Mumbai, May 09: Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday said that the Muslim population in India is likely to be nearly the same as that of Indonesia after the Census.

“The Muslim population in the country is likely to be nearly on par with Indonesia’s population. Once the Census (data) is out, it will be the likely outcome,” the Union minister for Minority Affairs told reporters after a programme here.

As the last Census was conducted in 2011 and the decennial exercise could not be conducted in 2021, the population would have grown, he said.

“Whatever the numbers of whichever (community) are, all are Indians,” Rijiju added.

Highlighting concerns over the declining population of the Parsi community, he stated that their numbers stand at around 52,000 to 55,000 in the country.

The Parsis are the smallest minority community in India and the government is working to protect them and ensure their numbers do not shrink further, he added.

Rijiju also dismissed claims that minorities are under threat in the country, alleging that some political organisations are trying to create fear among the Muslims and Christians.

All citizens are equal before the Constitution and no one is treated differently on the basis of religion or caste, the BJP leader said.

The Bharatiya Janata Party forming a government in West Bengal was also a victory for the country as it is a very sensitive state sharing border with Bangladesh from where a lot of illegal migrants enter, the minister said. The BJP winning the election in the state was a crucial development for national security, he added.

The party has long been raising concerns about illegal migration and the new state government would help address the issue effectively, Rijiju said.

The earlier Mamata Banerjee-led government did not implement certain central schemes, he claimed, citing the National e-Vidhan Application as an example, and added that the Union government would ensure their implementation now.

New Delhi, May 09: India conducted the successful flight-trial of an Advanced Agni missile with Multiple Independently Targeted Re-Entry Vehicle (MIRV) system from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha on May 08, 2026. The missile was flight-tested with multiple payloads, targeted to different targets spatially distributed over a large geographical area in the Indian Ocean Region.

The telemetry and tracking was carried out by multiple ground and ship-based stations. These systems tracked the entire missile trajectory from lift-off till the impact of all payloads. Flight data confirmed that all mission objectives were met during the trial.

With this successful trial, India once again demonstrated the capability to target multiple strategic targets using a single missile system. This missile is developed by DRDO laboratories with the support of Industries across the country. The trial was witnessed by senior scientists of DRDO and the Indian Army personnel.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has complimented DRDO, Indian Army, and Industry on the successful flight-test. This will add an incredible capability to the country’s defence preparedness against the growing threat perceptions, he said.

Kolkata, May 09: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday touched the feet of 98-year-old BJP veteran Makhanlal Sarkar and sought his blessings at the swearing-in ceremony of the party’s first government in West Bengal.

Sarkar was arrested in Kashmir in 1952 while accompanying Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee during the movement to hoist the Indian tricolour there, the BJP said.

“Sarkar is one of the early grassroots figures associated with the nationalist movement in post-Independence India,” the party said in a statement.

Felicitating Sarkar on the stage at the Brigade Parade Grounds here before the oath-taking ceremony of the Suvendu Adhikari government, the PM touched his feet to take his blessings and hugged the veteran leader before exchanging pleasantries.

After the formation of the BJP in 1980, Sarkar became the organisational coordinator for the then West Dinajpur, Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling districts in Left Front-ruled West Bengal.

“From 1981 onward, he served continuously for seven years as district president, an exceptional achievement at a time when BJP leaders generally could not remain in the same organisational position for more than two years,” the statement said.

Kolkata, May 9: Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday took oath as the first BJP chief minister of West Bengal, marking a watershed moment that redrew the state’s political landscape after decades of resistance to saffron politics.

Governor RN Ravi administered the oath of office and secrecy to Adhikari at a grand ceremony attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers, chief ministers of NDA-ruled states and senior BJP leaders.

Soon after Adhikari’s swearing-in, senior BJP leader and party’s former state unit chief Dilip Ghosh took oath as a minister in the new cabinet.

BJP MLAs Agnimitra Paul, Ashok Kirtania, Nisith Pramanik and Kshudiram Tudu were also administered the oath as ministers.

