 2026, which was an indication that the Centre had planned the Census process to be completed by that time. Centre plans to complete the delimitation process by 2028 and the Lok Sabha General Election 2029 to be held as per new delimitation order. However, a new twist has come after the all-party meeting in Tamil Nadu on March 5, 2025, when Chief Minister M K Stalin demanded postponement of delimitation for the next 30 years.

PATNA: Though the “Badlo Bihar Mahajutan (Change Bihar Maha-Rally)” organised by the CPI (ML) Liberation on March 2 appeared to be a Bihar centric event, in reality, it carried a pan-India message which will have critical impact on the ideological and philosophical subtleties of the political structure and institution of the country.

Fat-shaming is the new normal in Congress party political circles these days. Congress spokespersons use it with critical remarks regarding the cricketing performances of top Indian cricketing icons. And if you’re Malayali with almost zero cricketing knowledge you’re best at the game.

BHOPAL: Strange things happen in Madhya Pradesh. Latest in this is the open condemnation of the habit of demanding freebies by the people and leaders, readily giving them liberally. This remark of Minister Prahlad Patel drew sharp criticism from Congress. But Patel forgot that his own government carried a campaign to ban appearance of beggars during Global Industrial Summit in Bhopal. Almost every beggar was asked to disappear. Now after the summit beggars are back in the streets.

The upcoming International Women’s Day, 2025 seeks to ‘Accelerate Action’, to amplify and expedite the sedated movement towards gender equality across the globe. While the global movement for gender parity continues to claim and reclaim spaces, the Indian Judiciary struggles to move beyond its predominantly ‘Male, Stale and Pale’ disposition.. The higher judiciary operates under a collegium system, which has become more opaque, prone to effectively brandishing more bias in the name of ‘representation’.

The evidence brought forward by Trinamool Congress (TMC) from Bengal is just another in a series of evidences of electoral roll manipulation that invariably favours BJP and its allies, as it has recently been witnessed in the recent Maharashtra and Delhi Vidhan Sabha election. Opposition political parties have not only alleged Election Commissions complicity in voter lists fraud, but also demanded to fix the responsibility. Since, evidences emerged so far suggests that electoral roll manipulation in state elections is prima facie true, it must be investigated, action to be taken, and take steps to prevent such manipulation in the future.