Illegal Immigrants From Bang'desh Is Kicking, Hurting India

By Likha Veer | INNLIVE Bureau

FOCUS The vernacular press in West Bengal is all charged up because BJP stalwarts have promised to deport Bangladeshis if the party comes to power at the Centre. Front page articles and editorials have all denounced this as a move to foment trouble in the state and create divisions between communities. Narendra Modi and Rajnath Singh have become villains in the eyes of this section of the media. Those who are indulging in such commentary have either not understood what the BJP wants to do, or are twisting the remarks to create controversy.

Has Mulayam Singh Lost Support Of Azamgarh’s Muslims?

By Tareq Aziz | INNLIVE Bureau

SPECIAL REPORT “This is Azamgarh. Anything can happen,” says Tariq Shafique, a social activist from Sanjarpur, talking about Samajwadi party chief Mulayam Singh’s chances of winning the Azamgarh Lok Sabha seat. Sanjarpur village has come to be forever linked in the public mind with the controversial Batla House encounter. The two alleged terrorists that were killed in the 2008 shoot-out in Delhi belonged to this village.

This Mother’s Day - 'A Letter To Children After Your Death'

By Sarah Williams | INNLIVE Bureau

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY 2014 President Obama was asked recently about regrets. “I regret not having spent more time with my mother,” he said. The president’s mother, Ann Dunham, died at age 52 when Barack Obama was 34. “I was so busy with my own life that I didn’t always reach out and communicate with her, and ask her how she was doing and tell her about things. You know, I was nice and I’d call and, you know, and write once in a while ... I realize that I didn’t, uh, every single day, or at least more often, just spend time with her and find out what she was thinking and what she was doing because she had been such an important part of my life.”

Tradition Damned: Prez Pranab Should Vote In Elections'14

By Sahil Chaudhury | INNLIVE Bureau

EXCLUSIVE If President Pranab Mukherjee had decided to make a trip to Kolkata on 12 May to vote in South Kolkata, where he is a registered voter, it would have been wonderful. Never mind the expense of a special plane, as all presidents fly by special planes, it would have been a boost to the Election Commission’s campaign to ensure higher voting turnouts to strengthen the democratic process. 

Of course there would have been some stretching of the local official machinery to provide him security and all that, including perhaps a lunch, but it would have been certainly worth it. Imagine photographs, still and video, of Mukherjee standing in a queue, amidst even security checked voters to ensure his safety, and then casting his vote.

Why India Has Woken Up To The Importance Of Toilets?

By Sukanya Mehta | INNLIVE Bureau

SPOTLIGHT Building toilets holds the key to reducing India’s malnutrition burden. Commenting on the Indian elections in his satire show, British humorist John Oliver remarked, “(Narendra) Modi has managed to inspire people with his populist platform including a pledge to put a toilet in every home. That’s a bold move, coming out as pro-toilet.”

Oliver’s wisecrack may have deliberately exaggerated Narendra Modi’s pitch on toilets but the focus on sanitation has been one welcome change in the 2014 election campaign. In a public rally, Modi had exhorted, “pehle shauchalay, phir devalay” (first toilets, then temples).

Rajasthan King's Royal Bathe With 40 Queens In A Pond!

By Ismaeel Ghesawat | INNLIVE Bureau

WEEKEND SPECIAL There have been many kings in Rajasthan who became world famous due to their whims.  One such king is Kishan Singh, the Maharaja of Bharatpur at one time. Kishan Singh for his colorful nature and cynicism was known all over the world. This king had not one, two or four, but 40 queens in total.

Diwan Jaramani Das in his book ‘Maharaja’ has described one incident of Kishan Singh’s craziness. It is said that Kishan Singh was very fond of swimming. To fulfill his passion for swimming he would do anything in the world.

Congress Smells Fear In Modi’s Amethi, Varanasi Actions

By Likha Veer | INNLIVE Bureau

SPOTLIGHT Congressmen are rubbing their hands in glee, as if they have almost won the elections. They seem to be seeing “the light at the end of the tunnel” as far as Narendra Modi is concerned. Modi’s decision to break the unwritten rule by campaigning in Amethi seems to have done more harm to the BJP’s prospects than Rahul Gandhi. 

There was pressure building on Modi to take on Rahul Gandhi directly, some were beginning to wonder whether an “adjustment” had been reached between the two sides. But Modi cancelled another rally to be in Amethi on last day of campaigning of penultimate round on 5th May and hit out big time against the Gandhi family. 

Why Kejriwal Wrong Contesting Against Modi In Benaras?

By M H Ahssan | INNLIVE Bureau

ELECTION ANALYSIS The Aam Admi Party’s Arvind Kejriwal was brilliant tactically in going after Narendra Modi in Varanasi. He has got media coverage for being brave enough to challenge Modi in a Lok Sabha seat that the Bharatiya Janata Party considers itself well placed. 

On the other hand Varanasi, a small town with a small town’s conservatism, is a place in which the Aam Admi Party has no presence. It has neither a large organisation there, nor has it the community that it built in Delhi through its long agitation. So it is probable that Kejriwal will put up a good fight against Modi but will lose.