'Patriotism won 400+ seats for the Congress party in 1984. How much will nationalism bring in, in 2019, is the question,' asks Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'In Kejriwal's re-election, we are finally seeing someone who has successfully bridged his Hindu identity with ground-level development triumphing over the BJP,' notes Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Having taken the first step, Priyanka will do well to remember that politics is not a part-time occupation, nor is it meant for guest appearances and cameos.' 'It can't be that come June 2019 and Priyanka goes back to her cocooned life, to re-emerge five years later because the family business is in trouble again,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'The coronation of Yogi Adityanath as the surprise chief minister should set at rest all speculation over the nature of the UP mandate,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Modi's power rests on the Hindu vote.' 'It is this vote bank that sees the Supreme Court verdict on Sabarimala as an intrusion into its religious practice and is frothing at the mouth.' 'History shows us the ill-fated consequences of a strong government buckling before street power,' cautions Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'He failed to foresee that the campaign of hatred need not be continuous; a sporadic, scattered campaign is enough.' 'What was important is to keep the pot boiling, not let it overflow like happened during the masjid-mandir days,' notes Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'What the Sabarimala majority verdict has done is to elevate the principle of equality over all others, including the right to worship, and declared that this will be the litmus test of all practices, and re-emphasise that practices that are ultra vires will be junked,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Friday's parliamentary confrontation obviously was a precursor, or a trailer, to use a pop culture reference, to the real show awaiting the nation,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Stepping up attack on Sanjay Baru's book brought out in the midst of Lok Sabha elections, Congress on Tuesday dubbed it as "mother of all plants" and asserted that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi have the "best of relations".
'It is this new brand of nationalism, where the saffron has elbowed out the other shades in our Tiranga, that will go before the electorate later this year.' 'And it is this new nationalism that will power Modi back into office with 300-plus seats when elections are held,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'The BJP is the most progressive force within Hinduism today.'
'Certainly if Advani had agreed to Vajpayee in sacking Modi, then we would never have been talking of Modi today.'
'Amit Shah's trajectory seems unstoppable; no wonder some say the day is not far off when he could be pitching for the top job, and that this is only the first step,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Hopefully, the new majority government will give the country a fool-proof electoral system,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'The EC seems to have killed the joy of elections by stretching it interminably.' 'Imagine watching Andhadhun in a six-hour format and you will get the point,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Of all the election skirmishes, it is the one between Mamata and Modi that has hit the nadir.' 'Obviously, the prize catch is Bengal where the BJP is determined to make inroads while Mamata is equally determined to keep them out,' notes Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'I am not a politician removed from the people, I get constant feedback from top to bottom, my connect with the masses is direct, not through the media, so I know what is going on.' Saisuresh Sivaswamy listens to the PM explain why he believes 'for the first time in this country, a pro-incumbency wave is on.'
'So we had Akshay Kumar dressed up like Robert Vadra on his offday, and trying to not look fan-struck...'
Arun Shourie, who made a name as an editor par excellence before he chose to join politics, put it in perspective: 'The Rafale judgment enables the media to its job.'
'The minorities are determined to prove Modi wrong in 2019, and the only way he can counter their mobilisation against his government is to get a bigger share of the Hindu vote,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'If Murad's Mozziness doesn't strike us in the eye, if we see the film as a youth's struggle to break free of the shackles holding him back and not as a Muslim fighting the system, it is because not once in the film does Zoya show him blaming his religion for his low social status or struggle, a temptation many 'progressive' film-makers may have yielded to for it sounds so politically correct,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
If you'd like to know more about Rajini the actor, Saisuresh Sivaswamy offers a wide selection.
'Nitish Kumar has only done what any smart politician will do in his place,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Facing foes with a common intent is not something Modi-Shah's BJP has done before,' points out Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Modi is larger-than-life, but not invincible. Yet,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Why is an NRI banker with an MBA from MIT canvassing votes in Madurai?
'Initially, we had 48 teams, now it has been enhanced to 133 teams: that is for every 10 to 12 villages, there is a team that is working round the clock.' '133 x 3, that is, given the 8-hour shifts.' 'They are monitored every hour, they are equipped with GPS -- everything is tracked live, real time, from the control room.'
Raees has a very bold Shah Rukh Khan who's stepped out of his comfort zone of crinkly eyes and dimpled cheek, says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'When the story of Elections 2019 is told by an independent writer, the BJP's role in lowering electoral standards will be etched in indelible ink,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Pakistan had almost disappeared from Kashmir.' 'Now in the last three, four years we have brought Pakistan back again by not handling Kashmir properly.'
'Just as the monkey god needed a Jambavan to prod him into realising his superpowers, so did the poll panel need a poke from the Supreme Court into remembering it had an armoury of powers at its disposal to stop the infractions,' notes Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Let me stick my neck out and say that Tamil Nadu will keep alive its reputation for landslide election verdicts, with the DMK front winning at least 30 of the 40 Lok Sabha seats going to the polls in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Kanhaiya Kumar, rising through subaltern rage and aspiration, may not triumph, not yet, but his ability to rise is tribute to democracy's finest hour,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Cassandras and Congressis may sneer at the findings, but the Times Now poll indicated that the Modi government was very much on its way to a second term.
What Saisuresh Sivaswamy learnt about the election from television and the newspapers. A must read column, folks!
'The Congress has finally drawn a line in the sand over its pro-poor credentials.'
'The rich better watch out.'
The Superstar turns 64 today, and his fans get a double birthday treat with Lingaa, says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Manoj Bajpayee simply lives, and loves, the role -- of a man who life is fast passing by, and who continues to live the lie of a simple government servant, observes Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'His prosecutors have no doubt turned a student union leader into a national figure - howsoever briefly - with their miscalculations and misdeeds, and have done Kanhaiya a huge favour.' 'But he will soon realise that it is a double-edged sword that he has been handed,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
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