Calling the 18th century legendary king Tipu Sultan "communal", BJP today expressed strong reservations about the state government's move to celebrate his birth anniversary as "Tipu Jayanti".

"State government has decided to celebrate Tipu Jayanti. Bharatiya Janata Party strongly criticises this move," Karnataka BJP President Prahlad Joshi said.

Calling Tipu Sultan "communal", he said "We all know how he forced religious conversion on people... he had written letters to Islamic rulers of Turkey and Afghanistan to attack India, so as to make this country an Islamic country. All these things are recorded in the history."

"If government is so interested in projecting its religious tolerance, it should celebrate anniversaries of people like Shishunala Sharif (a saint poet and philosopher who lived between 1819-1889), instead of celebrating birthdays of controversial persons," he said.

On December 22, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had said that the government has decided to celebrate "Tipu Jayanti" and the date would be decided shortly.

Readers responded passionately, and in large numbers, to my postlast week about The Times's decision not to publish the now-famous Charlie Hebdo cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.

(In fact, I've never had more comments on a post or column.)A vast majority of readers were critical of The Times's decision, feeling strongly that both because of news value and in order to reinforce free speech and show solidarity with a publication under attack, The Times should have published them.

Read the column on the NYT

A late directive by the Narendra Modi government to showcase "naari shakti' (women's empowerment) for chief guest Barack Obama at the Republic Day parade has the armed forces in a tizzy: they are scouting their small cadre of lady officers to find enough who are fit for the march on Rajpath. Read

Trinamool Congress today ruled out removing party General Secretary Mukul Roy from the post in the wake of CBI asking him to appear before it in connection with the Saradha scam and accused BJP for using the investigating agency as its political tool against the party.

Questions are being raised about the conduct of CBI, TMC Secretary-general and state Education Minister Partha Chatterjee said.

The party, he said, has entrusted Upen Biswas, former Additional Director of CBI and now a minister in Mamata Banerjee government, to advise the party regarding CBI.

Even as Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar is trying to put a lid on a controversy triggered after the remarks made by his deputy on 'normalising' LGBT community, opposition NCP today demanded resignation of the "ignorant" Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Ramesh Tawadkar.

"Chief Minister should sack the ignorant minister. The future of youths in the state is at stake in the hands of the current youth affairs and sports minister," state unit NCP spokesman Trojano D'Mello said.

Parsekar, while seeking to defuse the controversy, had yesterday said the minister must be "ignorant" about the issue and that the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community's sexual preferences were "natural".

Tawadkar kicked up a storm on Monday by stating that the BJP government has decided to set up a centre to treat the LGBT community to make them "normal".

TMC MP Prasun Banerjee slaps traffic policeman on being stopped for rule violation in Kolkata

Charlie Hebdo thanked 'millions' of supporters 'who are really on our side, who sincerely and deeply "are Charlie",' an invocation of the 'I am Charlie' slogan that went viral the world over after murderers killed 17 people in Paris last week. Read

And within minutes, the sessions court grants him bail. He will not be disqualified.  

BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi taken into judicial custody. Naqvi has been held for 2009 poll code violation. He has been sentenced to a one-year jail term. 

A Rampur court on Wednesday convicted Union minister of state for minority affairs for breaching prohibitory orders during the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.

Just in: Election Commissioner HS Brahma to be India's next chief election commissioner. He takes over from CEC VS Sampath.

'Fuselage from crashed AirAsia plane located in Java Sea - Singapore defence minister says.  Singapore Navy vessel MV Swift Rescue has located the main wreckage of the downed aeroplane, with remotely-taken images showing part of the wing as well as the words on the fuselage, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen says.

Barkha Dutt 'tweets: @Swamy39 "If @Swamy39 has so many details on who killed Sunanda, why is he not briefing the police instead of the public"

Subramanian Swamy retorts: My information is from the police. Since you object to my basking in the publicity please cancel my appearance on your show today. 

