Category Archives: Narendra Modi

Narendra Modi to make ‘historic’ Guyana visit for energy talks

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Indian PM’s trip expected to focus on trade and investment as oil-rich Caribbean country’s economic boom continues

India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, will make a “historic” state visit to the oil-rich Caribbean nation of Guyana this week when the two countries are expected to sign energy and defence agreements.

Modi’s visit to the country, from Tuesday to Thursday, will be the first from an Indian prime minister since Indira Gandhi’s in 1968, two years after Guyana gained independence from Britain.

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Narendra Modi condemns attack on Hindu temple in Canada as tensions rise

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Indian prime minister blames Sikh activists for clash in Brampton over which three people have been arrested

India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, has condemned a “deliberate attack” on a Hindu temple in Canada, blaming Sikh activists for the violent clash at a time of escalating diplomatic tensions between the two countries.

Videos on social media showed demonstrators protesting outside the Hindu Sabha Mandir temple in the city of Brampton, where Indian diplomats were visiting ahead of Diwali celebrations. Some protesters held yellow Khalistan flags, representing a region of India they hope to one day carve out as a Sikh homeland.

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Canada alleges Indian minister behind plot to target Sikh separatists

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Parliamentary committee told of Narendra Modi ally’s alleged role in campaign of violence and threats

The Canadian government has publicly alleged that India’s home affairs minister, Amit Shah, the prime minister, Narendra Modi’s, closest political ally, was behind a recent series of plots to murder and intimidate Sikh separatists on Canadian soil.

Testifying before a parliamentary committee, the Canadian deputy foreign affairs minister, David Morrison, acknowledged he had leaked information to the Washington Post about Shah’s alleged role in a campaign of violence and threats against the Sikh diaspora over the last few years.

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Tuesday briefing: Canada puts India ‘on notice’ as row over alleged killing of Sikh activists escalates

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In today’s newsletter: Justin Trudeau says there are ‘credible allegations’ that Modi’s government was involved in the killing of a Sikh separatist in British Columbia. What does say about India’s global standing?

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Good morning.

In September 2023, Justin Trudeau stood up in parliament and made extraordinary allegations against the Indian government. The prime minister said Canadian authorities were investigating “credible allegations” about the potential involvement of Indian officials in the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian Sikh separatist activist in British Columbia.

Middle East | Israel has accused Hezbollah of keeping hundreds of millions of dollars in cash and gold in a bunker under a hospital in the southern suburbs of Beirut, though it said it would not strike the complex. The Sahel hospital in Dahiyeh was evacuated shortly afterwards, and Fadi Alame, its director, told Reuters that the allegations were untrue.

Labour | A cross-party group of 30 MPs has urged Rachel Reeves to impose a 2% tax on wealth above £10m on Britain’s rich in next week’s budget rather than announce spending cuts that would hit the most poor hardest.

Ukraine | Britain is to lend Ukraine an additional £2.26bn and allow Kyiv to spend the money on weapons to fight off the Russian invasion as part of a wider $50bn (£38.5bn) loan programme expected to be confirmed by G7 members later this week.

Sudan | Refugees and aid agencies have warned of deteriorating conditions in overcrowded camps in Chad, as intensifying violence and a hunger crisis in Sudan drive huge numbers across the border. About 25,000 people – the vast majority women and children – crossed into eastern Chad in the first week of October. Read an explainer.

European Union | Moldovans have voted by a razor-thin majority in favour of joining the EU, nearly final results showed on Monday after a pivotal referendum clouded by allegations of Russian interference. With 50.18% supporting EU membership, the decision was much closer than pre-referendum polls suggested.

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Indian diplomats put ‘on notice’ in Canada after links to anti-Sikh activity uncovered

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Canada expelled six Indian diplomats as fallout continues from 2023 killing of Canadian Sikh Hardeep Singh Nijjar

Canada’s foreign minister has warned India’s remaining diplomats in the country that they are “clearly on notice” not to endanger Canadian lives after New Delhi’s top envoy in Canada was named a person of interest in the assassination of a Sikh activist.

India’s high commissioner was expelled on Monday along with five other diplomats, prompting the Canadian foreign minister, Mélanie Joly, to compare India to Russia, saying Canada’s national police force has linked Indian diplomats to homicides, death threats and intimidation in Canada.

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UK says India’s cooperation with Canada’s legal process is ‘right next step’

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Growing diplomatic row as police say they have evidence of Delhi’s links to murder of Sikh leader in Canada

Britain joined its Five Eyes intelligence partners on Wednesday in saying India’s cooperation with Canada’s legal process was “the right next step” in the deepening diplomatic row between the two countries, adding that it had full confidence in Canada’s judicial system.

