From ‘Church attacks’ to ‘Muslims lynched’ – how the narrative plays part in politics
They may not be directly sponsored or conceived by the party, but read why such narratives help the Congress.
#BJP
For the elitist Indian media, Ram Nath Kovind does not have the ‘class’
When the Bihar governor was announced as presidential candidate, the elitist media reacted with scorn.
Did polarization of Hindu votes take place in Uttar Pradesh?
I was invited to Zee News for discussing assembly election results and there I had the opportunity to talk to Arif Mohammad Khan, who once was a state minister and an active politician, famous for being the Muslim face who quit Congress when Rajiv Gandhi, then enjoying a mammoth majority in Lok Sabha, took steps to overturn the Shah Bano judgment to please Muslim fundamentalists.
As trends appeared to settle down and it looked like BJP was all set to win Uttar Pradesh (and it has swept the elections like the 2014 Lok Sabha elections as I write), some people started talking about kabristan-shamshan and “polarization”. Continue readingDid polarization of Hindu votes take place in Uttar Pradesh?
This TV ad explains the importance of ‘appearing’ liberal
This thought had struck me more than a year ago, when I saw this particular television advertisement. Then the ad slowly disappeared from TV screens. However, I saw it again during the recent India-England cricket series. So hitting a mauke pe chauka, I thought to pen my thoughts finally.
First, take a look at the ad: Continue readingThis TV ad explains the importance of ‘appearing’ liberal
Narendra Modi has forgotten the 2014 elections, and this is why he has done that
In May 2014, Narendra Modi recorded an unprecedented victory in the history of contemporary India. I have deliberately called it a Modi victory rather than a BJP or NDA victory, because it indeed was victory of a personality called Narendra Modi.
While hardly anyone gave Congress any chance of it returning to power, and people talked about Modi wave, no one knew about this Modi tsunami that would strike the pollsters, some “intellectuals”, and of course, the Congress party.
People just couldn’t stop talking about 2014 after the results were out. Well, even otherwise it was a hotly debated election, but the results made it burning hot. How it happened, why it happened, does this change India forever, and all kinds of things were discussed.
Whether Modi haters or his ‘bhakts’ – both love to go back to the last general elections, and remind or warn each other that it will repeat or it will not repeat in 2019. Books were written and are still being written about the 2014 elections.
It’s been around 30 months now, but it appears that most people can’t get over the 2014 verdict yet.
Except one man – Narendra Modi himself. Continue readingNarendra Modi has forgotten the 2014 elections, and this is why he has done that