Opinion

Indian Parliament Security

There is a popular saying that there is no smoke without fire. India’s Parliament was the stage of a massive smokeout-cum-disruption on December 13. Chaotic scenes were witnessed inside India’s new Parliament building when two youths leaped into the chambers from the visitors’ gall...

Opinion

Words as weapons of peace: Reflections from 2023 DMZ literature festival

Each great writer embodies a language, a nation, a civilisation even, with its collective memories and aspirations. Writers carry the wisdom of centuries; they are also our protection against forgetting. They are the guardians of our humanity.This is my renewed realisation at the 2023 International ...

Opinion

Israel-Gaza war wounds humanity’s collective psyche

Human beings are perhaps the only species in nature who crave so acutely for peace all the while actively pursuing war. Violence is universally present in nature, but except among humans, it is rather economical.As a rule, animals do not hunt unless they are hungry. Nor do they store their kill for ...

Opinion

The Women’s Reservation Bill is Modi’s gift to India

Usually, it is the birthday boy who gets the surprise party. In Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s case, however, it is his “return gift” to the nation that kept everyone guessing. Speculation was rife over what was the special surprise package that the ruling Bharatiya Janata P...

Opinion

How India attracted global interest at G20 Summit

The G20 summit in New Delhi, concluded on September 10, with a visit of world leaders to the memorial to Mahatma Gandhi, India’s apostle of peace.Earlier, on September 9, India’s prime Minister, Narendra Modi handed over the symbolic hammer baton to President Luiz Inácio Lula da S...

Opinion

Modi’s strategic engagement with the UAE

When India’s prime minister Narendra Modi arrived in the United Arab Emirates on July 15, an impressive welcome awaited him. The tallest skyscraper in the world, Burj Khalifa, was emblazoned with the Tiranga (tricolor) national flag of India.The massive, iconic building showed his photo, blown...

Opinion

Narendra Modi’s quest for India’s global influence

In his nine years in office as India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has made an astounding 121 foreign visits to sixty-five countries.This figure is notwithstanding the total wipeout of all travel from the second half of November 2019 till the latter part of March 2021 during the worst of the...

Opinion

Modi’s state visit to America marks a turning point

In my last column, I argued that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the United States was an opportune moment in the history of the world’s two greatest democracies to take their relationship to new heights. Not only defence and technology deals or trade and economic pa...

Opinion

Sydney to Tokyo: What explains Modi’s overseas appeal

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned home to a warm welcome on May 24th after a remarkable and highly successful three-nation visit. It was a diplomatic triumph, beautifully orchestrated and curated by External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, showcasing India’s strength in internation...

Opinion

Inside India’s impressive new parliament

Narendra Modi was sworn in as the 14th prime minister of India on May 26, 2014. Nine years later, he is slated to inaugurate the new Parliament building in New Delhi in the last week of May 2023.Part of the central vista project, the building is likely to host the monsoon session the parliament whic...

Opinion

What will India be like in 2047?

As India celebrates 75 years of independence with “Azadi ka Amritmahotsav”, a few also have their sights set on India@100, 25 years from now. What will India: 2047 be like? More importantly, how can we plan to make that milestone grand and memorable? Our present resolve obviously will de...

Opinion

India’s population advantage

“India has overtaken China…” Regardless of how that sentence ends, it would normally make Indians happy. But a cartoon in the leading German magazine, Der Spiegel, has many prominent Indians associated with the Narendra Modi government, including ministers and senior BJP leaders, ...

Opinion

How to break free from our digital crisis

Are we, as the human species, in the midst of a crisis of distraction, confusion, anxiety, and compulsive behaviour caused by our addiction to smartphones, laptops, and other handheld devices?Are we handcuffed day and night to gadgets in a universe which is wired, running, and on 24/7? The answers t...

Opinion

Neo-Khalistani violence in the West

In last week’s column, I mentioned towards the end, how deplorable it was that neo-Khalistanis are seemingly enjoying a free run in Western countries. Misusing the freedoms guaranteed in Western democracies such as Canada, United Kingdom, United States and, more recently, Australia, Khalistani...

Opinion

India’s military might set to rise further

Sunanda K Datta-Ray in Looking East to Look West: Lee Kuan Yew’s Mission India (2009) recounts the heady days when Singapore’s founder tried to persuade then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, to step into the power vacuum left with Britain’s retreat from Asia.Lee pitched for ...

Opinion

India’s budget 2023 is pro-middle class

Budget aficionados in India may or may not know that the word itself comes bougette, Old French for a “leather bag,” like a knapsack. Incidentally, another common word, bulge, shares the same word origin.In the 18th century, the British Chancellor of the Exchequer, presenting the financi...

Opinion

Celebrating diaspora during India’s G20 presidency

The Indian diaspora, in its widest sense, is over 30 million strong, with over 18 million of these having been born in India. It is spread across the world in over 200 countries.It is, moreover, a growing global population, with some 2.5 million leaving our shores for foreign lands, mostly in search...

Opinion

World Cup has lessons for everyone

What is India’s ranking in the FIFA world rankings? 106. Not even in the top 100. But what would India’s ranking be when it comes not to playing but watching football? Unfortunately, there are no FIFA or any other rankings available.But I would wager that it would be pretty high. What is...

Opinion

India: Where elections become battles and celebrations

Nothing quite matches the excitement and adrenalin rush of Indian elections. What is repeatedly evident is that voter behaviour differs greatly.Though there are noticeable patterns and trends, the outcome is not just surprising or unexpected, but often unpredictable. The context, region, and local c...

Opinion

Modi at G20: India stakes its claims to a bigger global role

US President Joe Biden’s walking up, possibly to congratulate, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Bali, Indonesia, is just one of the many images that are pouring in as India is all set to assume the presidency of the G20 Summit.Modi’s back is half-turned as Biden approaches him, but...