oppn parties India's Foreign Policy Investment In Middle-East Pays Rich Dividend

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Tiranga Rally Is Excellent. Breaking The Law Was Not

October 17, 2026

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  • Allahabad HC said that the UP Police is acting as law unto themselves as they detained a person unlawfully even before his arrest
  • Kolkata witnesses traffic snarls on the first day of the Durga Puja festival as revellers start pnadal-hopping
  • Neha Bora was subsequently released and Dipke is to appear before a magistrate today at noon
  • Delhi Police detained Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke, Neha Bora of AISA, student leaders and supporters ahead of a rally in Connaught Place demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation. The protest followed the detention and jailing of two CJP leaders earlier in the week over demonstrations at Jantar Mantar
  • The Reserve Bank of India is considering further monetary tightening to counter capital outflows and increase the cost of betting against the rupee, according to bankers and analysts cited by Reuters. The measures follow recent rate increases and steps to drain liquidity as pressure on the currency and inflation concerns persist
  • India directed oil marketing companies to stop diverting sugar-based feedstocks for ethanol production in the 2026–27 supply year, according to a new tender issued on Friday. The companies have invited bids for 11 billion litres of ethanol made from alternatives including corn and broken rice, amid concerns about domestic sugar supplies and prices
  • Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India's trade imbalance with China was growing sharply and attributed the problem partly to restrictions on Indian goods and services entering the Chinese market. China subsequently said it was ready to work with India to address mutual economic and trade concerns; India's trade deficit with China reached $69 billion in the first half of FY2026–27, up 27% year-on-year
  • Indian equity benchmarks extended their recovery on Friday, with the Sensex rising 413.66 points to close at 74,729.27 and the Nifty 50 gaining 148.80 points to settle at 23,146.15. Information technology shares, including Tech Mahindra, Infosys and TCS, helped lift the indices
  • India defeated Zimbabwe by four wickets in the opening women's T20 International in Raipur, taking a 1–0 lead in the three-match series. Deepti Sharma and Niki Prasad combined in an 82-run stand after India's top order collapsed, helping the hosts chase down Zimbabwe's total of 114 for five
  • Indian wrestler Komal won bronze in the women's 59 kg category at the Under-23 World Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas, defeating Kazakhstan's Viktoriia Khusainova 7–2. Fellow Indian Amruta Pujari advanced to the women's 72 kg final after recording two pinfall victories
  • Indian shuttler Jagsher Singh Khangurra secured a bronze medal at the BWF World Junior Badminton Championships in Cairo
  • The Supreme Court of India upheld the Bombay High Court's decision quashing the 2020 write-off of ₹8,415 crore in additional tier-1 bonds issued by Yes Bank (Yes Bank). The court ruled that the bank's administrator lacked the authority to extinguish the bonds under the final reconstruction scheme, strengthening bondholders' claims
  • The Supreme Court issued notices to the Election Commission of India, Delhi Police and opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav, in separate petitions concerning electoral-roll revision and protests held in Delhi on October 10–12. The court also directed the preservation of CCTV footage linked to allegations of police excesses
  • The Supreme Court ruled that a person converting from Hinduism to Islam cannot automatically claim backward-class reservation benefits in the new religious community solely on the basis of their previous caste status. The judgment upheld the Madras High Court's decision striking down a 2024 Tamil Nadu government order that permitted such certification for specified communities
  • The Election Commission of India ordered a Special Summary Revision of electoral rolls in 14 states and three Union Territories, using January 1, 2027, as the qualifying date for voter eligibility. The draft rolls are scheduled for publication on November 12, claims and objections will be accepted until December 11, and the final rolls are due on January 4, 2027
Delhi HC refuses to ban CJP's Tiranga rally at Central Park in Connaught Place today /////// Police says will control and regulate it /////// NDMC closes the park for the public on Friday and Saturday
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India's Foreign Policy Investment In Middle-East Pays Rich Dividend

By Our Editorial Team
First publised on 2024-02-13 14:00:16

About the Author

Sunil Garodia The India Commentary view

When seven former Indian Navy officers and one former Navy seaman, working for a Doha-based private company Dahra Global, were arrested on unspecified charges in Qatar in 2022 and later sentenced to death there was little hope that they would be released and sent back to India. The buzz was that they were arrested on charges for spying for Israel (which amounts to treason in those parts) and given the extra-sensitive nature of all Middle-East countries towards Israel it was rightly assumed that the arrested persons, even if they were not executed, would spend a considerable time in Qatari jails. But, in a major diplomatic win for India, all eight were released on Monday and seven of them returned home.

India has, in the last ten years, invested considerable time and energy in improving its relations with countries in the Middle-East. Nations like Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman always tilted towards Pakistan in the past although their relations with India were not strained. But in the last few years, these countries have begun to appreciate the work being done by India on the global stage (especially during the pandemic) and its growing economic clout. Also, Prime Minister Modi's personal equation with the rulers of these countries has also helped in taking bilateral ties several notches higher. In the case of the arrested persons in Qatar, India chose to handle the issue very carefully without making unnecessary noise for the consumption of the global media.

Things started moving fast after Prime Minister Modi met the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al-Thani on the sidelines of COP28 summit in Dubai. The convicts on death row till then were allowed consular access and allowed to file an appeal. The result was that the death sentence was commuted to jail terms of varying degrees. That was a major breakthrough. After that, talks went on though proper channels, monitored at all times by Prime Minister Modi, and finally culminated in securing their release. This shows how well and in a calibrated manner India has been able to broaden bilateral relations with both the Islamic monarchies in the Middle-East and Israel. The success of India's foreign policy measures in the region is proved by the release of the eight Navy men from Qatar. 

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