Madhu Kishwar '@madhukishwar tweers: If @shaziailmi fielded agnst Kejriwal all he has to do is play Shazia's tv vituperative against modi in public meetings to show doublefacedness.

And Arvind Kejriwal goes at his former party worker, all guns firing, retweeting Ilmi's rant against the BJP, titled: Hypocrisy thy name is BJP.  

A casual Pongal greeting by AIADMK chief J Jayalalitha to her partyworkers has raised the spirits of the party.

Jaya's first signed press statement was issued on Wednesday, significant for AIADMK leaders and cadres, since she has chosen to remain silent on Diwali, Krishna Jayanti, Christmas, Eid, and the New Year.

According to the stars, Thai, which falls around mid-January in the Tamil calendar, is when Jaya will get relief in the case. This explains why she chose to issue to greet Tamilians, party cadres on Pongal.

After her studied silence, party leaders have reason to cheer.

Army jawans and policemen clash in Nashik, Maharashtra. Around 20 Army jawans reportedly attacked and vandalised a police station in Nashik. Many policemen, including a woman officer, have been injured. According to sources, the jawans were angry over police action against an Army officer.

Army chief General Dalbir Singh today admitted that his force will have to do with Rs 4,500 crore less for modernisation this year even as he said he had identified seven major projects as "critical requirements".

The Telegraph had reported on Tuesday that the government had ordered that the capital outlay for the army, navy and the air force be slashed by Rs 13,000 crore in the current fiscal. Read more

Yemen's top al-Qaida leader claims responsibility for attack on Paris paper Charlie Hebdo in video message. Nasr al-Ansi, a top commander of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP as the branch is known, appeared in an 11-minute Internet video posted Wednesday, saying that the massacre at Charlie Hebdo was in "vengeance for the prophet." The paper had published cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, which is considered an insult in Islam.

BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday claimed that a person named 'Katy', whose name surfaced during arguments between Shashi Tharoor and Sunanda Pushkar, overheard by couple's domestic help Narayan Singh, is originally Kathy which is short for Katherine. Swamy revealed the information today on his official Twitter account.

According to reports, a mystery woman named 'Katy' might be questioned by the Delhi Police in Sunanda death case after reports emerged that the person's name was quite often mentioned during frequent fights between Tharoor and Sunanda.

During interrogation Narayan Singh had told the Delhi police that the couple had a fight a day before Pushkar was found dead.

Reports also say that the domestic help has revealed to the police that he often heard the name 'Katy' during Tharoor-Sunanda verbal duels. Swamy's revelation comes a day after Tharoor said that the BJP leader should reveal the identity of the 'killer' to the police. -- Zee News

Former Delhi CM Shiela Dikshit was taken to task for suo-moto lending support to AAP in Delhi the Assembly polls if it fell short of numbers.

It is learnt that an angry Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi dispatched senior party leader B K Hariprasad to enquire why she made such a statement. When Dikshit tried to ward it off saying TV channels came all of a sudden and it was a slip of tongue, Hariprasad told her point blank that the five  TV channels were invited by her for lunch and she later gave a detailed byte which by no stretch of imagination could be "off-the-cuff'. Sheila looked suitably chastised.

The Gandhis do not want more trouble before the Delhi polls, hence no formal notice was issued to her.

After saying that Congress could support AAP in case of a hung verdict in the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls, the former chief minister found herself on a sticky wicket as her party ruled out any possibility of its backing the Arvind Kejriwal-led outfit.

"How does the question of supporting AAP arise? (If that was the situation) then there was no need for elections. It must be her personal view," Congress spokesperson Shobha Oza had said.

Mike Marqusee, campaigner for social justice and prolific author of books and journalism died from multiple myeloma, a bone marrow cancer. Read

AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal reacts to rumors that former protege Shazia Ilmi would be contesting the Delhi seat against him. Kejriwal says Ilmi is free to contest from wherever she likes. 

Just in: US president Barack Obama accompanied by his wife Michelle, will be in India between January 25 and 27. During his visit he will attend a CEO summit and also on the cards is a visit to Agra and the Taj Mahal. This is Obama's second visit to India, but during his first visit in 2010, he did not visit the Taj Mahal.

