Facebook Instagram Twitter Youtube
Tuesday, December 16, 2025
Facebook Instagram Twitter Youtube
Home Blog Page 1339

Superstar Rajinikanth conferred with Dadasaheb Phalke Award

By
The Commune
-

In a development that will make fans of Superstar Rajnikanth very happy, the government of India has decided to confer the prestigious 51st Dadasaheb Phalke Award on the legendary actor, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said on Thursday (1 April). Javadekar also thanked the jury, which comprised of Asha Bhonsle, Mohanlal, Subhash Ghai, Biswajeet Chatterjee and Shankar Mahadevan. This award, which is for the year 2019, was to be announced in 2020 but was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

BJP national general secretary CT Ravi congratulated the south superstar on Twitter. “Heartiest Congratulations to Thalaiva @rajinikanth on being awarded the prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke award for 2021. One of the greatest Actor of His generation, contribution of Thiru Rajinikanth to Indian cinema is exemplary. I share this happiness with His crores of Fans,” tweeted the BJP member.

The 70-year-old superstar is one of the most iconic actors of Indian Cinema, having acted in several super hit movies like Billa, Baasha, Muthu, Padayappa, Endhiran, and so on. He is the 12th South Indian to be conferred with the award, as it was previously received by legends like Dr. Rajkumar, K Balachander, Akkineni Nageswara Rao and so on. He has also received the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan.

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

Mamata Banerjee sends SOS to secular left parties to unite against BJP in West Bengal

By
The Commune
-
Mamata Banerjee BJP

With her political future hanging in the balance, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday (31 March) wrote letters to top Opposition leaders, giving a call to unite against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“I am writing this letter…to convey my serious concerns over a series of assaults by the BJP and its government at the Centre on democracy and constitutional federalism in India,” Mamata Banerjee wrote in the three-page letter.

Mamata Banerjee sent the appeal to 15 non-BJP leaders including Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, DMK chief MK Stalin, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav as well as NC chief Farooq Abdullah and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti.

Claiming that the BJP wants to establish a ‘one-party authoritarian rule’, Mamata Banerjee said, “Overall, the Centre-State relations, and also relations between the ruling party at the Centre and Opposition parties, have never been as bad in the history of independent India as they are now, and the blame for this rests squarely with the Prime Minister’s authoritarian conduct.”

While calling on the Opposition to unite against the BJP, Mamata Banerjee said “I strongly believe that the time has come for a united and effective struggle against the BJP’s attacks on democracy and the Constitution…We can win this battle only with the unity of hearts and minds, and by presenting a credible alternative to the people of India.”

However, the letter sent by Banerjee to all the secular left parties may be too late as the second phase of the election kicks off today. Her own assembly seat of Nandiram may be in jeopardy as she is in a tough fight with her aide-turned-rival Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP.

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

Imprisoned Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny goes on hunger strike

By
The Commune
-
Navalny hunger strike

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has gone on a hunger strike in prison, his Instagram account announced Wednesday. The Instagram post claimed that Navalny’s hunger strike is in protest of authorities allegedly denying him medical treatment for pain and numbness in his back and leg.

Navalny’s lawyers fear that the Kremlin critic’s health is further deteriorating in the Russian penal colony about 60 miles from central Moscow, where he is serving a 2.5-year sentence.

According to a translation of the Instagram post, Navalny claims that he is being “tortured by sleep deprivation”; he has “no other methods of fighting”, the post states.

“The back pain has spread to my leg. Parts of my right leg, and now my left leg, have lost all feeling,” he revealed, claiming he is been tortured by sleep deprivation, with prison guards waking him up eight times every night.

“So what can I do? I am announcing a hunger strike to demand that the law be obeyed and that I am seen by a doctor of my choosing,” he said.

Denying these allegations, the Vladimir Region Federal Penitentiary Service Directorate announced Wednesday that Navalny receives all necessary medical aid with consideration of his medical state.

“Prisoner A. Navalny is provided with all necessary medical aid in accordance with his current medical diagnosis,” the Directorate website says.

Besides, the Directorate noted that “the procedure of prisoner oversight, including over A. Navalny, is carried out in accordance with the law and is being applied to all prisoners without exceptions.”

