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BOSTON: The American constitution in its 1st amendment adheres the principle of separation of Church and the State. It says "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise there off." The delegates to the 17 87 Constitutional Convention blocked the establishment of Christianity as a national religion. The declaration that India is a secular state in Indian Constitution drafted by the Indian Constituent Assembly was a direct fallout of the 1st amendment of US constitution.

Yes, we’ve had enough optimistic commentary on near-misses and heroic failures. The result is bad: Jean-Luc Mélenchon ran for president a third time, and again hasn’t made it.

India’s annual tea exports, industry circles fear, may decline by around 15% because of the ongoing war in Ukraine. In addition to much reduced bulk purchases by Russia and Ukraine, present trends indicate that demand in the months ahead may fall in neighbouring CIS (Commonwealth of Independent Countries) areas as well.

There is a general feeling of relief at the exit of the PTI Government led by Imran Khan in Pakistan and the coming of the opposition coalition leader Shehbaz Sharif as the new Prime Minister Nazam Sethi, editor of the renowned The Friday Times, began his column, captioned, ‘Ten Days That Shook Pakistan’, put it in a hard-hitting way- “Imran Khan and his fascist hybrid regime have finally been kicked out. Thankfully, the Miltablishment and Judiciary that had supported him refused finally, to bail him out of his self-inflicted troubles”. He thanked the Opposition for closing ranks ‘in the face of brutal repression.’

While a new prime minister has been elected by a rainbow coalition of opposition parties in Pakistan, it does not bode well for political stability in the country.

Incumbent President Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron representing La République En Marche had a slight edge over the far right Marion Anne Perrine "Marine" Le Pen of National Rally in the first round of French presidential poll held on Sunday - having received 27.6 per cent and 23.4 per cent respectively. Almost neck to neck were the conservative Francois Fillon and the so-called far left Jean-Luc Antoine Pierre Mélenchon of La France Insoumise got 20 per cent and 21.9 per cent respectively. The second and final polling when the voters are to vote for either of Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen is due on 24 April.

Fresh analysis is pointing toward the conclusion that, with its invasion of Ukraine, Russia may have stepped into an Afghanistan-style trap set by the U.S. In launching a criminal invasion of its neighbor and thus economically isolating itself from much of the world, the Kremlin has effectively done exactly what the U.S. and NATO wanted.

In 2018, Pakistan witnessed the rise of new celebrity Prime Minister Imran Khan, who vowed to halt dynastic politics, end corruption and boost the economy. Common Pakistanis, especially the youth, saw Khan as their only ray of hope. As before coming to power, Khan in his speeches pledged to root out corruption and lift people out of poverty. And he promised a new and prosperous Pakistan “Naya Pakistan” with the creation of 10 million jobs.

The Pakistan Supreme Court has virtually shown the door to another prime minister. Apparently, it might take longer for Imran Khan’s fate to be decided for good, but the action of a five-member bench of Pakistan’s apex court to strike down the controversial decision of deputy speaker of the national assembly to reject the opposition’s no-trust motion against Imran Khan’s premiership shows yet again that the Pak judiciary can assert itself to be independent if it elects to do so at the most critical time.

A section of Bangladeshi media analysts, unlike their more diplomatic Indian counterparts, has taken a distinctively acerbic view of the role played by Ukraine in Europe and elsewhere in recent years. The mainstream Dhaka-based media however is broadly supportive of their country’s present neutral positioning on the war in Ukraine.