Alright now, there are five Modi ministers who have been sidelined not only in the BJP, but also in the government and include two women ministers. Two of the five MPs are from the Rajya Sabha and three are from the Lok Sabha. And another clue -- two have been elected to the Lok Sabha from Uttar Pradesh. 

Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi Congress on Tuesday, at the CWC meeting, compared the first six months of the regime of NDA II with NDA I, thereby establishing the difference between the Vajpayee government and the Modi government. Sonia slammed the Modi government saying it believed in ordinance raj.

But two senior Congress party members inside the CWC sniggered quietly and much like schoolboys sent chits to one another saying, "What about differences between UPA I and UPA II? First half was ridden with corruption and ineffective paralysis begun with UPAII. "

Another Congress leader who was watching this two raised their eyebrows and was later seen squealing to his hangers-on. 

Former Aam Aadmi Party leader Shazia Ilmi is likely to join the BJP tomorrow, say media reports and in fact may also get a ticket to fight former mentor Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi.

President Pranab Mukherjee has been a chain smoker -- he prefers the pipe  -- recalls one occasion where he broke the rules in the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Pranab Mukherjee allowed Bangladesh president Abdul Hamid to smoke inside Rashtrapati Bhavan which is a No Smoking Zone (NSZ). Each suite of the President's home has a NSZ notification.

But when Pranab Mukherjee visited Bangladesh, he quit smoking for a while, even as Hamid was left drawing on his cigarette.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar says it was his recommendation that the DRDO chief's post should be held by a young person and not by someone who is on contract. The Modi government sacked DRDO chief and missile scientist Avinash Chander, who is also the scientific advisor to the defence minister, almost 16 months before his tenure approved by the previous UPA regime was to end.

Former Aam Aadmi Party leader Shazia Ilmi has been hugely criticised for campaigning for the BJP today. Madhu Kishwar tweets: "As a friend,I had repeatedly advised @shaziailmi to mind her language in critiquing BJP. I knew she would have to eat humble pie."

Ilmin began campaign for the BJP in the Delhi Assembly elections to be held on February 7. The former AAP leader quit the party last year, accusing chief Arvind Kejriwal of cultivating cronies around him.

But it was when she recently joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, that speculations were raised of her joining the saffron party.

Ilmi had contested the 2013 Delhi Assembly elections from the RK Puram constituency which she lost to BJP's Anil Sharma by a thin margin of 326 votes. She also lost the 2014 general elections from Ghaziabad against former Army chief General VK Singh.

There are now rumours, that Ilmi will join the BJP tomorrow. The BJP has not declared its candidates for the Delhi elections yet and there is speculation that she may be fielded against former mentor Arvind Kejriwal.

Delhi archbishop says the attacks on churches are orchestrated.

A church in West Delhi's Vikaspuri was allegedly vandalised by two men in the early hours of Wednesday, reports The Hindu.

The church authorities claim that the attack was carried out to stoke communal tension.

The police, however, said that the motive was being probed.

The entire incident has been captured on CCTV cameras installed in the vicinity of the church.

Around 6. 30 am when the priest arrived at the church, he found the glass cabinet mounted on the outside wall broken and the statue of Mother Mary lying on the ground.

A call was subsequently made to the police control room. Senior police officers including the Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) reached the spot, police said. Video footage, it is learnt, shows two men (in the age group of 40) on a motorcycle vandalising the church in two phases: first by breaking the glass cabinet and returning shortly after to push the statue causing a fall, police said.

Also read:Delhi church gutted in fire, foul play suspected

Parents block Tehreek-e-Insaaf chief Imran Khan from entering army school in Peshawar where 142 kids were killed.

A day after Avinash Chander was removed as chief of the top defence research organisation, Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh today demanded that the government explain its decision.

"Avinash Chander DRDO Chief dismissed 15 months before his term expired. Would Government please explain?," he tweeted.

