Jammu versus Kashmir: a doomed alliance..
A few months after he had taken over as chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir in the spring of 2015, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed hosted a dinner for journalists in...
Karnataka to Kairana: a Template for 2019
A by-election is a bit like a school monthly test: the marks don’t count for anything during the final exam. Which is why the opposition celebrations after besting the...
From Raj Dharma to Chanakya-neeti: is BJP a party with a difference?
In 1996, soon after LK Advani resigned as an MP over his name surfacing in the ‘hawala’ diaries, we asked the original BJP ideological mascot why he had taken...
The Karnataka ‘nataka’: ten takeaways
15th May 2018 will go down in history as a day when Indian politics rewrote the Harold Wilson oft-used quote that a week is a long time in politics....
Karnataka’s 20-20 election
Karnataka is, arguably, India’s most beautiful state. Few states can match its rich diversity: from the wondrous Karwar coastline to the verdant green hills of Coorg, from the wildlife...
Battle for Karnataka : Ten Takeaways
Battle for Karnataka : ten takeaways. Ten days in Karnataka over two extended trips still leaves you with the stamp of an ‘election tourist’ but then that is my...
The Modi challenge: Aspirations Vs Mutinies
If prime minister Narendra Modi was not a politician, he could probably be a feel-good guru. Mr Modi’s signature characteristic has been his ability to constantly radiate a positive...
Decoding the fake news debate
Smriti Irani has an uncanny knack of giving it back as good as she gets. Last month, in parliament’s central hall as her fellow-MPs gathered around to wish her...
Its Just Not Cricket
“We were desperate,” admitted Australian captain Steve Smith when pushed to offer an explanation as to why his team had so brazenly attempted to tamper with the cricket ball...