‘Part-time politics won't work in Maharashtra': Milind Deora slams Thackeray family over vacationing abroad during crisis
Shiv Sena MP Milind Deora criticised the Thackeray family and accused them of acting like 'tourists in their own country' and failing to show genuine concern following the recent terrorist attack on Indian tourists in Pahalgam, Kashmir.
Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Deora noted that while Prime Minister Narendra Modi cut short his diplomatic visit and returned to the country immediately after the incident, the Thackeray family—referring to the Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (UBT) faction—continued their foreign vacation.
On the other hand, praising Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde for his swift response, he said, 'following the Pahalgam attack, Eknath Shinde immediately travelled to Srinagar, ensured the safe return of stranded tourists, and personally met with them to offer reassurance. Thanks to his efforts, more than 500 tourists from Maharashtra were safely brought back. In stark contrast, the Thackeray family reportedly holidayed in Europe during this crucial time.'
Deora criticised the UBT leadership for their lack of personal outreach and said, 'instead of meeting the families of those who lost their lives, they limited themselves to social media posts. Their absence during such a tragic moment is deeply disappointing.'
He further added, 'While the nation mourned the loss of innocent lives, the UBT faction—who claim to be the true heirs of Maharashtra's legacy—remained abroad for over two weeks. Not a single MP from their party attended the all-party meeting called by the Centre. They didn't even pay tribute to Maharashtra's 106 martyrs on May 1—not even with a symbolic tweet.'
'It is Eknath Shinde, Shiv Sena 's chief leader and Deputy Chief Minister, who is truly upholding the legacy of Hindu Hriday Samrat Balasaheb Thackeray. This tourist-style, part-time politics—where leaders fly in for photo ops and disappear again—will no longer be tolerated. Prime Minister Modi has already ended such politics in Delhi and Maharashtra is doing the same,' he said.
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India Today
an hour ago
- India Today
Should we stay or leave? Indian students at Harvard caught in Trump's crossfire
Indian students at Harvard say they are navigating a "rollercoaster" of uncertainty and anxiety amid the Trump administration's relentless battle against the university while also dealing with a dearth of job opportunities."It's just been a time of not quite knowing what to do, whether we should make our moves back home, or whether we should try and figure something out here," an Indian student, who graduated last month from the Harvard Kennedy School, said, not wishing to be students at Harvard, speaking to news agency PTI on the condition of anonymity, shared their concerns and experiences of the last few months during which the prestigious university has seen relentless attacks by the Trump administration. The administration's actions include a freeze of USD 2.2 billion in grants, revocation of the university's eligibility to enroll international students and suspension of entry of foreign nationals seeking to study or participate in exchange programmes at Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has said that Harvard's leadership has created an "unsafe campus environment by permitting anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators to harass and physically assault individuals, including many Jewish students and otherwise obstruct its once-venerable learning environment".US President Donald Trump, in a proclamation last week, said Harvard had refused recent requests of the DHS for information about foreign students' "known illegal activity", "known dangerous and violent activity", "known threats to other students or university personnel" and other related Indian student, who graduated from the Harvard Graduate School of Design after completing a two-year course, said students come to American institutions with plans of finishing their studies and then finding jobs to work for a few years in the she described the situation of the past few months as being a "rollercoaster"."With all the uncertainty, I can say that a lot of people who are hiring were generally hesitant of international students and maybe the Harvard tag helped earlier, but that's not the same right now at this particular moment," she student from Harvard Kennedy School pointed out that she was in a "desperate job search" at the moment, noting how difficult it was to get a job in the current environment."Employers have just stopped entertaining any international students, forget international students from Harvard, because our visa statuses are so volatile that who would want to employ us right now," she said she doesn't know whether she will be going back to India, staying back or heading to a different country altogether."That uncertainty is a lot in a country like America where you're paying" huge amounts of money in added that she thinks this is a short-term turbulence and things will settle down in the future. "But while we're caught in the crossfire, I think it's been difficult to plan and so it's stressful for sure."The students also pointed out that funding cuts initiated by the Trump administration were impacting jobs in the policy space, climate change, healthcare and public health Design School student recalled that just days before graduating last month, students found out that the Trump administration had terminated Harvard's Student and Exchange Visitor Programme (SEVP) certification, which meant the university could no longer enroll foreign students and existing foreign students must transfer or lose their legal status."We had just finished our final presentations, we were celebrating over lunch and we saw this news. It was quite unbelievable. Six months ago, you could never predict that something like this would happen," she however, urged foreign students not to feel discouraged by the current situation."This should not discourage people. Because I think what institutions like Harvard also do is that they make you a global citizen. And if not America, people are finding pathways elsewhere," she students say they had planned to move back to India eventually but had