royfrancis

Views are entirely personal.

[Abhijeet Dipke @abhijeet_dipke]

Thank you, Hon’ble CJI. Without you, this wouldn’t have been possible.

Big hug❤️

[Josy Joseph @josyjosephkj]

Birth of a Nation is now #3 on @Bahrisons_books Non-Fiction Best Sellers chart.

Go beyond the history you know and discover the stories that shaped the birth of modern India.

Grab your copy now. 📚

Posted by Team Josy Joseph

[Josy Joseph @josyjosephkj]

People often say truth is stranger than fiction.

The more I read about 1947, the more I realised that some of the most unbelievable stories were actually true. That's what inspired me to write Birth of a Nation: The 21 Days That Made India

Get your copy now. Link in bio.

[Kerala Tourism @KeralaTourism]

Jack of all fruits!

#JackfruitDay #KeralaJackfruit #KeralaTourism

[Paul Koshy @Paul_Koshy]

Excellent 👌@GodiMedia

[Sanjiv Bhatt (IPS) @sanjivbhatt]

This is @aakashibhatt and @shantanubhatt95

Dearest Dad,

This is the 8th Father’s Day we are spending torn apart from one another.

When people hear the word father, they often think of a provider, a protector, a parent. But to us, you have been infinitely more than that. You have been our friend, guide, mentor, our biggest inspiration, fiercest supporter, our moral compass, our strength … our very soul! Everything we are today, every value we hold, every conviction we carry, every ounce of courage we possess, begins with you!

Long before we understood the complexities of the world, we understood that if we wanted to know what courage looked like, we only had to look at you … If we wanted to know what integrity looked like, we only had to look at you … If we wanted to know what it meant to stand up for others, to defend those who needed defending, to speak when silence was easier and to persevere when surrender seemed tempting, we only had to look at you!

In these past years, Shan and I have watched lesser men, drunk on power make decisions that have profoundly and painfully altered the course of countless lives. We have watched men entrusted with responsibility choose self-preservation over courage... We have watched Men bending their principles to pressure and greed, choosing convenience over conscience, obedience over integrity, silence over truth and self-interest over justice.

And often, as I watched them, I found myself wondering:
What legacy will these men leave behind?

When history strips away their titles, their influence, their power, what will remain?

When their kin are old enough to understand, what will they tell themselves? What will they think when they look back upon their choices?

Will they speak proudly of men who remained silent when they should have spoken?

Will they admire men who bowed when they should have stood?

Will they celebrate men who traded integrity for advancement and conscience for comfort? who watched injustice unfold and chose silence because it was safer?

Or will they feel the unbearable weight of knowing, that when the moment came to stand for what was right, these men chose instead to kneel before what was expedient?

I do not know.

But what I do know beyond any doubt is that they will never know what Shan and I do …

They will never know the immeasurable privilege of being the children of a man whose character cannot be compromised, whose conscience cannot be intimidated, and whose spirit cannot be broken!

They will never know what it feels like to draw strength from a father whose life is a testament to courage!

They will never know the pride that surges through our veins when we speak his name!

They will never know what it is like to have a father who is not merely a hero to us, but to tens of thousands...

A man who chose principle over comfort...
A man who stood when others knelt...
A man who spoke when others remained silent...
A man who chose truth over safety...
A man who paid the heavy price for doing what was right!

Dad, you have always led by example …

You taught us that courage is not a dramatic act performed in a single moment of heroism, rather it is a habit … a way of moving through the world, a quiet refusal to compromise one's principles, even when compromise would make life easier. It is the willingness to stand alone when standing with the crowd would be safer. It is the ability to look adversity directly in the eye and refuse to surrender your humanity to it.

From you, we learned to never remain silent in the face of injustice, to fight for what is right, no matter the consequences, to face adversity with our heads held high, to walk into storms rather than run from them and to never allow the fire in our hearts and the courage in our souls to be extinguished.

You taught us that hope is not naïveté, rather it is defiance. It is the refusal to allow injustice the final word … it is the belief that truth survives even when buried, that justice survives even when delayed, and that goodness survives even when punished.

Children often search for heroes in books, films, and legends, but Shan and I never had to, because we were fortunate enough to grow up with ours … A hero in flesh and blood! A hero whose voice guided us …Whose example shaped us … Whose love sustained us. A hero we have the immense honour of calling our father!

Dad, you have, and you continue to inspire us, shaping our lives indelibly and forever. Since we were little, you filled our childhood with laughter, warmth, books, music, art, culture, curiosity, and wonder, unwavering in your efforts to introduce us to extraordinary role models. As you guided us through these incredible years of our lives, I wonder whether you ever realised that the person Shan and I have most wanted to become, ever since we were young, has always been, and will always remain, you!