Canadian police said on Monday they had credible evidence that Indian agents including India’s high commissioner to Canada were linked to the murder of the Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil in June 2023 and accused Delhi of a broader effort to target Indian dissidents in Canada.

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Canadian police accuse India of working with criminal network to kill dissidents

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Modi government agents alleged to have collaborated with syndicate run by mob boss Lawrence Bishnoi

Canadian police have accused the Indian government of working with a criminal network run by one of India’s most notorious gangsters, Lawrence Bishnoi, to carry out targeted killings of dissidents in Canada.

A diplomatic row broke out between India and Canada on Monday after Canadian police accused Indian diplomats of “criminal” activities in the country, including extortion, intimidation, coercion and harassment, and involvement in targeted killings of Canadian citizens.

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Canadian police accuse Indian diplomats of ‘criminal’ activities including homicides

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Accusations made hours after both countries expel senior diplomats in escalating row over killing of Sikh activist

Canadian police accused Indian diplomats and consular staff of “clandestine” and “criminal” activities in the country on Monday night, hours after senior diplomats were expelled from both countries in an escalating geopolitical row.

Speaking to reporters at a hastily organised press conference, the head of the Royal Canadian Mounted police (RCMP) said the force had evidence of “agents” acting on behalf of the Indian government engaging in extortion, intimidation, coercion and harassment.

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Opposition Congress party wins power in Indian-administered Kashmir

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Narendra Modi’s BJP loses first election since stripping the region of its autonomy and statehood

The Indian prime minister’s hopes of his party gaining power in Kashmir were dashed on Tuesday as it emerged that his BJP had lost the first election held since the national government stripped the region of its autonomy and statehood.

The elections instead delivered a resounding victory to India’s main opposition party, Congress, and its regional partner, the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC), which had come together in a alliance to defeat Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), which also rules at the national level.

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Modi tells Zelenskiy he is ready to work ‘as a friend’ to bring about peace deal

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Indian PM says he respects and supports ‘sovereignty and territorial integrity’ of Ukraine during historic visit

India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, made a historic visit to Kyiv on Friday and told Volodymyr Zelenskiy he was ready to work “as a friend” to bring about a peace deal that would end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Modi said he respected and supported Ukraine’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity”. “It is our highest priority,” he said, adding that he had told Vladimir Putin during their meeting in July that “problems cannot be resolved on the battlefield”. The war could only end through “dialogue and diplomacy”, he stressed.

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Russia-Ukraine war: Zelenskiy says India supports Ukraine’s sovereignty with ‘history made’ in meeting with Modi – as it happened

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Indian PM calls on Ukraine and Russia to open dialogue as soon as possible to find way out of conflict

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser in the Ukrainian president’s office, has told Reuters that Narendra Modi’s visit to Kyiv is significant because New Delhi “really has a certain influence” over Moscow.

“It’s extremely important for us to effectively build relations with such countries, to explain to them what the correct end to the war is - and that it is also in their interests,” he said.

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Modi and Putin cement ‘bonds of friendship’ despite Ukraine tensions

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Indian prime minister travelled to Moscow for two-day summit and ‘chit-chat’ amid diplomatic complexities

As India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, landed in Moscow on Monday, it was straight into the warm embrace of Vladimir Putin. Modi said the visit – his first since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine – was to cement the “bonds of friendship” between the two countries, and later effusively described Russia as India’s “all-weather friend and trusted ally”.

The India-Russia relationship runs deep, dating back to the cold war, and Russia has long been the largest supplier of arms to India. Since he was elected in 2014, Modi has built up a much-publicised rapport with Putin, the two leaders having had more than 20 meetings.

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India PM Modi to meet Putin in first trip to Russia since Ukraine war began

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Trip scheduled for Monday, with Delhi a key trading partner for Putin since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine

Narendra Modi will visit Russia on 8 and 9 July and hold talks with Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin has said, in the Indian prime minister’s first trip to the country since it invaded Ukraine.

Modi and Putin will discuss “prospects for further development of traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations, as well as relevant issues on the international and regional agenda,” the Kremlin said in a statement.

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Open letter in India calls for withdrawal of go-ahead to prosecute Arundhati Roy

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Over 200 signatories urge government to reverse decision enabling action against writer under anti-terrorism law

More than 200 Indian academics, activists and journalists have published an open letter urging the Indian government to withdraw last week’s decision sanctioning the prosecution of the Booker prize-winning author Arundhati Roy under the country’s stringent anti-terrorism law.

“We … deplore this action and appeal to the government and the democratic forces in the country to ensure that no infringement of the fundamental right to freely and fearlessly express views on any subject takes place in our nation,” the group said in the letter.