hoped to work in the US for the initial few years, both to get experience in the American job market and also to earn to pay back the significant student loans they young student, who graduated from Harvard Kennedy School, said while the current situation has been full of "unpredictability", at some levels students are building some kind of resistance, immunity to respond to developments in real-time, because the Trump administration's moves against Harvard have been blocked and stalled by the courts."The challenges that we face on a day-to-day basis are probably in terms of job opportunities, how we plan our future and the next steps," he said."I know of some classmates of mine who have been in the final stages of interviews with a few companies, but once they found out that these students were from Harvard, they were like 'that might pose a few issues later on. So, we'll move on with another candidate'," the student said."I've seen a higher number of people who are going back (to India). They have made up their mind that it's not worth staying and then being in a state of uncertainty, away from family and home, sacrificing a lot of things for a future that remains highly uncertain. So, that holds lesser value now for a lot of my peers," he cited media reports that said the State Department had told US consulates globally to resume processing visa applications for students planning to attend Harvard University. "All this is a signalling effect currently, which is hurting all of us a lot. Because you don't really know what, where you can apply, what you can do, employees are hesitant."He added that he had also been talking to a lot of students from India who are set to arrive in the US to commence studies at Harvard around September this year."Generally, yes, the concern has increased a lot in terms of what kind of opportunities exist, because they would be leaving a lot of things back home. The opportunity cost is higher than ever."He said incoming students or those planning to come to the US in the future to study were hesitant and considering whether they should apply to universities in Europe and elsewhere given "the kind of environment which has been created for international students generally in the US", which will have far-reaching said that while no one he has spoken to among the incoming students has been denied a visa, "some are reconsidering. They are unsure since there's fear of losing funding and scholarships they've received this year if they defer or don't join".According to statistics on the website of Harvard International Office, there are 788 students and scholars from India at all schools under Harvard University for the 2024-25 academic Global Support Services said on its website that each year, anywhere from 500-800 Indian students and scholars study at hosts a total of about 10,158 students and scholars from around the world across its schools, according to Harvard International Office Kennedy School student pointed to the "American Dream" that used to bring students from India and elsewhere to the US."I think that has been significantly affected. It's definitely not the same as what it used to be, even, I would say, five years ago, because a lot of this damage is unrepairable."But amid all this, what he found "heartening" was the university administration "stepping up" and putting forward a more resolute and strong show of support for the students."The other thing which has been absolutely amazing to see is students showing more support for their international peers."Tune InMust Watch IN THIS STORY#Donald Trump#United States of America
India Today
an hour ago
- India Today
Five reasons why Indian sub-continent has changed post Operation Sindoor
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When the Afghan War ended, Pakistan used the leftover infrastructure of Operation Cyclone warehouses filled with weapons and tens of thousands of radicalised mujahideen, to wage war against India, first in Punjab, and later in Jammu and Kashmir. All along, the Pakistan Army kept up the pretence of violent groups like the LeT and Jaish-e-Mohammed being 'non-state actors', over whom the state had no control when terrorist groups like the TTP turned against it, Pakistan used the attacks to play the victim card. Each time India attempted to point at Pakistan's state sponsorship of terror, Islamabad maintained it was also a victim of terrorism. Pakistan used this stratagem to deceive the West in the two-decade War on Terror in Afghanistan (2001-2021). It deceived the US that it was with them while it was covertly training and sheltering the Taliban. 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden was hidden in a safehouse just a kilometre away from the Pakistan Military Academy, India, the mask fell off on April 16, 2025. On that day, army chief General Asim Munir who delivered a highly provocative and communal speech advocating the Two Nation Theory. On April 22, 26 Indian tourists and one Nepali national were massacred by Pakistani terrorists. Post Operation Sindoor, the Pakistan army has accorded military funerals to dead terrorists. Terrorist leaders have openly appeared on platforms with politicians. The mask of deniability has fallen off. The blame for all future terror strikes will be laid squarely at the doorstep of the Pakistan RAISES PAKISTAN'S TERROR SPONSORSHIP COSTSTerrorism was a low-cost option for the Pakistan Army. By spending a few crores on running training camps and terror infrastructure over the years, it tied down entire divisions of the Indian Army in Jammu and Kashmir. Every Indian Army division tied down in J&K, the Pakistan Army believed, was one less than could be deployed against it in a conventional emboldened Pakistan Army continued to inflict what it believed was death by a thousand cuts on India, spreading attacks to the mainland. When terror groups like the LeT became self-sufficient, running their outfits through public donations, the financial burden on the Pakistan Army and its ISI was further Operation Sindoor rampage by India destroyed terrorist training camps and military infrastructure inside Pakistan. A bankrupt Pakistan, living a hand- to- handout existence will have to decide where it will need to spend its precious foreign exchange on importing more fighter jets and missiles, or feeding its people. Terror sponsorship