The political discourse hit a new low on Monday with Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri making disparaging remarks targeting Rahul Gandhi and the Congress paying him back in the same coin.
'If he were to ask me, I would tell Mr Modi that the real Congress legacy he has to undo is not Nehru's social and political philosophy -- which fits India perfectly -- but his daughter's economic philosophy,' says T C A Srinivasa Raghavan.
'They don't want anybody to stand up and support the vulnerable sections of society who may be targeted.'
e Union minister of state for home is somewhat brash and rowdy, and has enormous confidence.' Some of this derives from the fact that he has independent sources of income (he reported assets amounting to Rs 18 crore in his 2019 Lok Sabha nomination papers)
Modi isn't going to voters on his track record but on the fear of the terrorist across the border and the Muslims within. It's a battle on his terms, says Shekhar Gupta.
Haryana's chief minister enjoys Narendra Modi's support and protection and will be in office unless the state sees a massive administrative botch-up.
Heading G20 will give India a foreign affairs year like it has never had in history. You can trust Narendra Modi to exploit this to India's benefit. And, of course, to his own in his election year, explains Shekhar Gupta.
'Mr Kejriwal is almost exactly the package that Mr Modi offers: Personal aggrandisement, the building of a personality cult through full-page newspaper ads day after day, populist schemes involving subsidies (whether affordable or required), abandonment of secular principles, exaggerated claims and no checks on leadership,' points out T N Ninan.
'They don't have a political strategy so they are going to try to deal with it purely as a law and order problem.' 'They will try to use the same strategy they have repeatedly used since 2014 in Kashmir.' 'Mr Modi has landed in a situation where he faces the possible prospect of not only being unable to Indianise Kashmir, but his actions may end up making the rest of India a virtual carbon copy of Kashmir.'
The promise of a less suspicious government is surprising. What about the disconnect between the new business stance and earlier push to dictate the narrative in politics and public life, wonders T N Ninan.
In politics, if your objective is only winning elections, just Chanakya neeti might do. For governance you need both, Chanakya neeti and Ram Rajya. You can neither beat up the farmers into submission, nor dismiss them as 'Khalistanis', asserts Shekhar Gupta.
One of the reasons why the TMC decided not to demand a JPC is that the chairperson and most of its members would be from the BJP, he said, adding JPC means putting the issue under the carpet.
'In macroeconomic policy, timing is all, and by leaving things too late, Mr Modi may have made around 50 seats in the Lok Sabha highly vulnerable,' says T C A Srinivasa Raghavan.
'I defended them -- Amit Shah and Narendra Modi -- in over 10,000 national debates, but I never asked for any favour.'
If anything has become clear during this campaign, it is this: Mr Modi can bat on almost any wicket and hit the ball over the ropes, points out T N Ninan.
'He has a gift none of his eight predecessors, from Manmohan Singh to Rajiv Gandhi, had: Being able to speak directly and convincingly to a large enough section of Indians who will take his word for gospel,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
The challenge is to enhance opportunities for people to generate livelihoods through entrepreneurship, both big and small, argues R Jagannathan.
'In Hindi, Mr Modi is unequalled as an exceptionally accomplished orator.'
'Modi wants to go down in history not necessarily as India's first overtly Hindu RSS pracharak prime minister, but as a world statesman who built the idea of India as a great nation.'
The attack by the Opposition party came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the logo, theme and website for India's upcoming presidency of the grouping.
Teen Murti Bhavan served as the official residence of India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru.
Among the handful of countries with large defence budgets and armed forces, India is matched only by Saudi Arabia in the level of its import dependence. For revenge to be served cold, go beyond import bans and correct these long-term failures -- if we're up to it, notes T N Ninan.
The Chinese aren't after territory. Their target is our national will, morale and the sense of autonomy we feel in making our strategic choices. They are attacking India and the Modi government at their weakest point, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
The Congress demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi answer what action he took against WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh when issues were allegedly flagged to him by a wrestler in 2021.
'The Modi Model we see now is still the old Gujarat Model.' 'But with an acknowledgement that governing India is more challenging than governing Gujarat,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
'There are three pillars of concern: The expansion of Hindu majoritarianism, the concentration of executive power and decay of independent institutions, and curbs on free expression and dissent.'
If his attempt to have his appeal heard in the Supreme Court fails, in principle, Modi can apply to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to try and block his extradition on the basis that he will not receive a fair trial and that he will be detained in conditions that breach Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, to which the UK is a signatory.
'Mr Modi's next challenger/s will need to invent a new politics,' says Shekhar Gupta.
Modi has taken a slew of measures to attract investment, but he has yet to initiate steps that could help repair corporate balance sheets.
Modi had said he receives "2.5-3 kg" of abuses everyday, but he turns the harsh remarks into positive energy.
'Some BJP old timers have remarked that the BJP is now driven by its own high command, the way the Congress was under Mrs Gandhi, says Subir Roy.
If Modi's truly a reformer and a believer in minimum government, he would bury the Vodafone ghosts now. He would also then go to Bihar, campaigning on his politically controversial reforms. Both will need him to dip deep into his accumulated political capital and risk it, suggests Shekhar Gupta.
Those who worry that the Adani saga will turn the world off India are not looking at the entire picture, asserts Mihir S Sharma.
The Opposition party asked whether the prime minister will take responsibility for the 'deadliest rail tragedy' of this century.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday conducted raids at over a dozen locations in Chhattisgarh including at premises linked to state Congress leaders as part of an ongoing probe into the alleged coal levy scam, officials said.
Jack Ma who had five years ago said he was inspired and excited by "Make in India" possibly understood the essence of the signature campaign better than some others and decided to stay away from India other than as an investor, says Nivedita Mookerji.
India looks less equal to China than 5 years ago, the strategic alliance with the US is hobbled by trade, and Pakistan is looking anything but chastened by Balakot. What has gone wrong? asks Shekhar Gupta.
The Congress' attack came after the Ayodhya Development Authority accused 40 people, including the City mayor, a local BJP MLA and a former party legislator, of illegally trading plots and building infrastructure there.
India would not be seen to be anything but rude with the Pakistanis. In the big picture, who is the bigger adversary right now? Who is the bigger pain in the neck? And who is it that is keeping more than 3,000 km of our borders active, throwing our military posture and deployments into imbalance? asks Shekhar Gupta.
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday said he does not see a 'middle path' to end the logjam in Parliament as the Opposition's demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani issue was 'non-negotiable' and the question of an apology over Rahul Gandhi's remarks in the United Kingdom does not arise.