“The penal facility employees strictly observe the right of all prisoners for uninterrupted eight-hour sleep. During night time, in accordance with the law, the employees patrol the residential block and visually check the presence of inmates in their beds. These measures do not obstruct the prisoners’ rest,” the Directorate explained.

The prisoners are provided meetings with lawyers in accordance with the Criminal-Procedural Code, the agency added.

The agency underscored that “the detention conditions in penal facilities of the penitentiary system are regulated by legal acts of the Russian Federation.”.

Navalny was sentenced earlier this year

Navalny was sentenced to prison in February this year for violating parole conditions of a suspended sentence handed to him in 2014, when he was found guilty of embezzling 30 million rubles ($400,000) from two companies, including the French cosmetics brand Yves Rocher.

Navalny also survived an alleged assassination attempt in Germany, when he was poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok, which has been attributed to Russian intelligence. U.S. and European Union officials have demanded Navalny’s release and sanctioned Russian officials for his poisoning.

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

Gujarat to soon introduce Love Jihad bill to stop forced religious conversions

By
The Commune
-

Image source: TOI

As the number of Love Jihad cases are on the rise, the Gujarat government led by Chief Minister M Vijay Rupani has proposed to amend the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, 2003.

Under this amendment, more stringent punishment will be given against forced religious conversions through marriage, with the guilty facing a jail term of up to seven years along with a penalty.

The proposed Gujarat ‘love jihad’ law comes after Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh also introduced similar provisions. The amendment bill that was submitted in the Gujarat assembly on Tuesday (30 March) seeks to prohibit and punish religious conversions promising a better lifestyle, divine blessings and impersonation.

As per reports, the Love Jihad bill is likely to be tabled in the ongoing Budget session of the Gujarat assembly. The new ‘love jihad’ law would invite a jail term of five years and a ₹2 lakh penalty on the forced conversion of young women. The punishment would go up to seven years in jail and a ₹3 lakh penalty, in case of a minor girl being converted. Some important features of this bill include the fact that anyone who promises a “better lifestyle, divine blessings, or otherwise” as reasons for religious conversion could be booked under this bill. In addition to this, under the new section 3A that has been proposed, a relative of the victim, related by blood, marriage or adoption, can file an FIR for having committed this crime under the new bill.

It must also be noted that it was the Catholic Church in Kerala who had first raised concern against the growing menace of Love Jihad and such laws cannot be deemed as communal as both Hindus and Christian women and families have been victims.

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

Income Tax Department conducts searches in Hyderabad

By
The Commune
-
income tax hyderabad

The Income Tax Department carried out search and seizure operations on two real estate developers engaged in the real estate activities mainly in and around Yadagirigutta, suburb of the Hyderabad City. They are into plot ventures as well as in the construction of apartments.

During the course of search operations, many incriminating documents, hand written books, agreements etc. indicating unaccounted cash transaction were seized. The data was also recovered from a specialized software application as well as from other electronic gadgets. The groups were found to be accepting cash over and above the registered value and such unaccounted cash is used for on-money payment for purchase of land and other incidental business expenditure.

During the course of search unaccounted cash of ₹11.88 crore and gold jewellery valued at ₹1.93 crore has been seized. The search has resulted in the detection of incriminating evidences relating to the unaccounted cash receipts to the tune of ₹700 crore for the last six years, the income of which is taxable in the hands of the transacting parties.

Further investigations are in progress.

(Source: PIB)

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

First-of-its-kind cruise service starts between Surat and Diu

By
The Commune
-
Surat cruise

Minister of State for Ports, Shipping & Waterways (I/C) Mansukh Mandaviya flagged off the cruise service from Hazira Port of Surat to Diu, today via video conferencing.

In his inaugural address, Mansukh Mandaviya said that the development of cruise tourism is the prime focus of the Government of India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

‘I feel very happy to announce that before 2014, there were 139 cruise calls at the Indian ports but today we have 450 cruise calls in the country despite the COVID-19 pandemic. There has been a steady growth in the number of tourists traveling by cruise services since 2014. The number before 2014 was one lakh and the number of tourists in 2019-20 was 4.5 lakhs’, added Mandaviya.