is no longer a low-cost Operation Sindoor end Pakistan-sponsored terrorism ? It is unlikely. This is because the Pakistan Army defines victory very differently, as the scholar C Christine Fair once for the Pakistan Army is not when it loses half its country and its military infrastructure is wrecked. Defeat for the Pakistan Army is only when it stops Pakistan Army is actually a gigantic business corporation. The military runs a business empire, construction companies, housing corporations, security agencies and logistics firms which benefit a key military elite. This business empire is estimated at over $100 billion. So deeply entrenched is this autonomous state within a state that there's actually a term for it, Milbus or Military Business, coined by Pakistani scholar Ayesha Siddiqa. The Pakistan Army chief is also the MD and CEO of this corporation. What Operation Sindoor has done is to force the Pakistan Army chief to do a cost-benefit analysis before launching a terror strike against India. 'Will this attack deliver more for me than the cost of retaliation from India?'advertisement4. BOOSTED INDIA'S INDIGENOUS WEAPONSOne of the key thrust areas of the Modi government was indigenous weapons systems. This paid off handsomely during Operation Sindoor when indigenously developed solutions proved to be star of Operation Sindoor was the Russian-designed indigenously produced Su-30MKI and the Brahmos supersonic cruise missile. India is the only country in the world with this combination- a fighter jet carrying a heavy supersonic cruise missile with a 200 kg warhead. Because the missile flies at nearly three times the speed of sound, it strikes targets with nine times the kinetic energy of ordinary missiles. This combination was an Indian invention — the product of the Indian engineers at Brahmos aerospace, the IAF and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). The indigenously developed Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS) knits all of India's ground-based air defences into one network, beating back Pakistan's repeated air assaults. India's startups too supplied drones that were used by the Indian military in strikes against Pakistani targets. Operation Sindoor's lessons will further boost the indigenous defence ecosystem, accelerating the creation of a domestic military industrial complex.5. IDENTIFIED FRIEND AND FOEIn the fog of war, the biggest challenge is to identify who your friends and foes are. For India, Operation Sindoor cleared some of the haze. The Turkiye, Azerbaijan and China nexus was always one that backed Pakistan. This was more pronounced as all three came out in strong support of Pakistan backing it with diplomatic and military support.A mercurial Donald Trump, who claimed to have used trade as a lever to get India to stop shooting at Pakistan, will only reinforce New Delhi's belief that American weapons come with strings attached. A senior MoD bureaucrat explained to me why India would never buy American fighter jets. 'Because they will never allow you to fight the wars they don't want you to.'
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Harvard prepares emergency plans as Trump's policies threaten international students
Harvard University is working with global partners such as the University of Chicago and London Business School to safeguard the future of its international students amid tightening US visa rules under Trump-era policies. With international students making up about 27% of its student body, the university is urgently exploring backup plans to ensure educational continuity, according to a report by the Times of India. Visa restrictions raise concerns across campuses The Trump administration has enacted a federal ban on new international student admissions at Harvard, part of a broader immigration crackdown that includes heightened background checks and scrutiny of social media profiles. Students involved in campus protests, particularly those related to the Israel-Hamas conflict, have faced visa revocations and, in some cases, detentions. These measures have alarmed educational institutions across the US, especially since international students contribute around $45 billion annually to the American economy, according to the US Department of Commerce. The largest numbers of students come from China and India. (Join our ETNRI WhatsApp channel for all the latest updates) Universities seek global solutions In response, several universities are considering shifting international students to overseas campuses in visa-friendly countries like Qatar. Institutions such as New York University, Northeastern, and Hult International Business School have global branches and are exploring such transfers. However, differences in tuition fees, academic structures, and credit systems remain major hurdles. Live Events You Might Also Like: US resumes visa processing for Harvard students after court blocks Trump's policy ban Travel risks and summer planning As per the TOI report, international students are also increasingly concerned about leaving the US for summer breaks, fearing they might not be allowed back in, even with valid visas. At Macalester College in Minneapolis, which has 20% international student enrollment, the administration has launched initiatives to help students stay in the US during the break, including fundraising and internship programs. The National Association of Foreign Student Advisers (NAFSA) has criticized the visa policies, calling them 'an unacceptable assault' on international education. The group warned that the actions have created a climate of fear and confusion on campuses. Long-term impact on US higher education As elite institutions like Harvard respond to the crisis with stopgap measures, concerns grow that international students may begin choosing other countries such as Canada, the UK, or Australia, where immigration policies are perceived as more welcoming. Experts warn that prolonged restrictions could diminish the global reputation of US higher education. You Might Also Like: Degrees & dilemmas: Indian students at Harvard navigate uncertainties The situation remains fluid, with institutions mobilizing resources and partnerships to shield their international communities. However, the long-term future of international education in the US remains uncertain under continuing policy changes.
