ThePrint

At a 3-day lecture series marking 100 years of the RSS, its chief Mohan Bhagwat spoke on many different issues, outlining the organisation's outlook -- from minority outreach, saying Hinduism means inclusivity, to 75-yr age limit. Bhagwat also said RSS won’t get involved in Kashi & Mathura temple movements, but swayamsevaks are free to join. In ep. 1721, Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta & Political Editor DK Singh unpack the RSS chief's speech. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Research by: Saksham Thakur ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'We have the case of Harjinder Singh, a 28-year-old Indian who entered the US illegally, who drove a truck that killed three people and who, when arrested, failed tests for understanding English and understanding road signs.There are moves within the Indian origin community in North America to support Singh, using what may be described as the ‘bechaara ladka’ or ‘poor boy’ argument. These moves have found an echo in Punjab, where political leaders have asked the Indian government to intervene to help Singh. Once again, it’s the ‘bechaara ladka’ syndrome. We should let the US courts decide how to handle his case. It really has nothing to do with us.' says Author & ThePrint Columnist Vir Sanghvi. Watch this week's #SharpEdge:

The Navy has always been on board with the theaterisation plan, but the Air Force feels splitting up air assets into several theatre commands is futile & will tie up critical systems.
 

In this episode of WorldView with Swasti, Dr Swasti Rao, Consulting Editor and Foreign Policy Expert, speaks with Gregory Priolon, former Intelligence Analyst at the French Air Force and Expert at “Intelligence Online”. The discussion uncovers risks of military technology leakage as global air-to-air warfare evolves. From expansion of the “Rafale Club” to the role of Pakistani pilots accessing Rafale’s EW suite through countries like Qatar, the discussion highlights the dangers of cross-cutting defence value chains. This episode dives deep into the vulnerabilities surrounding the Rafale ecosystem and its electronic warfare suite, Spectra, through sales to countries that are detrimental to India’s interests. The conversation highlights why Rafale exports to certain countries like Qatar and potentially to Bangladesh should raise red flags for India, how Qatari training programmes could expose sensitive systems to Pakistani pilots and the growing challenge posed by Turkey’s expertise in reverse engineering. With Rafale central to both France’s nuclear doctrine and India’s frontline fleet, the episode closes by stressing why New Delhi must demand stronger guarantees in the next Rafale deal (MRFA) and build more sovereign countermeasures to safeguard its technological edge. #rafale #operationsindoor #pakistan #france #china #trump #defense

Thirty-day programme run by Congress’s training dept, overseen by Rahul’s close aide Sachin Rao, will also include training on election management, including voter list verification.
 

The fresh deaths raise number of journalists killed in Gaza in 2 yrs of conflict to 192, says Committee to Protect Journalists. AP, Reuters demand official explanation from Israel.
 

As three empires—Russia, Britain and China—collided on the roof of the world in the nineteenth century, a tiny strip of uninhabited land in the Pamir Mountains was carved out as a buffer zone. Today, that strip, called the Wakhan Corridor, offers Afghans the hope of a direct land route from Kabul to China, helping bypass Pakistan’s chokehold. What China decides will shape Central Asian geopolitics for generations.