The Appointments Committee of Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had "approved the termination" of the contract of Avinash Chander with effect from January 31.

Chander, who was Secretary, Defence Research and Development cum Director General, DRDO and Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister, retired on November 30 last on attaining 64 years of age and was given a contract for 18 months till May 31 next year.

The removal of Chander after being given a contract had raised questions over the government action.

Former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit today praised her Congress party colleague Ajay Maken but also responded to what many saw as his subtle dig at her."I say it myself, it is the end of Sheila's era," she said.Maken, who has been tasked with leading the Congress campaign for the February 7 Delhi polls, had said on Tuesday, "Every person has an era of glory which has to come to an end one day."

Dikshit led the party's campaign during the 2003, 2008 and 2013 polls. The last election saw her ignominious exit after the party was reduced to a distant third, after the BJP and the Aam Aadmi Party.

Maken, who was made Transport and Power Minister in 2001 in the Dikshit cabinet, is credited with the privatisation of the electricity distribution, as well as strengthening transport infrastructure in Delhi.

As the New Year dawns, it has become increasingly clear that India's new government faces a dilemma entirely of its own making '" one that its predecessor never had to confront.

Narendra Modi's election as Prime Minister in May 2014 was initially hailed worldwide as marking the advent of a more business-friendly government in the world's largest democracy.

Encouraged by Modi's pro-market sound bites -- he vowed to "replace red tape with a red carpet,' declared that the government has "no business" in business, and campaigned on the slogan 'Make in India' -- investors rushed to praise him as a new messiah of development. 

Read Congress MP Shashi Tharoor's column here

Former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf indicted by ATC Quetta in Akbar Bugti Murder Case.

Egypt's Grand Mufti warned the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo on Tuesday against publishing a new caricature of the Prophet Mohammad, saying it was a racist act that would incite hatred and upset Muslims around the world.

Charlie Hebdo published a cover on Wednesday showing a caricature of the Prophet in its first edition since Islamist gunmen attacked the weekly's offices in Paris last Wednesday, killing 12 people.

"This edition will cause a new wave of hatred in French and Western society in general and what the magazine is doing does not serve coexistence or a dialog between civilisations," the office of Grand Mufti Shawqi Allam, one of the region's most influential Muslim clerics, said in a statement.

"This is an unwarranted provocation against the feelings of ... Muslims around the world."

A total of 17 people were killed in three days of violence that began when the gunmen opened fire at Charlie Hebdo in revenge for its past publication of satirical images of the Prophet. With demand surging for this week's edition, Charlie Hebdo planned to print up to 3 million copies, dwarfing its usual run of 60,000.

Dr Rehman rejected the allegations made by Reham and said he has never hit anyone, and have never been involved in any kind of domestic violence in any shape or form.

"I always looked after my children and wife very well. My ex-wife had every kind of liberty. "I am surprised that these allegations were made,' he added.

The former husband of Reham, who still lives in Britain, further said, "domestic violence is a serious offence'."I work in a very senior position in the NHS and if I was convicted or charged or found involved in domestic violence, in any sense, I wouldn't have been able to practice,' he clarified

What was without doubt a vote for the BJP and its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi last year in the Lok Sabha election is unlikely to be repeated this year in the Assembly election. Read

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan's new wife, Reham Khan, 41, says she has been a victim of domestic violence while she was married to 54-year-old psychiatrist Dr Ijaz Rehman with whom she had three children, Daily Mail reports.

In a simple yet most-talked about ceremony, Imran tied the knot with Reham at Bani Gala on January 8.

Reham, who hosts a current affair show on Dawn News, opened up about her turbulent previous marriage in a TV interview recently.

"Thanks to Allah, I am not scarred by my experience. Domestic violence is a big issue and no attention is paid to it in Pakistan. [It] happens in many shapes and forms,' Reham said.

"I have never spoken about my personal experience of domestic violence because I was in [the] media and I felt it would be unfair to expose the other party,' she added.

