Perhaps Pegasus and farmers’ crises are hot and even chic topics for all. But deep down in the pits, men are still dying by their dozens, though the government denies it. Shit’s happening, and we have no idea what to do with it
Deficient democracy has made its presence felt in India in many forms and terms, associated with many images – some colourful, mostly grim. The Emergency is an easy, obvious example. Communal violence and caste atrocities are staples. A sipper denied to an ailing 84-year-old undertrial is a more recent one. Pegasus, a piece of military-grade snoopi...
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee's visit to the national capital came at a time when the Modi 2.0 regime faces its most vulnerable moment since re-election in May 2019.
In a case filed by migrant workers over rent payment, the High Court ruled that the Delhi CM’s ‘promise’ at a press meet translates into a legal obligation
Aiding and abetting local nationalisms (Bengali, Baloch, Sindhi and Pashtun) against radical Islam has been part of India’s post-colonial strategy to undercut Pakistan, which was created by the vivisection of Britain's India Empire on religious lines as a 'homeland for Indian Muslims'
Operation Pegasus is not the first time the Indian State has spied on its people. But these are times when people themselves surveil each other? What's the difference?
Many opine that the move by the previous AIADMK government not only denies employment opportunities to lakhs of jobless, it also causes a huge financial burden to the state for years
From the recent report on the University Grants Commission’s draft history syllabus at the undergraduate level, it appears that the apex body has metamorphosed into that magaj dholai jantra that is likely to rob young citizens aspiring to enrol for higher education of critical thinking skills and ability to discern facts from fiction
The era of coalitions in national politics was seen to have staged a revival on July 21, as influential and powerful regional parties and leaders trickled into New Delhi’s Constitution Club to join the Sahid Divas meeting virtually addressed by Mamata Banerjee from Kolkata. At multiple locations across the country, including Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, Didi’s address in Bengali for her home audience, Hindi for the heartland and English for everyone was a move to introduce and call attention to an exercise that is fraught with pitfalls.
Social media has witnessed a flurry of comments and barbs over the silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the death of Pulitzer-winning Indian photographer, Danish Siddiqui. His strident critics pointed out that Modi did not even tweet a message condoling the Reuters photographer's death in a conflict zone in Afghanistan because Siddiqui specia...
Over the last five months, Myanmar (earlier, Burma) has quickly descended from a hopeful democracy into the black hole of military dictatorship. At last count, around 900 civilians have been killed and thousands detained in the ongoing protests for the restoration of democracy.
The irony: this very military headed by Min Aung Hlaing had the full...
The Supreme Court has indicated that it sees no reason why the colonial-era crime of sedition should live on among Independent India’s statutes, throttling citizen’s liberty on an increasing number of occasions, and asked the government to respond. The government’s lawyer has told the apex court that it is open to fixing parameters for invoking Sec...
But for all those who had been clamouring for an American and NATO pullout, the final days of the end game seems to have brought back dark images of the impending return of the Taliban and what it means.
It was only some time ago that the former health minister Harsh Vardhan was accusing the states of “shamelessly” criticising the Union government on the issue of vaccine shortage
Rahul Dravid turns a new leaf in his cricketing journey by getting the opportunity to coach India's second team in India vs England, five-day Test showdown.
The formidable election machinery of the BJP has begun to roll once again, this time in India’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh. With elections to the state assembly barely seven months away, Prime Minister Narendra Modi set the ball rolling by sounding the poll bugle on July 15. He unleashed a breathtaking 280 projects, worth ₹1500 crore, on ...
Swami Pranavananda, the ‘mathadisha’ or 'muttadishas' (head priest) of the Idiga mutt had already breached the norms of sainthood when he enthusiastically and publicly gave up celibacy and embraced ‘grihasta’ status by getting married in 2016.
The previous year, Pranavananda had been questioned in connection with the murder of M M Kalaburgi, a r...
Rivals, party colleagues and the public have called out Priti Patel's ‘hypocrisy’, as the British-Indian MP had overlooked earlier racist slurs against black players
The petition of Stan Swamy, tribal rights activist and jesuit priest booked under UAPA, for medical bail and bail on merits was listed for hearing in the Bombay High Court on July 2.
The prosecutors of the National Investigating Agency (NIA) were eager to take him back to Taloja Prison in Mumbai, saying that he could get medical treatment there. T...
Novak Djokovic is a man on a mission. To win Grand Slam titles, yes, but also to win over the hearts of the fans who are only just beginning to take to him with the same enthusiasm as his great rivals, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
India has really no one it can turn to for help. It has to negotiate directly with the Taliban and hammer at least a functioning relationship with it. No mean task.
What signal is sent out by the expansion of the Council of Ministers and the sacking of 12 ministers? That the government has dumped “Minimum Government, Maximum Governance”? Or that it has no place for the feckless while it welcomes fresh faces and talent?
In reality, the creation of a jumbo council of ministers is an admission that one man’s c...
Federer’s virtuosity has touched the artificial turfs at the Australian and US Opens in Melbourne and New York, respectively, though he has found the red clay of Roland Garros a more complex jigsaw
Even though ministry formation started to degenerate way before the advent of the Modi government in 2014, the current dispensation only worsened the trend.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh sarsanghchalak (head), Mohan Bhagwat's address at an event organised by the organisation's affiliate Muslim Rashtriya Manch (MRM) evoked varied responses with some commentators seeing it as a sign of increasing moderation in the ideological fountainhead of the saffron camp.
Other analysts, including this writer expres...
The success of Bangladesh’s anti-jihadist campaign depends much on Indian support, especially from states like Bengal and Assam, which have served as a sanctuary for Islamist radicals from across the border