Mandaviya also reiterated that the Indian coastline has a huge potential for the cruise tourism industry and said that six international cruise terminals are being planned on the west coast (Mumbai, Goa, Kochi) and east coast (Visakhapattanam, Kolkata, Chennai) of India. Mandaviya expressed optimism about the development of ferry, RoRo and RoPAX services between South Gujarat and Saurashtra region of Gujarat and said that water transportation is the new future of transportation with state-of-the-art ferry terminals and modern facilities in the cruise services.

Cruise has all modern amenities

One side voyage time of the new cruise service is approximately 13 to 14 hours. The cruise service has a capacity of 300 passengers and has 16 cabins. This cruise will sail two round trips in a week. The cruise ship has a gaming Lounge, VIP Lounge, Entertainment on Deck and other modern amenities. One side journey will cost ₹900 and taxes (per head).

In November 2020, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the ‘Hazira-Ghogha’ RoPAX service and within four months, one lakh passengers and thousands of vehicles utilised the ferry service to save journey time and travel costs from Hazira (Surat) to Ghogha (Bhavanagar). The success of the ferry service has opened the gates for many more routes of water transportation in Gujarat and all over India, Mandaviya said.

(Source: PIB)

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

Security forces engage in gun battle with Maoist militants in Odisha

By
The Commune
-
Maoist Odisha
Featured Image: Representational photograph | Credits: Yahoo

An exchange of fire took place between security forces and Maoist ultras in a dense forest in the Kandhamal district  of Odisha, a police officer said here on Tuesday.

The gunfight broke out on Monday night near Raighara village under Gochhada police station area.

Acting on information received from a tip-off, a joint team of the Special Operation Group and District Voluntary Force of Kandhamal launched an operation, Superintendent of Police Vinit Agarwal said.

When the Maoists noticed the security personnel, they started firing at the security personnel who asked them to surrender. As the ultras did not pay heed to the order, personnel of the joint team returned the fire, the SP said. The rebels then fled the scene leaving behind their belongings, Agarwal said.

No casualty was reported from either side. Articles such as a 12 volt battery, flexible wire and some raw food materials were recovered from the spot.

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

A Raja denies making derogatory remarks against CM Palaniswami in reply to ECI notice

By
The Commune
-
A Raja EPS

Senior DMK leader A Raja, in his reply to a notice by the Election Commission of India (ECI), has denied making derogatory remarks against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami during campaigning for the state assembly elections.

In his response to the ECI on Wednesday, A Raja said his comments were taken “out of context and blown out of proportion for political mileage”.

The ECI had issued a show-cause notice to the DMK MP over his distasteful comments against Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palaniswami and his mother, and had asked him respond by 6 PM of March 31.

The senior DMK leader maintained that he did not make any remark against EPS which is violative of the Model Code of Conduct or is obscene.

“I deny that I made any derogatory or defamatory speeches against the Hon’ble Chief Minister and I made any speech which would demean or defame women or motherhood,” A Raja told the ECI.

A Raja claimed that despite his explanation at a press conference, the CM quoted his speech out of context and became emotional in a public meeting in Chennai.

Simile an accepted norm in Tamil oratory, says A Raja

Seeking a copy of the complaint against him and the text of his alleged speech, A Raja said, “I request the Commission to get a copy and consider the full text of my entire speech and I am hopeful if it is done it can be discerned that the allegations made now are taken out of context and blown out of proportion to have political mileage.”

A Raja told the EC that simile is an accepted norm in Tamil oratory. “In my speech, the evolution of the political heights and their means of MK Stalin and Edappadi Palaniswami was compared by me through a simili as new born babies for easy understanding of the common mass. This was in response to the repeated allegations of the CM that our leader MK Stalin has never worked hard to become the leader (sic),” A Raja told the Election Commission.

“If the full text is considered by the committee, I am hopeful that it will wipe out the insult and consequent injury inflicted on me,” the DMK leader said.

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

Committee submits its report on Centre’s farm laws to Supreme Court

By
The Commune
-
Supreme Court Constitutes SIT To Probe Chennai Minor Sexual Assault Case. statehood ncpcr muslim girl marriage free speech

The three-member committee appointed by the Supreme Court submitted its report on the Centre’s farm laws on Wednesday.

