China’s ‘capitalism’ weighs heavy

July 12, 2022

One of the ways common Indians have reacted to the macabre bloodbath at Galwan Valley is by calling for a boycott of Chinese products. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) released a list of 3,000 Chinese items that Indians should eschew. Such appeals are nothing new, but have been...

A battle to save democracy?

September 19, 2020

At Inchon, 50 km east of Seoul, South Korea, stands the main secretariat of Association of World Bodies (A-WEB). Established formally in October 2013, the Association aims majorly to “foster efficiency and effectiveness in conducting free, fair, trans- parent and participative elections worldwide”. During the Cold War, democracy promotion activities...

For China, map is not the territory

September 3, 2020

Tapir Gao, the BJP MP representing Arunachal East parliamentary constituency, has made some sensational claims about Chinese encroachment on Indian territory in the post-1962 period in his home state. The government, however, is yet to confirm or deny his claims outright. On 19 November 2019, Gao raised the issue during...

What led to the eclipse of Sanskrit?

August 7, 2020

The Sanskrit Week (2-8 August) is being celebrated, though mostly online, this year. Circa 1290 AD (Saka 1212), a teenaged mystic from Maharashtra accomplished a path-breaking work. Jnanadeva (1275-1296 AD) composed Jnaneswari, an exposition of the Bhagavad Gita, in 9,000 stanzas of exquisite poetry in Marathi. He also composed Amritanubhav...

How Nehru gave Tibet on a platter to Mao

July 28, 2020

On 31 October, 1950 Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel celebrated in last birthday. His mind, however, was occupied with reports of China’s annexation of Tibet as published in that day’s newspaper. Being India’s Deputy Prime Minister, and Home Minister, he might have kept away from an external policy matter. He, however, could...

The man who triggered Hindu resurgence in West Bengal

July 14, 2020

Tapan Ghosh (67), the face of Hindu resistance movement in West Bengal, died of Covid-19 in Kolkata on Sunday. He had been hospitalised since 28 June after being diagnosed with the infection. After some false signs of recovery, he passed away on Sunday evening. Dr Sambit Patra, BJP national spokesperson,...

Great Wall against democracy must go

July 9, 2020

A “third wave of democracy”, as Samuel J. Huntington described it, began to sweep the world in the mid-1970s. Of the 97 democracies (2018 figures) across the globe, a vast majority (72%) have been established only since 1976. In the same year both Mao Zedong (1893-1976) and Zhou Enlai (1898-1976),...

China’s ‘capitalism’ weighs heavy

June 29, 2020

One of the ways common Indians have reacted to the macabre bloodbath at Galwan Valley is by calling for a boycott of Chinese products. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) released a list of 3,000 Chinese items that Indians should eschew. Such appeals are nothing new, but have been...

The post-colonial problem of elephantine proportions

June 17, 2020

The death of an elephant in Kerala’s Palakkad district recently outraged the nation’s conscience. The autopsy proved she had consumed an explosive filled coconut, earlier believed to be pineapple, meant to scare off wild boars from eating crops. Whether it was a deliberate act of mischief or an accident remains...

Do we need a new Parliament complex?

June 3, 2020

A new triangle-shaped Parliament building lies at the heart of Modi government’s dream project to redesign the Central Vista in the national capital. Since transparency is not a forte of the redevelopment project, its particulars are not reliably known. There is neither any official website, nor any brochure published by...