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Consensus or division? How Modi will manage Indian coalition government

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Being beholden to partners could be a necessary restraint on Indian PM – or he could double down on oppressive policies

As Narendra Modi traversed the country during recent months, campaigning for a third term in power, he repeated the same refrain. The past decade “was just a trailer”, the prime minister told crowds, adding: “There is plenty more to come.”

The expectation, among his Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) and most analysts and pollsters, was that India’s election would easily return him to power with the same – if not stronger – supermajority that he has enjoyed over the past decade.

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Narendra Modi sworn in for third term as prime minister of India

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Modi becomes second leader in Indian history to win three consecutive terms, but opposition leaders snub ceremony

Narendra Modi has been sworn in as prime minister of India for a historic third term, ushering in a new era of coalition politics for India’s strongman leader.

The ceremony, which took place at the presidential palace on Sunday evening, marked Modi’s return to power, only the second leader in India’s history to win three consecutive terms.

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‘Indian democracy fought back’: Modi humbled as opposition gains ground

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Campaigners say election shows rejection of ‘hate politics’ after marginalised groups vote to deny BJP a majority

It was widely described as the week that India’s beleaguered democracy was pulled back from the brink. As the election results rolled in on Tuesday, all predictions and polls were defied as Narendra Modi lost his outright majority for the first time in a decade while the opposition re-emerged as a legitimate political force. On Sunday evening, Modi will be sworn in as prime minister yet many believe his power and mandate stands diminished.

For one opposition politician in particular, the humbling of the strongman prime minister was a moment to savour. Late last year, Mahua Moitra, one of the most outspoken critics of Modi and his Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), found herself unceremoniously expelled from parliament and kicked out of her bungalow, after what she described as a “political witch-hunt” for daring to stand up to Modi.

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Muted election win for Modi may usher in new era for India’s oligarch class

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Defeats for the ruling Bharatiya Janata party in Uttar Pradesh highlighted an underbelly of malcontent over inequality and lack of jobs

A few weeks before the election that weakened Narendra Modi’s grip on India, the rich, powerful and beautiful descended on his home state of Gujarat. The occasion was what one Indian writer called “likely the most ostentatious pre-wedding ceremony the modern world has ever seen”.

In March, to celebrate the forthcoming marriage of Anant Ambani, the youngest son of Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Ivanka Trump flew in. So did the entertainment: Rihanna and Akon. The airport near the venue was supposed to be reserved for India’s armed forces but the media reported that the authorities had granted special permission for non-military jets to land.

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Narendra Modi faces first coalition test as allied parties demand cabinet seats

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Smaller allies emerge as powerful kingmakers in effort to form government before swearing in of PM

Narendra Modi is facing the first test of coalition politics after losing his outright majority in the Indian election, with smaller coalition allies emerging as powerful kingmakers in the formation of the government.

Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) won the most seats in the election results declared on Tuesday, but not enough to pass the 272 parliamentary majority mark, forcing it to rely on coalition partners to return to power.

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Thursday briefing: Narendra Modi reaches a crossroads as India denies him a majority in election upset

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In today’s newsletter: After pollsters and pundits predicted a sweeping victory that never came, is India’s prime minister entering his final act in politics?

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Good morning.

For months, the consensus was that India’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) was going to win a thumping majority in the general election. A few days ago, exit polls indicated the BJP was going to secure a sweeping victory, and could even gain seats to win a two-thirds majority in parliament. The party’s confidence came through most clearly in its highly publicised goal of winning 400 seats.

Israel-Gaza war | At least 30 Palestinians including five children have been killed in an Israeli airstrike on a UN school housing displaced people in al-Nuseirat, in the central Gaza Strip, medical officials have said, with dozens more wounded. The Israeli military confirmed it had targeted a UN school in al-Nuseirat, saying it had been housing Hamas terrorists from the 7 October attack on Israel who were planning further attacks.

Wales | The Welsh first minister, Vaughan Gething, has lost a no-confidence vote less than 12 weeks after taking office, following a series of scandals that have called into question his judgment and transparency.

General election 2024 | The UK Statistics Authority has opened an investigation into remarks made by Rishi Sunak about the economy “going gangbusters” amid concerns that politicians could misuse economic data in the run-up to the election. The watchdog’s intervention came soon after the chair of the organisation began a review of Sunak’s claim that the Treasury calculated that Labour would raise taxes by £2,000 for everyone if it won the election.

Climate crisis | Fossil fuel companies are the “godfathers of climate chaos” and should be banned in every country from advertising akin to restrictions on big tobacco, the secretary general of the United Nations has said while delivering dire new scientific warnings of global heating.

NHS | A cyber-attack thought to have been carried out by a Russian group has forced London NHS hospitals to resurrect long-discarded paper records systems in which porters hand-deliver blood test results because IT networks are disrupted.

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