There is also a subtle but perceptible fatigue with the continued reliance on polarisation as a political tool. Identity-based mobilisation, while effective in the short term, risks diminishing returns when overused. If these undercurrents - internal dissent, governance gaps, and narrative fatigue - begin to converge, they may not immediately overturn electoral outcomes, but they could signal the early stages of a more substantive political challenge to the BJP
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be cognizant of the fact that the crash occurred in Ahmedabad, in his home state. People will come to their own conclusions as to whether they saw Modi standing up to American pressure or give in. India has not forgotten the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, that Warren Anderson and Union Carbide Chemicals went scot-free, that India settled for a meagre $470 million compensation – 25 years later – for the families of the thousands who died and the millions who were adversely affected.
The social media takes advantage of the reward systems in the brain, especially the dopamine circuits within the basal ganglia and the prefrontal cortex. Using signals of micro-engagement, including the duration of time a user hovers over a video or the number of times a user rewatches a clip, algorithms develop a feedback loop that over time redirects the feed of a user to more intense or provocative content.
To step into the role of mediator in a conflict of this nature would inevitably test that balance. It would invite scrutiny, of intent, of tilt, of perceived bias. Even the most well-intentioned effort could be interpreted through the prism of existing relationships. In such a situation, neutrality is not merely a matter of policy; it becomes a matter of perception, and perceptions are notoriously difficult to manage.
The Partition Horrors Remembrance Day selectively wants to project the killings and mayhem that Hindus faced. The truth is the Hindus and Sikhs coming from Pakistan (west and east) and Muslims migrating from India to Pakistan, both suffered immensely. As such if we see the whole process of two-nation theory, communal violence was equally promoted by the politics of communal streams, Hindu and Muslim.
The junta must understand that forcible occupation of a land has its pitfalls. The international community is not as politically invested in Myanmar as it ought to be, but the civil society is closely monitoring the Myanmarese atrocities, the killing of innocent children and the vulnerable.
By doing our jobs properly and ethically the country will progress and become great. The paradigm of development should be based on the maxim of Spirituality + Technology = Happiness. It will help us all become ethical human beings.
The opposition to the INDIA alliance is also rooted in the thesis which sees a ‘clash of civilizations’ (Samuel Huntington), in contrast to what the UN report emphasizes on Alliance of Civilizations, well articulated in Nehru’s belief system.
But wild, in-your-face violence of the kind seen in some of the crimes that continue to happen, particularly against women, indicates that the nation isn’t really progressing, never mind what the GDP numbers may say.
The Pakistan-US-UK ties remain strong. Pakistan’s removal from the FATF’s ‘grey list’ and recent $3 billion IMF loan to Pakistan had an obvious nod from the US.
Myanmar, Bangladesh, and India need mutual friendship in their national interest. Bangladesh's improved road and rail connectivity with India will open up new doors of trade and commerce.
The politics being pursued by the BJP and its related organizations have a multipronged strategy to win over indigenous communituies electorally by emotive symbolic actions, to Hinduise them on the one hand, and to maintain the upper-caste hegemony on the other.
Modi's singular aversion to media engagement starkly contrasts with the active media engagement of leaders like Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's one year in office. A notable analysis of his public relations strategy (Sydney Morning Herald, 20 June) reveals his tireless efforts to engage the public.
Gita Press is the intellectual and cultural base on which conservative Hindu values, mainly Brahmanical values, are promoted, and it provides the base for Hindu nationalist politics by promoting and propagating a narrow, exclusive version of Hinduism. Gandhi’s Hinduism was, on the other hand, humane and inclusive and he evolved with time to live the humanistic aspects of religion.
The US has continued to support Pakistan for short-term geopolitical considerations. On the other hand, the US has been unfair to Bangladesh by alleging that the democratic process there had been disrupted.
The relationship has grown with extraordinary speed. India and Australia are strategic partners – unthinkable a few years ago! An extraordinary bipartisan friendship reflects the way in which both countries have now come to see each other.
This approximately two-and-a-half-hour operation between Wadi Sayyidna and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia will go down in the annals of IAF history for its sheer audacity and flawless execution - akin to that carried out in Kabul, in which almost 400 Indians were brought back by the IAF in August 2021 in very challenging conditions following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
The rise and fall of FTX’s co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried, a poster boy of the crypto world and seen as a genius, tells a story that has important learnings for all of us. A key learning is that, though talent or ingenuity can erect an empire of fame and riches in a short time, yet devoid of moral and ethical moorings, it can wreak havoc in the long run.
Since the late 1970s, the Indian Army has been paying a heavy price of losing good soldiers in asymmetric warfare waged by Pakistan, which involves having large bodies of regular troops committed on the ground for dealing with a 'handful' of the enemy.
