REPORT

REPORT

Justice Karnan might have crossed Indian border today, says aide


As a five-member team of Kolkata Police is in search of Calcutta High Court judge C S Karnan, W Peter Ramesh Kumar, Justice Karnan’s close aide and his legal adviser, claimed that Justice Karnan... More

RSS key to Modi’s political rise, says China scholar


Steeled by the firepower provided by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a roll,notwithstanding latent internal tensions, says a leading Chinese scholar. In... More

Dawn Leaks: Army withdraws tweet rejecting PM’s orders


The Pakistan Army on Wednesday withdrew an earlier tweet which had rejected a government notification regarding the Dawn Leaks, saying the issue had been settled after implementation of recommendations in the Inquiry Committee Report. In... More

BNP unveiled “Vision 2030”: Proposed to curb the PM’s powers, Upper...


Bangladesh main opposition party BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia unveiled “Vision 2030” on Wednesday, a set of proposals she said her party would implement if voted to power in the next national polls, for transforming... More

16th amendment hearing: Chief justice, AG trade heated words


Bangladesh Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha and Attorney General Mahbubey Alam had a heated exchange during a hearing on the appeal against the High Court verdict that scrapped the 16th amendment of the constitution... More

Assam to disband Madrasa, ‘mainstream’ them: Education Minister Himanta


THE BJP-LED government in Assam will soon disband the State Madrasa Board and hand over the academic part of it to the Board of Secondary Education. The Sanskrit Board will also be dissolved, state... More

India petitions ICJ for stay in Kulbhushan Jadhav’s death sentence


India has moved the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to stay the death sentence handed to self-confessed Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav by a military court in Pakistan. According to a statement issued by ICJ on... More

Iranian envoy summoned over cross-border attack threat


ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday summoned the Iranian ambassador to record a formal protest against a recent statement of the Iranian military chief who threatened to conduct cross border raids inside Pakistan against militants who... More

Nepal Cabinet decides to sign pact with China to become part...


The government has decided to sign an agreement with China to become a part of the northern neighbour’s “One Belt, One Road (OBOR)” initiative. A Cabinet meeting on Monday afternoon decided to sign a framework... More

Activists Protest Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s London ‘Freedom’ Award


Activists and refugees demonstrated as State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was presented with the Freedom of the City of London award on Monday, calling the recognition “disappointing” in light of ongoing abuses... More

Pak., Afghanistan may use Google Maps to resolve border dispute


Pakistan and Afghanistan plan on using Google Maps to help resolve a border dispute that led to deadly clashes last week, a senior Pakistani security source said on Monday. At least eight civilians were killed... More

China moots 4-point initiative to improve Sino-India ties


Amid increasing strain in Sino-India ties, China has proposed a four-point initiative to overcome differences and deepen relations which includes aligning its ‘One Belt One Road’ project with India’s ‘Act East Policy’ and restarting... More

IS chief in Afghanistan killed, claims President Ashraf Ghani


The head of the militant Islamic State (IS) group in Afghanistan, Abdul Hasib, has been killed in an operation led by Afghan special forces in Nangarhar province, President Ashraf Ghani said on Sunday. Hasib, appointed... More

Maldives local elections: both sides claim victory


Both the ruling PPM and opposition coalitions in Maldives have claimed victory in the local council elections held on Saturday (6 May). The ruling coalition lead by PPM (Progressive Party of Maldives) has claimed that... More

Chaman border attack: 50 Afghan soldiers killed, says Pak IG FC


Inspector General Frontier Corps (FC) Major General Nadeem Ahmed has said Afghan forces targeted civilian population while Pakistan targeted their check-posts, inflicting heavy casualties. At least 10 people including an FC personnel and women, children... More

Pakistan, India spar over China’s One Belt One Road initiative


Pakistan and India sparred over China’s One Belt One Road (OBOR) project at a panel discussion in Yokohama, Japan on Saturday, with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar rejecting Delhi’s objections and reaffirming unequivocal support for... More