She also said that she was reluctant to accept Imran's proposal because of what took place during her previous marriage, which ended in 2006 after 15 years.

Former AAP leader Shazia Ilmi to campaign for BJP in the Delhi election.

On Tuesday, former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah wrote to state governor NN Vohra offering the support of his National Conference to the People's Democratic Party in an effort to break the political impasse surrounding government formation. But the People's Democratic Party on Tuesday turned down the offer of "unconditional support' by National Conference president Omar Abdullah, saying the people in Jammu and Kashmir voted for change.

Italian Marine Case: The Supreme Court gives three months extension to Massimiliano Latorre for his stay in Italy on health grounds.

Just two days ago, a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice H L Dattu on Monday recused itself from hearing the home stay period extension plea of one of the two Italian marines accused of killing two Indian fishermen, saying it had earlier made adverse remarks against them.

Deciding to entrust adjudication of Massimiliano Latorre's plea to another bench, Justice Dattu cited the bench's December 17 observations while dismissing the two marines' pleas - one for extension of home stay period and the other seeking permission to go home for spending time with family during Christmas - as the ground for recusal.

In the order dismissing the applications, there were no adverse remarks in writing. Yet, the bench decided to adopt the highest standards of fairness - a litigant must not feel the judge is biased against him - and recused from hearing Latorre's fresh application.

A friend of the Boston Marathon bombing suspect is expected to plead guilty to a reduced charge of lying to the FBI. In a court filing yesterday, prosecutors amended the charges against Khairullozhon Matanov.

He had been charged with lying and with deleting information from his computer. A judge scheduled a Jan 27 plea hearing.

The Apex Court asks the High Court to consider afresh Salman's plea on the issue of staying the conviction. The order means Salman will not be able to go to the UK for the film shoot.

A huge setback for actor Salman Khan as the Supreme Court quashes the suspension of the actor's conviction ordered by the Rajasthan high court in the black buck shooting case.

Khan was convicted in 2007 for hunting and killing endangered deer while shooting for a film in Rajasthan in 1998.

He was sentenced to four years in jail and is currently out on bail in the case. But in 2013, the Rajasthan high court suspended the conviction to make it easier for the actor to travel to the United Kingdom to shoot for a film.

Pope Francis gave Sri Lanka its first saint today and canonised Indian-born missionary Joseph Vaz. Speaking to thousands, who had collected for a mass, said that Vaz was an example of religious tolerance relevant to Sri Lanka. Saint Joseph shows us the importance of transcending religious divisions in the service of peace," he said in his homily. 

Noted Tamil novelist Perumal Murugan's Facebook page went blank on Tuesday in a virtual closure of his identity as a writer, in a shocking illustration of the growing intolerance of fringe groups constricting public discourse. It is ironic that the author was made to virtually recant to buy peace after the recent controversy over his novel Madhorubhagan, first published in December 2010, purportedly offended the sensibilities of some dominant sections of society in the western 'Kongu' belt of Tamil Nadu.

A 300-year-old aspiration of Catholics in Sri Lanka, Goa and elsewhere for declaration/crowning of Blessed Joseph Vaz as a Saint of the universal church is now only a few hours away from becoming a reality. The Pope will canonize the illustrious Goan priest at a Eucharistic mass in Colombo in what many regard as an official stamp to the sainthood already declared by the people even during his life time.

France`s biggest satirical weekly, Le Canard Enchaine said it received a gruesome death threat the day after gunmen shot dead 12 people in an attack against Charlie Hebdo magazine. Le Canard Enchaine says in its edition being released today that an e-mail sent to the paper on January 8 warned "It's your turn" and threatened to slash its journalists to pieces "with an axe".

According to reports, the terrorists engaged in gun battle with the army and police in Sopore are from the Laskhar-e-Taiba group and is allegedly headed by Abu Huzaifa. 

Army and police troops are engaged in fierce gun battle with militants in Sopore, Jammu and Kashmir. Acting on a tip-off, the security personnel encircled a locality in Sopore and trying to flush out the militants hiding there. However, the situation has escalated as the terrorists engaged in gun fire. 

