Chandan Mitra

Shame Peace Nobel Winner Aung San Suu Kyi To Treat Rohingyas Humanely

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Saturday September 9, 2017

About five years ago, a protest meeting of Muslims in Mumbai turned ugly leading to considerable violence and clashes with the police. It transpired that the mob had been asked to assemble to protest against atrocities allegedly committed on Muslims in the North-East.

Kerala Hindus No Longer Shy Of Their Identity, Will Turn To BJP

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Tuesday October 17, 2017

Those who say that Kerala is too well-educated to harbour religiosity as a driver of politics need only to look at the political formations of non-Hindu groups to realise that education has little to do with political allegiances.

BJP Is Right To Back Khattar Despite Haryana Riots

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Monday August 28, 2017

When a semblance of sanity returns and recriminations from all sides die down, it may be possible to draft a code of Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to deal with such events in future, for incidents of this nature are certain to recur.

What Sharad Yadav Loses In Split From Nitish Kumar

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Saturday August 12, 2017

Long-standing "frenemies" Nitish Kumar and Sharad Yadav have fallen out once again. Socialists by nature are congenital party-breakers or "splittists" as European Communists of the 1930s used to call them. The list of "socialist" parties that have been formed in India after Independence will surely run into several pages.

Mamata Banerjee's Appeasement Policies Have Created Real Danger

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Thursday July 6, 2017

Bengal is sitting on a tinder box. According to those who follow the news emanating from the state, it appears on the brink of a major communal conflagration. Comments in the social media ominously recall horrific details of the Great Calcutta Killing of 1946 in which thousands were slaughtered during the carnage triggered by Muslim League leader M...

What China Wants By Provoking India At Sikkim Border

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Thursday June 29, 2017

Beijing is unnerved by New Delhi's close association with Washington and is sending a message to both capitals against bolstering equations between India and the US. If in the process, 49 hapless pilgrims are victimized by Chinese high-handedness, well, so be it!

With Low-Profile Kovind, Modi And Amit Shah Hit Bull’s Eye

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Wednesday June 21, 2017

Mild mannered and a thorough gentleman, Kovind's choice by the BJP's helmsmen, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the party president, Amit Shah, has once again been described as a masterstroke.

Why The Farmer In Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra Is So Angry

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Thursday June 8, 2017

The violent protests in parts of Madhya Pradesh and the endemic agitation in Maharashtra point to a deeper malaise affecting Indian agriculture and agriculturists.

Modi Government At 3 Years Out-Scores Vajpayee's

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Wednesday May 24, 2017

This article is not aimed at narrating the achievements of three years of Narendra Modi's government. This is an attempt to underline the transformational quality of his governance.

Kejriwal's Party Has Degenerated Too Much Too Soon

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Thursday April 27, 2017

It would be a wild exaggeration to suggest that Kejriwal is the standard bearer of a "revolution", much as he may like to think himself as one.

Modi's New Strategy For Making Inroads Among Muslims

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Wednesday April 19, 2017

It was evident from the exuberance of delegates at the BJP's National Executive meeting in Bhubaneswar last weekend that party workers and leaders alike are convinced that the hand of history has touched the BJP and it will go from strength to strength hereafter.

Mani Shankar Aiyar's Rebuttal To Chandan Mitra On Yogi Adityanath

Opinion | Mani Shankar Aiyar | Friday March 24, 2017

While Mitra, despite his contempt for the "English-speaking elite" (he even edits, and, if I am not mistaken, also owns an English newspaper - whose most famous contributor was that notorious Imperialist, Rudyard Kipling) only sees in Yogi Adityanath, in his best St. Stephen's English, "an astute political mind" and a "talented speaker" (both of wh...

Yogi Adityanath Is Best Man For The Job, Deal With It

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Tuesday March 21, 2017

All things said and done, this was undoubtedly the best and most unorthodox choice the BJP could have made in UP. In Narendra Modi's long-term scheme of things, he needs someone who can retain UP for the BJP for many years to come. Although the Ram Mandir issue may have lost some traction, it is important to try and build a "Hindu vote" - something...

So In 2019, It Will Be Modi Versus The Rest

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Saturday March 11, 2017

The spectacular victory of the BJP in the present round of assembly elections has raised existential questions for several of its opponents.

How And Why Sasikala Was Able To Defeat Panneerselvam

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Friday February 17, 2017

It is indeed intriguing that the MLAs have not switched camps despite the fact that Sasikala will stay in jail for the next three years and cannot become an MLA for 10 years. It would seem that AIADMK MLAs, "orphaned" by the death of Amma want to cling on to a Mother figure - a role they believe only Chinnamma can fulfill.

