Rahul tweets Army dog squad pic, gets trolled

Congress president Rahul Gandhi tweeted on Friday pictures of the India Army's dog squad performing yoga, captioning it "New India" drawing huge criticism from the BJP leaders and others on the micro-blogging site.

Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh sharply retorted to Gandhi's tweet.

“Congress stands for negativity. Today, their negativity was seen in their clear support to the medieval practice of Triple Talaq. Now, they mock Yoga Day and insult our forces (yet again!) Hoping the spirit of positivity will prevail. It can help overcome toughest challenges," Shah tweeted.

The pictures in Gandhi's tweet showed the Army dog unit and their trainers prostrating. Gandhi's "New India" caption for the pictures evoked massive outrage on social media.

“With due respect to you, @RahulGandhi Ji, these are proud members of the Indian Army and they contribute to the safety of our nation. When someone repeatedly insults our Army, it can only be prayed-Oh God give some good sense,” the Defence Minister tweeted.

World celebrates Yoga Day

Notwithstanding the political row, politicians, bureaucrats and commoners from all walks of life joined mass Yoga demonstrations across the country, from Indian soldiers guarding the borders in the icy ranges of Himalayas and other locations, to mark 5th International Day of Yoga on Friday.

World leaders joined India to celebrate the International Day of Yoga from the UN General Assembly Hall to Britain's iconic St. Paul's Cathedral and China's famed Shaolin Temple as Yoga enthusiasts across the globe rolled out their mats and performed various Asanas with much enthusiasm and dedication.

PM leads celebrations

Leading the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is now 68, stretched and bent performing various Yoga Asanas in Ranchi district of Jharkhand.

At least 40,000 people joined the Prime Minister in 45-minute mass Yoga demonstration organised at the Prabhat Tara Maidan in the capital of Jharkhand.

In his address, Prime Minister appealed to the people to make Yoga an integral part of their lives, highlighting various health benefits associated with its regular practice.

“Yoga has always been in our country and has been an integral part of our culture. But the journey of modern Yoga has not penetrated well to the rural and tribal areas of the country. Now all of us have to carry the journey of modern Yoga from the cities to the villages, forests and remote areas. Yoga is above religion, caste, colour, gender and region. It is above everything,” Modi said.

While President Ram Nath Kovind joined the celebrations at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, dressed in a white tracksuit, led the Yoga Day celebrations in the Parliament House Complex performing various Asanas along with the Members of Parliament (MPs) and staff of the Parliament secretariat.

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and several Union Ministers including Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman joined Yoga day celebrations at different locations.

Envoys, several senior diplomats from India and other countries rolled out the mats and performed various 'asanas' in a capacious hall at the Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra in Chanakyapuri at a Yoga Day event hosted by the Ministry of External Affairs.

Shah joined the Yoga Day celebrations in Rohtak along with Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. The event, however, saw some of the participants fighting for taking the Yoga mats with them after the conclusion of the mass Yoga demonstration at the venue.