The country's top military technocrat was sacked as the head of the Defence Research and Development Organisation after the Modi government found his outfit was unwilling or unable to fall in line with the 'Make in India' policy.

Europol chief Rob Wainwright in a statement to the British lawmakers said that Europe was facing their most serious terrorist threat since 9/11. He explained that up to 5,000 European Union citizens have joined jihadist militant ranks, who pose a threat to their country of origin if they return there. "We're dealing with a large body of mainly young men who have the potential to come back and have the potential or intent and capability to carry out attacks we have seen in Paris in the last week," Wainwright said. 

North Korea insists it had nothing to do with the massive computer hack at Sony and wants the United States, which has blamed North Korea, to provide evidence.

Republican Rep. Randy Weber has apologised for a tweet that compared President Barack Obama to Adolf Hitler to make a point related to the Paris terrorist attacks.

Egypt's Constitution states that "freedom of belief is absolute," yet it says nothing about those who don't believe.

German chancellor Angela Merkel joined thousands of people at a Muslim solidarity rally for victims of the Paris attacks in Berlin on Tuesday evening, in what was widely seen as a public rebuke to the anti-Islam protests that have gripped Germany in recent weeks.

Police in Idaho arrested a 9-year-old boy who failed to appear in court. His crime, they say? Stealing a pack of gum.

At least 150 people were injured on Tuesday in two collisions between rapid transit buses being rolled out in Rio ahead of next year's Olympic Games, officials said.

Canadian counter terrorism officials arrested and charged a man Monday, accusing him of conspiring with twin brothers in a terror plot.

Sharat Pradhan reports: The sudden appearance of around 35 bodies in the shallow waters of the Ganga river, about 70 km from Lucknow caused an alarm , sending the Uttar Pradesh administration in a spin.

Only hours later, it was discovered that the bodies were none other than those immersed by people living in the neighbouring villages along the upstream .

"We have reason to believe that these were bodies that were routinely immersed by certain Hindu communities, who choose not to burn their dead if the deceased were unmarried, or poor and cannot afford  a cremation', said S K Singh, additional district magistrate of Unnao district under which the area falls.

Indian-American Kamala Harris, the California Attorney General, today announced that she would run for the Senate seat from the state in 2016, setting the stage for a race that could be one of the most expensive in the country.   

"I'm sharing with you that I'm launching my campaign to represent the people of California in the United States Senate. I want to be a voice for Californians," Harris, 50, said in a message to her supporters posted on her campaign website.   

"I will be a fighter for the next generation on the critical issues facing our country. I will be a fighter for middle class families who are feeling the pinch of stagnant wages and diminishing opportunity," she said.  

Harris, the former district attorney of San Francisco who was just re-elected to her second term as attorney general, was the first to formally declare her candidacy since current Senator Barbara Boxer, 74, has announced that she would no >run for re-election in the 2016 elections.

Brushing aside opposition, the government today moved to amend the anti-smoking law and proposed radical changes, including ban on sale of loose cigarettes and raising the minimum age of a person buying tobacco products to 21 years from existing 18.

It has also proposed raising of fine to Rs 1000 from Rs 200 on smoking in public places as well as recommending removal of designated smoking zones in hotels and restaurants.            

These are some of the major recommendations in the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) (Amendment) Bill 2015, which were put out by the Health Ministry today to seek suggestions from the public.

The bill puts to rest speculation about the fate of a panel's recommendations, which had covered most of these issues, as there were reports that the health ministry had developed cold feet following outcry from lobbies representing farmers and tobacco industry.

DRDO chief sacked 15 months ahead of his contract term

If Swamy knows Sunanda's murderer, let him tell police: Tharoor

Lucknow: Toll in hooch tragedy climbs to 31

AirAsia jet's 2nd black box retrieved,to be analysed for leads

The government did not allow this lady to travel abroad!

Yesterday's live commentary link