For eight long years, we have been torn apart by cowardly, spine-less men. They’ve stolen away our precious years, celebrations, ordinary moments, memories, and irreplaceable time.But they have failed in the one thing they truly sought to destroy…They have failed to break your courage, spirit and resilience!

People often say greatness is measured by the lives one touches and the principles one refuses to abandon ….
By that measure, Dad, you are a giant!

The names of those who abuse power will eventually fade into oblivion.

But the names of those who stood against them will echo across generations.

Because, in the end, good, though battered and bruised, must triumph over evil.

Justice, though trampled by politics and power, must ultimately prevail

Truth, though persecuted, must emerge.

And it is my belief that you, Dad, will emerge from this stronger than ever!

Dad, you are not only our father … You are our hero … our NorthStar … Our Cornerstone!

Here's to a future where people find the strength to choose courage instead of subservience!

A future where conscience matters more than convenience, where integrity matters more than power, where truth matters more than fear!

Enough lives have been shattered, enough dreams have been trampled and enough futures have been sacrificed at the altar of political expediency!

The time for silence has long passed …. The time for courage has arrived.

And if there is one thing you have taught us, it is this:
That a single voice speaking the truth can echo louder than an army of cowards.

Here's to the day when these years are finally behind us, when distance is no longer measured in years, when celebrations are no longer marked by absence, and when we can simply sit together again, in the warmth of our home.

Here's to the day our family is whole again .... To many more years of laughter, love, arguments about books, terrible jokes, shared meals, listening to music and, as you would say, continuing to "build character."

Happy Father's Day, Dad!

We love you to infinity and beyond and we are immensely proud to be your children!!

Lots and lots of love,
Aakashi & Shantanu

#justiceforsanjivbhatt #FreeSanjivBhatt #EnoughIsEnough

[Veena Jain @Vtxt21]

During UPA Govt led by Dr Manmohan Singh removed security from US embassy and checked passports of US diplomats when US misbehaved with an Indian diplomat in US, and also condemned US in strong words

Today US Navy literally killed our Indian seafarers in Oman sea, but our Modi Govt has no guts to condemn it by taking the name of US, forget about taking any action

What a downfall of India's image at global level. All because of a compromised PM 😑

[William Dalrymple @DalrympleWill]

"Nationalism,” John Le Carre once said, is “quite different from patriotism. For nationalism you need enemies.”

[Rants&Roasts @Sydusm]

Apparently, for many, including the Gen Z, Rahul Gandhi is a good man but a weak leader.

What is the definition of strong, may we ask?

A person who is now fully committed to uprooting the rot of the sangh from India is weak.

A person who hit the road for months and walked across the country is weak.

A person who speaks fearlessly every day against the corrupt criminal leaders and industrialists is weak.

A person who is well educated, well mannered, and respectful is weak.

A person who has foretold every failure of the regime years in advance is weak.

A person who genuinely meets people from all strata and listens to them is weak.

A person who heads a party that gives the only viable alternative to the sangh.

So, who is strong?

An online gatherer of handles and maker of memes? Is that the definition of strong?

[Mohammed Zubair @zoo_bear]

This video of @narendramodi is before he becoming PM.
It's even more relevant today.

[𒀭Dr Able Lawrence MD DM🦉周天堂🌻 @abledoc]

https://t.co/maMKAPRdst

[Prashant Bhushan @pbhushan1]

Congress Party has taken a wise decision to select VD Satheesan as the CM of Kerala. He enjoys a clean image & is connected to the people. Let us look forward to a clean govt for the people, something which Kerala has been known for & which made Kerala the foremost State in India

[vir sanghvi @virsanghvi]

There is so much recent negativity about @airindia that I want to put this out.
I have taken 3 flights on @airindia in the last three days.
On Wednesday:Rome to Del
On Thursday: Del to Bom
On Friday: Bom to Del
In every single case the flight was on time. The inflight service was warm & efficient. Luggage came relatively quickly (quickest in Del)
The check in was entirely painless
I don’t think frequent travellers care as much as others about airline food but if you think that’s important then I had a very good dinner on Rome to Del.
On the international sector I
flew one of the older Dreamliners & I am not one of those aeroplane nerds but I thought
it was very comfortable.
It’s second nature for many
of us to bitch about @airindia but it’s one of only two international airlines I
fly regularly. The other is @emirates which admittedly is far better ( & far more expensive) but it is the best airline in the world so it’s better than every other carrier anyway.
The Tatas need to hold their nerve. There is a lot that is good about @airindia that rarely gets acknowledged
@TataCompanies

[Rajdeep Sardesai @sardesairajdeep]

Sunday musing: A friend raises a good point: why do we need 4 days @ECISVEEP after final voting for counting to begin? Think about Kerala and Assam: EVMs have been kept in strong rooms for almost 4 weeks. Doesn’t happen in any other part of the world.

