‘Words Can Heal or Harm’: Grand Mufti Urges Leaders to Shun Communal Rhetoric at Kerala Yatra in Kannur

Kolkata: Stressing that India is a "Hindu nation," Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Chief Mohan Bhagwat on Sunday said that no constitutional approval is needed as it is the "truth".

Addressing an event marking 100 years of the RSS, Bhagwat said that India is, and will remain, a Hindu nation until Indian culture is appreciated in the country.

"The Sun rises in the east; we don't know since when this has been happening. So, do we need constitutional approval for that, too? Hindustan is a Hindu nation. Whoever considers India their motherland appreciates Indian culture, as long as there is even one person alive on the land of Hindustan who believes in and cherishes the glory of Indian ancestors, India is a Hindu nation. This is the ideology of the Sangh," he said at the '100 Vyakhyan Mala' program of RSS in Kolkata.

"If Parliament ever decides to amend the Constitution and add that word, whether they do it or not, it's fine. We don't care about that word because we are Hindus, and our nation is a Hindu nation. That is the truth. The caste system based on birth is not the hallmark of Hindutva," he added.

RSS has always argued that India is a "Hindu Nation," given the culture and majority's affiliations to Hinduism. However, 'secular' was not originally part of the Preamble of the Constitution, but it was added along with the word 'socialist' by the Constitution (42nd Amendment) Act, 1976, during the Emergency imposed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Bhagwat also urged people to visit the organisation's offices and 'shakhas' to understand its work, so that what he dubbed as the “false perception” of the organisation as anti-Muslim can be dispelled!

Bhagwat said that people have understood that the organisation advocates for the protection of Hindus, and are "staunch nationalists," but not anti-muslim.

"If there is a perception that we are anti-Muslim, then, as I said, the RSS work is transparent. You can come anytime and see for yourself, and if you see anything like that happening, then you keep your views, and if you don't see it, then you change your views. There is a lot to understand (about RSS), but if you don't want to understand, then no one can change your mind," Bhagwat said.

He said, but anyone unwilling to learn cannot be helped.

"After seeing, people have said that you are staunch nationalists. You organise Hindus, and you advocate for the protection of Hindus. But you are not anti-Muslim. Many people have accepted this, and those who want to know more should come and see the RSS for themselves," he said.

New Delhi: Two new airlines - Al Hind Air and FlyExpress - are set to take to the skies, with the carriers receiving their no objection certificates from the Civil Aviation Ministry.

In 2026, apart from these two carriers, Uttar Pradesh-based Shankh Air, which already has a No Objection Certificate (NOC), is likely to start operations.

Al Hind Air is being promoted by Kerala-based alhind Group.

The ministry is keen to have more airline operators in the country, which is one of the world's fastest growing domestic civil aviation markets.

Currently, there are nine operational scheduled domestic carriers in the country. Fly Big, a regional airline, suspended scheduled flights in October.

IndiGo and Air India Group - Air India and Air India Express - together have over 90 per cent of the domestic market share.

Concerns about apparent duopoly in the fast-growing domestic airlines' industry got amplified this month in the wake of the massive operational disruptions at IndiGo, which has a market share of more than 65 per cent.

"Over the last one week, pleased to have met teams from new airlines aspiring to take wings in Indian skies- Shankh Air, Al Hind Air and FlyExpress. While Shankh Air has already got the NOC from the Ministry, Al Hind Air and FlyExpress have received their NOCs this week," Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said in a post on X on Tuesday.

According to him, it has been the endeavour of the ministry to encourage more airlines in Indian aviation which is amongst the fastest growing aviation markets.

Schemes like UDAN, have enabled smaller carriers Star Air, India One Air and Fly91 to play an important role in the regional connectivity within the country and there is more scope for further growth, he added.

Apart from Air India, Air India Express, IndiGo and state-owned Alliance Air, other scheduled carriers are Akasa Air, SpiceJet, Star Air, Fly91 and IndiaOne Air, as per latest data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

In the past years, many airlines, including Go First and Jet Airways, stopped flying amid debt woes.

Kannada and Tamil television actor Nandini CM has reportedly died by suicide at a paying guest accommodation in Bengaluru, shocking the television industry. She was 26.

Kengeri Police have registered an Unnatural Death Report (UDR No. 76/2025) under Section 194 of the BNSS Act, 2023. The incident is believed to have occurred between 11:16 pm on December 28, 2025, and 12:30 am on December 29, 2025. It was reported to the police the same day at around 9:15 am.

The incident took place on the second floor of the PG in Kengeri. According to the FIR, Nandini completed her PUC in Ballari in 2018 and later enrolled in an engineering course at RR Institute, Hesaraghatta. However, her interest in acting led her to discontinue regular college attendance and pursue acting training in Rajarajeshwari Nagar.

Since 2019, she had acted in several Kannada television serials and had been residing in PG accommodations in Bengaluru. She moved to the Kengeri PG in August 2025.

Following her father’s death in 2023, Nandini was offered a government job on compassionate grounds but reportedly declined, choosing to continue her acting career. This reportedly caused disagreements at home.

On December 29, around 3:45 am, Kengeri Police informed the family that Nandini had been found hanging in her PG room. The family reached Bengaluru at approximately 8:00 am to gather details about the incident.

Police said that on the evening of December 28, Nandini had visited her friend Puneeth’s house and returned to the PG around 11:23 pm, locking her room from the inside. When Puneeth tried calling her later without success, he alerted the PG manager, Kumar, and the in-charge, Kiran, around 11:50 pm. When they forced the door open, Nandini was found hanging from the window grille using a veil cloth. Emergency services and police arrived, confirming her death on the spot.

The family stated that Nandini had expressed in her diary her desire to continue acting and her reluctance to take up a government job, mentioning that her feelings were not understood by them. Based on this, the family has no suspicions or allegations against anyone regarding her death.

Further investigation is underway by PSI Hanumantha Hadimani of Kengeri Police Station.