When Priyanka Enters Politics, Robert Vadra Will Be BJP's Big Target

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Tuesday January 31, 2017

Priyanka Gandhi may not carry any political baggage so far, but the same cannot be said about her husband. The moment she jumps actively into the electoral campaign, the controversies dogging Robert Vadra are certain to be raked up.

Akhilesh Yadav Has Forged A New Force In Indian Politics

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Wednesday January 11, 2017

With or without the bicycle symbol and irrespective of whether he leads a united SP to the hustings, Akhilesh Yadav has emerged as UP's pre-eminent next generation politician. Even if he fails to repeat his winning feat of 2012 in the forthcoming Assembly poll, the constituency he is carving out for himself is there to stay.

Modi Holds The Trump Card Show Recent Election Results

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Friday December 2, 2016

The recent civic polls and by-election results in Maharashtra and Gujarat reaffirm that the Prime Minister's support has not been dented by the cash crunch and the opposition has erred badly in reading the public mood.

For Now, Cash Ban Is Hurting Common Man. But Change Ahead

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Saturday November 12, 2016

Only the fat cat money bags will be left crying over their loss of power and pelf once the rest realize the benefits of demonetization far outweigh the temporary inconvenience.

What Karan Johar's 'India First' And Anurag Kashyap's Tweet Missed

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Thursday October 20, 2016

In less than a fortnight, it will be clear if Hindi cinema's hit machine, talented director Karan Johar, will have a seamless opening for his forthcoming blockbuster Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (ADHM), or if movie halls will be vandalized and the film taken off screens under pressure from radical groups.

Rahul Gandhi Proves His Family Has Never Understood Hindi

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Saturday October 8, 2016

Members of the Nehru-Gandhi family are known to undergo paroxysms of hate, often at the mere mention of Narendra Modi's name.

Taming Of The Shrew(D): Akhilesh Yadav Wins For Now

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Sunday September 18, 2016

Print journalists have been scouring Shakespeare's works to find interesting descriptions for the family feud raging in UP's pre-eminent Yadav family. What began with Much Ado about Nothing went on to be A Midsummer Night's Drama (not dream) and finally closed with All's Well that Ends Well on Saturday, September 17. But have things indeed ended we...

Like Rajiv Gandhi, Rahul Has No Knowledge Of History

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Friday August 26, 2016

He will keep damaging the Congress by such off-the-cuff, indefensible statements unless he makes it a point to study Indian history seriously during his next sabbatical abroad!

PM Modi Is Correct To Have Sent Home Minister To Pakistan

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Wednesday August 3, 2016

Should Home Minister Rajnath Singh have gone to Lahore to attend the SAARC meeting of Home Ministers? Opinion in India appears sharply divided.

A Hidden Hand In The BJP-Bashing Over Dalits?

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Sunday July 24, 2016

The concerted effort by the Congress, its allies and the Left-liberal intelligentsia to derail Narendra Modi's India Story explains the selective exaggeration of atrocities on Dalits.

India Should Not Just Boycott SAARC, But Exit It Completely

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Wednesday September 28, 2016

The impending cancellation of the SAARC Summit is an opportunity to disband this sterile body and forge a new South Asian alliance.

Salary Hikes For Government Employees Is Smart, Calculated Move

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Friday July 1, 2016

Although there are many sceptics who will contend that the infusion of approximately Rs one lakh crore into the economy by way of this bonanza will result in a demand push and consequent inflationary pressure, the government could not have avoided implementing the award by a statutory body.

Rajan Appeared Uncaring About India's Aspirations

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Monday June 20, 2016

It is rather ironic that for a highly rated engineer-turned-economist, the twilight of his career should have been triggered not by technical disagreements with his employer, but by a breakdown of cultural communion.

Sonia Gandhi's Big Mistake In Statement On Robert Vadra

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Thursday June 2, 2016

Each time a new controversy rages around him, the Congress party has dodged questions by fiercely claiming that he is a private citizen being harassed only because of his marital links.

And We Just Got A Whole Lot Closer To Congress-Mukt Bharat

Opinion | Chandan Mitra | Thursday May 19, 2016

With every passing election, the country comes closer to being "Congress-mukt Bharat" (an India free of Congress), although India's Grand Old Party seems oblivious to the shrinking space it occupies.