Hindu priest to take ‘trained’ stone-pelters to Kashmir


A saint from Uttar Pradesh plans to take ''trained'' stone pelters to Kashmir valley to what he says ''counter'' attackers on the army and give the ''anti-national'' elements a ''befitting reply''. The saint Arun Puri... More

Indian government accused of attacking tribal identity 


 Student protests continue in the eastern Indian Jharkhand state after the government renamed a college after a Hindu nationalist, a move church activists say was done to dismantle the identity of indigenous people. The government... More

Pakistan summons Afghan charge d’Affairs over border incident


Pakistan summoned on Friday the Afghan charge d'affairs to the country over a border incident that killed several Pakistani citizens, Pakistan’s Foreign Office said in a statement. According to Pakistani media reports, earlier on Friday, Afghan border... More

India calls satellite ‘gift to South Asia’, Pakistan says no thanks


India launched a communications satellite on Friday for its smaller neighbours to share, part of its efforts to build goodwill in the region and counter Chinese influence, but arch- rival Pakistan said it would... More

Court Upholds Sentence for New Delhi Men Convicted of Gang Rape


On Friday the death sentences of four men convicted of raping, torturing and killing a young woman in New Dehli in 2012 was upheld by India’s highest court. The men brutally attacked the 23-year-old... More

COLUMN

The lady and the generals are learning...

In the last few weeks there has been growing speculation that Myanmar’s military leaders are planning a possible coup if the country’s new democratic government, led by the charismatic democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, continues to falter. Many Myanmar analysts and commentators are finding fault with... More

Punish the real culprit(s)!

Facing the storm unleashed by the leaking of the Cyril Almeida story, “Act Against Militants or Face International Isolation, Civilians Tell Military,” the Nawaz Sharif government labelled it as being ‘fabricated and planted.” The PM Office’s initial statement about DawnLeaks that “evidence available so far points to... More

Economic migration: Why flee from an emerging...

Bangladesh has been a top performing economy in Asia, averaging a 6 % + growth rate largely driven by exports, particularly the garments sector, for almost a decade.  Problems do remain though and the World Economic Forum has suggested that better infrastructure, less bureaucratic hassle and less... More

Repeal AFSPA in India

The draconian Indian law, Armed Forces Special Powers Act or AFSPA, has wiped out the human face of counter-insurgency in the country’s many conflict zones. Just see the Bollywood film "Haider" and you know how AFSPA is misused in places like Kashmir. Often it leads to “use... More

Pakistan’s attempts to woo Afghanistan backfire

Last 2 weeks saw a lot of diplomatic activity taking place between Pakistan and Afghanistan on the question of ‘restroing trust’ between them. Apart from Pakistan’s ISI chief’s visit to Kabul, a parliamentary delegation did also visit Afghanistan to  reportedly bridge the ever widening gap between the... More

EDITOR'S CHOICE

No easy refuge from death row for Kulbhushan Jadhav

The movie version of this script, we’re all familiar with: “no, your honour”, shouts the lawyer, the mother tears up, the judge bangs his gavel in approval and the hero walks off death row.... More

Network is the key

Official India has turned its back on China’s celebration of President Xi Jinping’s “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI) this week in Beijing. Some in Beijing and Delhi have warned India against isolating itself amidst... More

Regional connectivity projects can support India’s ambitions

India's Army Chief General Bipin Rawat has called for an increased defense budget and insists the country should look for new allies to deal with its neighbors along the northern and western borders, according... More

Returning the award

My friends in Bangladesh are insisting that I explain why I am returning the award bestowed upon my father Professor Waris Mir in 2013 by Sheikh Hasina Wazed. There have been many comments about... More

MOST POPULAR

READER'S VIEW

Reaction to “Behind Hasina’s RAW tirade”

David Bergman, British investigative journalist based in Bangladesh, commented on a recently published column of South Asian Monitor titled "SOUTHERN EYE: Behind Hasina’s RAW tirade" in his facebook profile. "This is a fascinating and detailed article... More

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