Mayawati couldn't ask for a better foe than Rahul
'H R Bhardwaj's exalted opinion of himself and Rahul Gandhi's exaggeration have done far worse than strengthen the chief ministers they claim to oppose.' Arun Jaitley: Why communal violence bill is flawed
BJP leader Arun Jaitley argues that the communal violence bill is a dangerous and discriminatory law which presumes that the majority community is always to blame for communal violence. China and Pakistan: An all-weather friendship
The China-Pakistan partnership serves the interests of both partners by presenting India with a potential two-front theatre in the event of war with either country says Harsh V Pant. Of scams, politicians and jails
India has seen any number of cases where people were detained as if the judicial custody prior to trial was in itself adequate -- motions are gone through, cases allowed to fail in courts and then keep saying 'law will take its course', says Mahesh Vijapurkar. Obama: Better orator than a statesman
The world will welcome the lofty ideas that have figured in Obama's Arab Spring speech, but the credibility deficit will remain till the US conduct on the ground matches the President's golden vocabulary, says TP Sreenivasan. Why Pakistan today feels let down by its defenders
Pakistan's stubborn and equally supercilious military and intelligence establishment has a habit of not learning from its mistakes, no matter how serious they are. Pak dossier blunder: Time govt wielded the stick
There have been too many instances of top brass letting down the government with a slothful approach to their duties and continuing in their chairs. There is no point in going after low-level functionaries, head must roll of those at the highest levels, says B S Raghavan. India on a road to rediscover Africa
India is on a rediscovery of Africa. India and Africa, as maritime neighbours have an ancient tradition of trading links. But a modern day engagement is taking shape between them with the Indian government going ahead with a Focus Africa policy for a structured interaction with all regions of the African continent. The second Africa-India Forum Summit is to be held in Addis Ababa next week. Propaganda vs public diplomacy
Public diplomacy works better with multiple channels of communication, including web 2.0. Propaganda cannot survive multiple channels and web 2.0; it works best in information starved place, says Abhay L. Kanimozhi's arrest: Few options for DMK
For the moment it suits the DMK to hang with the Congress, for all the irritants in their relationship. But the dilemmas for the Congress are no less than for the DMK, says Neerja Chowdhury. Poll results: Tectonic shift in Indian politics
The Congress's 3-to-2 score in the five states might appear respectable, but must be seen in perspective. Its Assam win came entirely because of local leaders. The corruption issue hit the Congress in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. And it lost the people's pulse in Puducherry, says Praful Bidwai. Rahul Gandhi and the art of selling fear
Politicians may not understand things in great detail, but they surely understand that creating fear in the minds of people to garner votes, works. Rahul Gandhi is the latest politician who has tried to use this strategy, just that in his case, it did not work, says Shonalee Biswas. How Jaya's victory changes Indo-Lanka relations
What will be the effect of Jayalalithaa first salvo against Rajapaksa? How will it impact India's Sri Lanka policy? These are some of the questions likely to be debated more frequently in the coming months. Doff a hat to the Indian voter!
Offered a proper choice, the electorate shall punish the corrupt, the incompetent, and the arrogant - but also reward true performers. You cannot ask more of a democracy, says TVR Shenoy. Rampant land acquisition will lead to food crisis
The UPA thinks that food security can be addressed by importing food. Land must be acquired for the industry to be a vehicle for higher growth. There can be nothing more dangerous than this flawed approach, says Devinder Sharma. What is the road ahead for the AMU?
Before it plans to show light to others, Aligarh Muslim University has to put its own house in order and be what it always was -- a centre of excellence where tradition and modernity do not collide but complement each other, says old student Arfa Khanum Sherwani. New opening for India in Afghanistan
This is the time to show the international community that contra Pakistan, it is India that remains a major partner of Afghanistan and therefore, India's concerns should not be ignored, says Harsh V Pant. Beware the political superbug: Hubris!
Any government that comes to power in India now and in the future will ignore at its own peril the rising expectations of people who are in no mood to tolerate nonsense from ruling circles. Sonia's call to Jaya: The political implications
The Congress may say that Sonia Gandhi's call to new Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa was a courtesy call. But there was a clear message that the Congress president wanted to send, says Neerja Chowdhury. Can Sanya be the beginning for a new world order?
BRICS should reinforce the actions of G-20 for creating a new world order. It will also be a good idea to attempt to get Security Council replaced by the G-20, says C M A Nayar. Sympathy for Pakistan?
By a mix of deception, subterfuge, ingratitude and crocodile tears, Pakistan has begun to get sympathy rather than condemnation when it stands exposed as the haven for the most wanted terrorist in the world, says T P Sreenivasan. Exclusive: Arun Jaitley on the Karnataka muddle
Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley offers his views on the political crisis in Karnataka, the SC ruling and the Governor's actions Let's give Mamata Banerjee a chance
Mamata must be whole-heartedly congratulated and supported. If she errs in future, we must be ready to correct her, says Tarun Vijay. View: A vote against corruption
The overall message of the assembly election is certainly anti-UPA insofar as it was the endless series of corruption scams that determined the 2011 outcome, says Virendra Kapoor View: An agenda for the prime minister in Kabul
Soft power approach combined with low visibility and maximising Afghan participation remains India's strength, and policies to reinforce the Indo-Afghan ties need to be built around this, says Dr Shanthie Mariet D'Souza Why has Mumbai ceased to attract migrants?
Is Mumbai hostile enough to migrants that they prefer other destinations for living -- different, of course, from a livelihood -- and if so, what is perceived to be the real threat? Could it be the nativist rhetoric and some violence to substantiate it? Or is it mere housing as an issue? Mahesh Vijapurkar throws some light on Mumbai's changing demographic pattern Why can't generals just stay in their barracks?
Why have Indian Service chiefs inserted themselves into an ongoing battle between the people and the civilian leadership, on one side, and the Pakistani Army, intelligence agencies and extremists on the other? Pak-US tango: Deniability a must for infidelity
Osama's death does not end the scourge of Islamic terrorism boosted by him. This scourge will taper off only when injustice tapers off in Afghanistan, Yemen, Libya, Bahrain, Syria, Palestine, when the West palpably sides with justice, says Saeed Naqvi Making sense of the Osama op through tweets
The credit of breaking the news that Al Qaeda head Osama bin Laden's mansion in Abbottabad was being raided can be probably be given to Twitter. IT consultant Sohaib Athar who live tweeted the operation (without knowing it was the world's most wanted man) he was blogging about is an internet star today. Interestingly, there were others who also wrote about the operation and a reconstruction of all the tweets brings to the fore the loopholes in America's bin Laden story. Pakistan won't change a bit even after Osama
'The US does not want Pakistan either to break up or fall into the hands of fundamentalists. The US has been saying for long that India should work with those in power in Pakistan, because those who came after them would have longer beards!' Why the CPI-M deserves to lose West Bengal
'People resent the fact that idiotic policies set by the Left Front -- banning English from primary schools, hampering the installation of computers -- have left them behind applicants from other states in the race for jobs. Osama: An embarrassment Pakistan can't live down
'It was impossible for bin Laden to live in the luxurious building with a huge compound in Abbotabad without the knowledge of the Inter Services Intelligence or the Pakistan military.' April 2011 | March 2011 | February 2011 | January 2011 | December 2010 | November 2010 | October 2010 | September 2010 | August 2010 | July 2010 | June 2010 | May 2010 | April 2010 | March 2010 | February 2010