Some things to Reconsider

 Donald Trump is back doing what he does best — throwing tantrums in prime time and calling it policy. His latest target? India. From parading deported Indian immigrants in chains — yes, actual chains, mid-flight — to snatching credit for ending Operation Sindoor, Trump’s message is simple: “I’m the boss of Vishwaguru.” He’s slapped tariffs on Indian goods, frowned upon Russian oil imports, and hiked H1B visa fees — a direct jab at the Indian tech class. And New Delhi’s response? Silence . The kind that pretends to be strength but smells suspiciously like fear. Spin doctors call it strategic restraint . The rest of us call it waiting for Trump’s next mood swing. When Trump wished Modi on his 75th birthday or extended his velvet glove , BJP’s online cheerleaders pounced on it like a Bollywood twist — “See! Friendship restored!” — until, of course, Trump’s next tweet arrived with his usual thunder. As the American columnist Ashley Tellis politely put it, India’s “extreme discipl...

  Recently, Amit Shah, the honourable Home Minister, while addressing a book launch, declared: “In a few years people who speak in English will feel ashamed.” This wasn’t a slip of the tongue. Shah has long shown his fondness for “One Nation, One Language” and his distaste for English. Read between the lines and the message is clear: India’s rulers want to dictate not just how we vote, but how we speak, eat, pray, and now, even how we play. Indian politicians have one hobby that beats all others: sermonising. Instead of governing—writing policy, enforcing contracts, ensuring safety—they prefer to instruct citizens. Governance becomes homily, laws become sermons. Take two excellent columns in Business Standard . Devangshu Dutta dissects India’s new Online Gaming Bill, 2025, calling it another example of politicians confusing governance with sermonising. The bill, with one sanctimonious sweep, outlaws fantasy sports, rummy, poker—any game where money is wagered in hope of winnin...

  https://www.deccanchronicle.com/opinion/dc-comment/dc-edit-work-closely-with-canada-to-tackle-khalistan-threat-1886553 The Deccan Chronicle editorial calling for closer cooperation between India and Canada to tackle the so-called “Khalistan threat” is a textbook example of "locking yourself in a burning house to escape a mosquito". It is an editorial soaked in security-state talking points, and utterly blind to the far more pressing threats confronting India’s foreign and domestic policy. And while we’re at it, it’s time someone called out the Modi government’s real failing: not in what it obsesses about, but in what it consciously chooses to ignore. Let’s begin with the most uncomfortable, but essential, truth: the ghost of Khalistan is more a product of political theatre than geopolitical reality. In this regard, Narendra Modi bears uncanny similarities to another strong-willed Indian leader Indira Gandhi,  men and women cut from different ideological cloths but sewn i...

  For a decade now, the oratory from India’s right-wing leadership has been less about neighbourly affection and more about fanning fears, feeding bigotry, and occasionally—just for sport. In today’s hyper-connected world, foreign policy is no longer defined solely by strategic alliances, trade deals, or ceremonial photo opportunities between heads of state. Modern diplomacy now unfolds not just in official channels but also across the vast, unruly terrain of social media. Among the most affected is our immediate neighbourhood, where we are deeply intertwined through geography, history, and shared cultural ties. Yet, despite these affinities, New Delhi's soft power diplomacy has come under strain, partly due to the unchecked and inflammatory rhetoric proliferating across social and televised media landscapes. Take Bangladesh for example. Over the last few years, Indian political leaders have made several controversial remarks that have not gone unnoticed across the eastern bord...

  Shobhaa De’s column “Sindoor Was Modi’s Finest Hour” reads like a Page 3 party report dressed in fatigues .   Her mention about a cordial exchange in a London café is heartening, but does little to reflect the deeper, unresolved tensions between the two nations. —as if war and diplomacy are settled over Earl Grey and polite nods. War is not a fashion show. It’s not a soap opera where symbolic Sindoor and gender-balanced briefings make for strategic brilliance. Two women officers giving press conferences may be a welcome sight—but let’s not pretend it changes the cost of conflict or the calculus of deterrence. And then—out of nowhere—She crowns a new trinity: Modi the statesman, Tharoor the global Indian, and Abdullah the reborn moderate. I’ve seen stranger combinations, but not many. This isn’t analysis. It’s narrative airbrushing. She skips over international reaction, the fragile regional balance, the blowback that may still come. Instead, she takes a swipe at Trump, calli...