The committee has reportedly consulted 85 farmer organisations while compiling its report on the farm legislations, in order to work out a solution to the demands of the agitating farmers.

The Supreme Court is likely to take up the case for hearing after April 5, once the Holi vacation ends.

On Republic Day this year, the farmers’ protests and a tractor rally at Delhi’s borders had erupted into large-scale rioting, violence and damage top public property in the nation’s capital.

Earlier in January, the Supreme Court had stayed the implementation of the farm laws after expressing disappointment with how the Centre had handled the protests and the talks with the farmers’ unions.

“Talks are breaking down because Centre wants to discuss point by point of law and farmers want the entire laws to be repealed. We will stay the implementation of the Farm Acts.”, the CJI had observed.

CJI SA Bobde had then remarked that people were committing suicides, suffering from the cold weather and gone on to raise questions about why are old people and women were present in the protest. “We don’t want to comment on the agitation”, the CJI had said.

Report was submitted in sealed cover

The Committee’s report was submitted to the apex court in a sealed cover.

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

DMK and the Left’s lies about Tamil jobs in the NLC being lost to North Indians

By
Ashok Kumar
-
DMK NLC stalin

In order to establish the perception that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is hostile to Tamils, the Dravida Munetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the Left parties accuse the BJP of continuously targeting Tamil culture and language. One tool used in this propaganda is the issue of the loss of Tamil employment in NLC India Limited ― the mining and energy company under the purview of the Ministry of Coal ― to North Indians.

The DMK and their allies claim that out of all the students who passed the NLC written exams for the Graduate Engineer Trainee (GET) position, only 1% are students from Tamil Nadu while the rest of the 99% vacancy is filled from other states. This is a serious lie spread by the DMK through its media clout, and it must be debunked.

Firstly, the government and the list of shortlisted candidates make no mention of the state of the residence of the candidates who are chosen for the interview stage. So, how did the DMK and the Left come to the conclusion that only 1% of Tamil students were chosen for the interview stage? The reality is that they assumed certain people in the shortlist belong to north India based on their surnames. For example, they categorise Rajesh Gupta as a north Indian because Tamils usually do not have the surname Gupta. These are the same parties that labelled Naam Tamilar Katchi a ‘racist’ party for classifying Tamils based on caste name. They are now using the same technique of determining if an individual is a Tamil or a north Indian based on their caste name.

Secondly, some pan-India names appear in the shortlist, such as Abishek Kumar (name appears five times), Ajay Kumar (3 times), Ashish Kumar (4 times), and so on, from which it is impossible to determine if the person is North Indian or Tamil. These names have been classified as North Indians by the DMK. But Tamil people also use these names. Only those names like Arul, Arun Kumar, Balamurugan and so on were classified as Tamil by the DMK.

Thirdly, there are some Urdu names on the shortlist that Muslims would use. Tamil Muslims in Tamil Nadu also have a habit of using Urdu names. However, it is inferred that the DMK categorises all those individuals with Urdu names as North Indians. Are they implying that those whose names are written in Urdu are not Tamils? Will the DMK or its supporters say this in front of the media or at a public meeting?

Finally, this recruitment is not only for NLC India plants in Neyveli and Tuticorin as claimed by DMK and its allies, but also for the NLC India plants situated in Barsingar, Bithnok, Talabira, South Pachwara and Ghatampur.

These lies must be refuted immediately by the BJP, as the DMK is using its media clout to spread these lies to the general public. In fact, the DMK used these lies as an advertisement for its election propaganda. The majority of TV anchors who are affiliated with DMK/DK assist DMK in spreading these lies without any remorse. Will the TN BJP react to these lies?

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

1...1,3381,3391,340...1,708Page 1,339 of 1,708
TheCommune
The Commune is a news and views portal focusing on social and political issues of the southern part of India with a focus on Tamil Nadu.
Contact us: thecommune.news@gmail.com
Facebook Instagram Twitter Youtube

NATIONAL NEWS

© The Commune 2025. All Rights Reserved.