Opinion

Opinion | BJP's New Team For 2029: No Big Bang, But Many Signals

Sources in the BJP say that the rejig announced on Monday is part of a larger exercise.

Opinion | Indian Parliament And The Perils Of Empty 'Swagger'

Indian MPs - on all sides - have found a dangerous new way to game the Parliament. And so far, they all are winning

Opinion | Bankipur, And Why The Most Dangerous Voter Is The One Who Thinks Again

Bankipur is like the NOIDA of Uttar Pradesh. Its voter list isn't like the rest of Bihar. Which is why one must be careful in declaring Kishor's win a phenomenon - yet. But then, there's the power of the voter...

Blog: BJP Has Won Uttar Pradesh, But Is Short Of Options For Chief Minister

The BJP moved with tyre-burning speed to clinch numbers and power in Goa and Manipur, where the verdict wasn't purely in its favour. One Chief Minister has already won a trust vote, another will get there soon.

Blog: Next UP Chief Minister? Intelligence Bureau Checks Done

The resounding win in UP is not a full stop in the BJP's political effort in the crucial state but just a comma. If the party has risen to the top from spot 3 by winning over diverse caste groups to lay the foundation for the general election in 2019, the real test starts now.

Blog: Modi-Amit Shah's Caste Experiment In Uttar Pradesh

I recall on Sunday, March 5, the "Modi-Modi" chant at Varanasi's Pandeypur from a sea of saffron-capped heads wasn't abating. Every minute, in groups, people with BJP flags in their hands would join the swelling gathering. The BJP had prepared for the PM's Road Show Number Two in Varanasi in as many days. Campaigning was to end the next day.

Blog: In This Election In Ayodhya, Ram Temple Issue Not Even In Whispers

On the main arterial road in Ayodhya, Santosh Bhargava lifted a kerosene stove he had repaired and came forward to hand it to a customer. His spine bent after 83 years of a life of struggle in the temple town. I had met him several times from the start of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement in the late 80s - till the peak 90s. He used to repair harmoniums, which were used in...

Blog: Time For Mullah Mulayam To Retire, Say Long-Time Supporters

Najib, with his popcorn cart, has increased the frequency with which he visits the primary school 'chabootra' (a round cemented platform) in Mau village each day. The village elders and men would gather only once each day before members of the Samajwadi Party's first family went to war against each other. Now debates erupt like corn in his hot pan more often - dependi...

Blog: 'Betrayal,' Mulayam Yadav Has Said About Son Akhilesh. And Yet...

On Lucknow's Vikramaditya Marg, Mulayam Singh Yadav's house and the new residence of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav share a wall. On Sunday night, hours before a meeting called by Mulayam Singh, this wall represented a divide that father and son may not even be planning to bridge. The pale half-moon was positioned right between the two white bungalows.

Blog: The Incontestable Political Significance Of PM's Lucknow Dussehra

The Aishbagh ground in Lucknow will host Prime Minister Narendra Modi today for the annual Ramlila, which depicts the slaying of Ravana (evil) by Ram (good).

Blog: Congress, AAP Strategy On Surgical Strikes Is Backfiring

Despite the clamour, the government remains committed to not releasing evidence of the strikes. The PM saw the "evidence" right after the action.

Blog: Keep Calm, Rajnath Singh Gestured To Mehbooba. What It Gives Away.

As the Kashmir region spent its 48th day without any signs of peace, alarm bells are ringing in the central government. Home Minister Rajnath Singh's outreach is a desperate bid by the centre to retrieve even partially the situation in the Valley. Apart from the Home Minister's "doors open for talks", the centre is preparing for the long haul.

Blog: RBI Governor Urjit Patel, Once TV Show Commentator

Urjit R Patel will be stepping into Raghuram Rajan's big-sized shoes from September 4. But he has been walking through the minefield of Indian economy long enough behind Mr Rajan and won't need a map.

Blog: For Smriti Irani And Other Top Guns, Clear Message From PM Modi

If searching for messages from the cabinet reshuffle and expansion exercise yesterday, this is the stand-out: PM Modi has indicated that no one is indispensable.

Blog: In BJP Versus Congress, Some Deep Blows Have Been Struck

Politics is predatory, but sometimes all pretence at civility is abandoned and politicians, like gladiators, don't mind letting blood show on their hands. Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh are instances, though not the first and certainly not the last.

Blog: Vijay Mallya, The MP Who Drove A Maserati To Work

A year ago, the name Vijay Mallya evoked a response very different from what it does today in Parliament House.

Blog: The Rahul Gandhi factor in the GST Tussle

But insiders on both sides admit that India has had to wait since 2011 for its biggest tax reform not because the bills had flaws in them or for a lack of consensus, but simply because the battle is political not numerical.

Blog: Ashok Singhal, the Engineer Who Built The Ram Temple Movement

Ashok Singhal will be remembered as one of the most divisive figures in Indian politics without ever being in active politics.

Blog: BJP Journeys On, Forgets Yatri Advani

At a government function on Friday Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley moved the late Deen Dayal Upadhyay, founder of the BJP's former avatar the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, from the pantheon of those who built the party to the ranks of those who built India. The function to mark his 99th birth anniversary saw a bastion collapse. An RSS man was hon...

Blog: The Gujarat Effect in Prime Minister Modi's First Year

To mark Prime Minister Narendra Modi's one year in power, the NDA government released the slogan "varsh ek kaam anek" (one year achievements many) on May 15. The list of initiatives launched by PM Modi, new or re-packaged, is visibly long.