The BJP chose Brigade Parade Grounds – once the citadel of massive Left rallies and later a key battleground of the TMC – for the swearing-in ceremony.

Thousands of BJP supporters thronged the venue, waving saffron flags and raising the ‘Jay Shri Ram’ slogan as Adhikari, one of the principal architects of the BJP’s rise in Bengal, took oath amid elaborate security arrangements.

Suvendu Adhikari took oath as the first BJP Chief Minister of West Bengal since independence.@narendramodi@SuvenduWB#bengalpic.twitter.com/IV6dQv103C

— SansadTV (@sansad_tv) May 9, 2026

The BJP secured 207 seats in the 294-member assembly in the recently concluded elections, ending the Trinamool Congress’ 15-year rule and scripting its most significant breakthrough in eastern India.

The ceremony was attended by senior BJP leaders, MPs, industrialists and film personalities, with the saffron camp projecting the event as the beginning of a “Sonar Bangla” under a “double-engine” government.

Adhikari, who defeated TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee in the assembly Bhabanipur seat and retained his Nandigram constituency, was unanimously elected leader of the BJP legislature party on Friday in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

New Delhi, May 09: Lt Gen NS Raja Subramani (retd) has been named India’s next Chief of Defence Staff and his primary mandate will be to implement the ambitious military theaterisation plan and bolster tri-services synergy. 

He will replace Gen Anil Chauhan, who completes his tenure as the country’s senior-most military commander on May 30. 

Lt Gen Subramani, widely known as an expert on Pakistan and China, is currently serving as the Military Advisor at the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS).

He retired as the Vice Chief of Army Staff on July 31 last year. 

The government has appointed Lt Gen NS Raja Subramani (Retd) as the Chief of Defence Staff and he will also function as the secretary of the department of military affairs, the defence ministry said on Saturday. 

As Chief of Defence Staff, Subramani’s primary task will be to implement the theaterisation model by rolling out integrated military commands. 

Gen Chauhan, a former Eastern Army Commander, took charge as the country’s senior-most military commander in September 2022, over nine months after the first CDS, General Bipin Rawat, died in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu. 

In his illustrious career spanning over 40 years, Lt Gen Subramani served across a wide spectrum of conflict and terrain profiles and held a host of Command, Staff and Instructional appointments. 

He served as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff from July 1, 2024, to July 31, 2025, and was General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Central Command from March 2023 till June 2024. 

The officer is a graduate of the National Defence Academy and the Indian Military Academy. 

He was commissioned into the eighth battalion of the Garhwal Rifles on December 14, 1985. 

Lt Gen Subramani is an alumnus of the Joint Services Command and Staff College, Bracknell (UK), and the National Defence College, New Delhi. He holds a Master of Arts degree from King’s College, London, and an MPhil in Defence Studies from Madras University. 

He commanded the 16 Garhwal Rifles in counter-insurgency operations in Assam as part of Operation Rhino, the 168 Infantry Brigade in Jammu and Kashmir, and the 17 Mountain Division in the Central Sector during a challenging operational environment. 

He also distinguished himself by commanding two corps, including a premier strike corps of the Indian Army on the Western Front. 

Lt Gen Subramani’s staff and instructional assignments include Brigade Major of a Mountain Brigade, Defence Attache in Kazakhstan, Assistant Military Secretary in the Military Secretary’s Branch, Deputy Commander of a Rashtriya Rifles Sector in Jammu and Kashmir, and Deputy Director General of Military Intelligence at the Integrated Headquarters of the Ministry of Defence (Army). 

He also held the posts of Brigadier General Staff (Operations) in the Eastern Command, Chief Instructor (Army) at the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, and Chief of Staff at Headquarters Northern Command. 

The officer possesses insightful knowledge and a deep understanding of operational dynamics on both the Western and Northern borders, according to the defence ministry. 

For his distinguished service, the General Officer has been awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Sena Medal, and Vishisht Seva Medal.