[Tom Sauer @thomasbsauer]

I’m begging the Navy’s senior officers, with tears in my eyes… You all look silly.

If you are not part of the crew of an aircraft, please don’t wear a flight suit.

If your job is in a climate controlled office building… Wear a service uniform.

This isn’t hard, you guys.

[ranjona banerji 🇮🇳 @ranjona]

Please sign this petition to save Nicobar.
Delhi people: the island, not the shop.
https://t.co/s05s0I5s2d

[Manan S. Bhatt @mananbhattnavy]

“We were friends before we were soldiers, history made us enemies. War changed our uniforms, not our memories."

Subedar Ghulam Muhammad, 15 Punjab regiment (Pakistan Army) greets Lt Col Anant Singh, CO 4 Sikh regiment (Indian Army), as he arrives at prisoner of the war camp near Lahore in 1965.

It was the first meeting of the two since they fought together in World War II.

They didn’t meet as Pakistani or Indian soldiers first,
they met as old soldiers who remembered who they were before 1947..

They were forged together in the jungles of WWII, where survival mattered more than religion or flags, and that bond outlived Partition, borders, and even war itself.

“We do not hate each other, we simply obey different commands.”

Anant Singh used to lovingly call Ghulam Md "kumhaar da khhota."

[Southern Naval Command @IN_HQSNC]

Boost to Healthcare Services at INHS Sanjivani

RAdm Prakash Gopalan, Chief of Staff , #SNC inaugurated new medical facilities at #INHSSanjivani on #16Apr 26, marking significant advancement in clinical care capabilities.
The upgrades include state-of-the-art image intensifier system for precision surgeries, along with a modernised Dental Centre featuring improved treatment facilities and patient care. These facilities will make #healthcare services more efficient and comfortable for patients.
@dgafms_mod
@indiannavy

[Siddharth @svaradarajan]

Proud of my old newspaper, @the_hindu, take a bow @nambath, the only paper to have the correct headline for what transpired in parliament yesterday. All other newspapers seem to have bought the government’s spin that the ‘opposition defeated women’s reservation’!

[Meetu Bhargava @DrMeetuBhargava]

It is shocking—and now entirely indefensible—that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Government of India have failed to secure the return of the eighth Indian Navy veteran, Commander Purnendu Tiwary.

Hon’ble Prime Minister had publicly stated that all 8 Navy veterans had returned to India from Doha. Yet, Commander Tiwary was left behind, while his 7 peers were brought back on 12 February 2024.

The explanation of “paper formalities” is no longer tenable. More than two years have passed, and the consequences of this lapse have been grave.

Commander Tiwary has endured nearly four years of extreme hardship in Doha and has now been languishing in jail for almost five months. He is suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) along with other serious medical conditions. His health is deteriorating rapidly.

This is not a delay—it is a humanitarian failure.

What is even more alarming is that the cases against him were stitched out of the very same case for which he had already been pardoned by His Highness, despite having no role in the company’s financial matters.

The responsibility for finances and contractual obligations rested solely with the company owner. Yet, in a clear attempt to shift blame, CEO Khamis implicated Commander Tiwary. The Qatar High Court, in its unequivocal judgment dated 12 March 2026, rejected these allegations and declared Commander Purnendu Tiwary innocent.

Despite this clear judicial finding, he continues to remain in jail.

For over two years, the family waited in silence, trusting repeated assurances from MEA. That trust now stands completely shaken. It is heartbreaking—and unacceptable—that his 87-year-old mother still waits while her son remains behind.

This is not merely a lapse—it reflects a serious failure of urgency and accountability in a matter involving the life, dignity, and survival of an Indian citizen and a former naval officer.

Commander Tiwary’s condition is now critical. Every passing day increases the risk to his life.

🚨 Immediate and decisive intervention is required now.

🙏 An earnest appeal from his sister to the Hon'ble Prime Minister & Hon'ble EAM —please bring Commander Purnendu Tiwary back home without any further delay. His 87-year-old mother is still waiting.

@PMOIndia @narendramodi @narendramodi_in @DrSJaishankar @rajnathsingh @RajnathSingh_in @AmitShah @MEAIndia @MOS_MEA @indiannavy @IndiannavyMedia @IndEmbDoha @IndianDiplomacy