Opinion

When “Why?” Becomes a Threat: Is West Bengal’s Democratic Space Shrinking?

West Bengal’s recent clashes over classrooms, universities, the press and cultural institutions raise a larger question: what happens when political power enters spaces meant for independent thought? The incidents may not be connected, but together they reveal how easily institutional autonomy and dissent can come under pressure.

‘Assalamu Alaikum, Inshaallah, Jazakallah’: Peace, Hope and Gratitude Don’t Cancel Out Your Merit

Dr Bushara Bano’s use of “Assalamu Alaikum”, “InshaAllah” and “Jazakallah” has sparked controversy. But can three expressions of faith overshadow an IPS officer’s qualifications, competitive achievements and professional record? The debate raises a larger question about identity, neutrality and merit in public service.

You Can Crack IIT. Can You Crack Its Caste System?

IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakode’s suicide has revived questions about caste discrimination, merit and student rights in India’s elite institutions. As allegations of harassment and casteist abuse emerge, the larger concern is whether campuses meant to nurture talent are becoming hostile spaces for marginalised students

What Is India’s Youth Asking For: Cultural Identity or the Right to a Future?

India’s youth have always questioned power, from the student movements of the 1970s to the Anna movement. Today, programmes in Ujjain and Indore raise a new question: is young India seeking cultural identity, political recognition or something more basic — the right to shape its future?

BRICS Isn’t Beijing’s Game. It’s India’s Strategic Autonomy

India’s BRICS engagement is not about choosing China over the West but protecting its strategic autonomy. As the global order turns multipolar, India must retain strong ties across competing blocs while defending its independent foreign policy and ensuring that national interests, not Western approval, shape its international choices.
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Covaxin controversy – is it safe?

As we entered into the new year with continuing coronavirus threat there is good news as on 3rd January 2021 Drug Controller General of India...

When a genius thrives in isolation

What happens when a happily married middle-aged man decides to abandon his family and pursue his passion to become a painter? In W. Somerset...

How Rajiv Gandhi stood up against public opinion, and eventually bowed to it

Rajiv Gandhi was a gentleman, without any experience of statecraft and uninitiated in political roguery. But the same cannot be said about those who...

Bhopal Gas Leak survivors have particular reason to remember Motilal Vora

Motilal Vora who died on December 21, a day after he had turned 93, had a humanitarian quality not so common among the political...

Modi’s farm laws will mean death of fair price shops

An inevitable consequence of Modi’s farm laws will be the gradual death of public distribution system (PDS). Through PDS, an estimated 75 crore people,...

Kalidas Samaroh, once a pride of India, reduced to a minor government function by Shivraj Singh Chouhan

Annual Kalidas Samaroh (reduced from usual seven days to three days ‘because of coronavirus’) was jointly inaugurated by Usha Thakur and Mohan Yadav in...
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