Should Nitish Kumar get a second term?
Nitish Kumar has made the people of Bihar taste the fruits of inclusive development. His rivals don't have that image among the electorate. Making merry on a curfewed night
Yoginder Sikand partakes in an ostentatious Kashmiri wedding. Sino-Pak nuclear axis: Nuanced approach needed
If China, inspite of the US supplying arms to Taiwan, its adversary, can calibrate a relationship of mutual inter-dependence with the US, why can't New Delhi manage its relationship with China? asks Rup Narayan Das. Remembering Digvijay Singh, who read my hand
New York-based Aseem Chhabra recollects his New Delhi days with Digvijay Singh, who passed away last week Will anyone be ever held accountable for Bhopal?
The handling of the Bhopal disaster is reflective of the highly feudal nature of our political culture, writes AV Rajwade View: Where Chidambaram scored and where he lacked
Home Minister P Chidambaram exhibited a refreshing firmness during his talks with Pakistan's Interior Minister Rehman Malik in Islamabad this week. View: The great Chinese quest
Though the Chinese Navy's operating doctrine has changed from 'near sea defence' to 'far seas operations', China has a long way to go in becoming a real maritime power, writes Premvir Das N-plants to Pak: Why China won't budge at the NSG
The implication of this stiff stance by China towards Pakistan could have far reaching consequences for the gains achieved in India-China relations including from last year's Copenhagen dividend and the high-level visits between the two, writes Srikanth Kondapalli. Group of Ministers' report on Bhopal is a letdown
The entire effort to artificially bury the Bhopal legacy is misguided. Unfortunately, the legacy lives on. Justice demands that it is brought to an honourable, dignified closure in a fair and transparent manner. The Group of Ministers has failed to do that, writes Praful Bidwai. Afghanistan: The US surge to nowhere
India should carve out a policy response that protects India and its interests from the negative externalities of the US strategy in Afghanistan, writes Harsh V Pant. Afghanistan: US should change tactics not generals
President Obama had been justifiably angered by McChrystal's irreverent remarks which appeared in Rolling Stone. His irreverent remarks caused considerable embarrassment in the Pentagon and the White House. His dismissal was inevitable. Nitish Kumar wants to be Bihar Purush
'By taking on the BJP, is Nitish rewriting the rules of identity politics, more sophisticated than his predecessor Lalu Yadav?' Jharkhand: The fire in the earth's belly
Unfettered coal mining is causing unchecked underground fires that threaten human habitation and the environment, writes geologist Dr Nitish Priyadarshi. Towards a more civil civic arrangement
If public-spirited citizens not career politicians could be elected to civic bodies, then our nation's cities would be much better governed, writes Mahesh Vijapurkar. What Indira Gandhi's Emergency proved for India
'If Indira Gandhi's Emergency proved anything at all, it established that India would be governed, to the extent it can be governed, democratically or not at all,' says Inder Malhotra. Too late for Nitish to mount moral high horse
Nitish Kumar made his reputation by focusing on development. Why is it that even he has to follow the hollow rhetoric of 'communal' and 'secular' when the time comes to woo voters?' In Pakistan, Chidambaram to face stark choices
The home minister's visit to Pakistan can either open the path to a serious re-engagement or regress us to the rhetoric of the last 12 years, writes K C Singh. China-Pakistan nuclear deal: Why the surprise?
It's highly unlikely that China will give up playing the Pakistan card vis-a-vis India anytime soon. Indian policy makers would be well advised to disabuse themselves of the notion of a Sino-Indian rapprochement. China doesn't do sentimentality in foreign policy, India should follow suit, writes Harsh V Pant. Is US considering a long-term stay in Afghanistan?
'Unfortunately, the most likely outcome is that they will press India to give in to the ISI, or, equally disastrously, ask for Indian troops to join them in Afghanistan.' Lanka changed the rules in counter-insurgency ops
The Sri Lankan model, as it is being described now, is finding favour with disparate nations for its apparent effectiveness in totally eliminating the internal security threat. The Sri Lankan tactics are being studied with great interest by security establishments since it did not conform to the well-known and widely practiced counter-insurgency tenets. Extraditing Anderson won't benefit Bhopal victims
The clean up issue, ignored in the Bhopal gas tragedy settlement, emerged 20 years later, with the government trying to hold Dow Chemicals, UCIL's successor, liable on the 'polluter pays' principle. From the legal perspective, for the victims, efforts at Anderson's extradition or a Law Ministry face off with Dow on cleanup are pointless, writes Kumkum Sen Bhopal: The deception by Union Carbide and Dow
There is little hope of any justice in the Bhopal gas leak case. If the tragedy and the shock its finale has created awaken us to work on newer laws on corporate responsibility and accountability, it would be a gain, writes Kandaswami Subramanian. The importance of being Rahul Gandhi
Rahul Gandhi turns 40 on June 19. <EM>Rediff.com</EM>'s special series will look at various aspects of the life, times and politics of the man who could be prime minister. Naxalism: It's time to redeem the promise
The central challenge of Maoist insurgency is posed by the lack of political space for disgruntled tribals, writes Nitin Desai. India needs a relationship of equals with the US
'India should strive to establish itself as a pole in a multi-polar world instead of being a satellite to a sinking America.' UPA-2's negligence of higher education
'The provincial universities have already been lost at the hands of unscrupulous politicians, the central universities are fast moving towards deep degeneration.' Saving democracy from the corporate veil
Environmental activist Gopal Krishna lists the five things the US should do to quell the global outrage after the recent verdict in the Bhopal gas leak case and provide some justice to the victims. Appalling absence of leadership in war on Naxals
After six decades of floundering through dozens of uprisings, India's govt is facing the Naxal challenge as incoherently as ever, writes Ajai Shukla Kyrgyz violence may have dangerous consequences
The ethnic strife in Kyrgyzstan, which has so far claimed over 120 lives, could have unpredictable consequences for regional peace and security, writes security expert B Raman. Sinking hopes in the Korean peninsula
As it stands now, the ChonAn incident will perhaps come to pass without a major fallout. However, as and when young Kim Jong Un ascends to power in North Korea a period of greater assertiveness may be anticipated in the North's nuclear agenda, writes Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd). We need accountability on Panna tigers genocide
The insensitive babus were not bothered and the politicians knew the tigers do not vote.... Please cancel the tiger as India's national animal as we are shamefully and disgustingly incapable of protecting the sanctity of its habitat. India has learnt nothing from the Bhopal tragedy
With the June 7 Bhopal judgment, India has been reduced to a Fourth World country. This story of shame can only end if the government appeals against the judgment, gets proper criminal liability restored and seriously pursues the case against all the accused. Is it too late to ask Arjun Singh about Bhopal?
'Arjun Singh was chief minister of Madhya Pradesh back in 1984. He is still on Indian soil, and, presumably, available for questioning.' What use is the Konkan Railway?
The Konkan Railway does not serve the people of the Konkan, writes Mahesh Vijapurkar. Obama has gone further than Bush on India
'Even India's best friend, George W Bush, did not have the kind of vocabulary that Obama had. If his protestations come true in November and Dr Singh reciprocates, India-US relations will climb unprecedented heights,' says T P Sreenivasan. US-India strategic dialogue: Move beyond symbolism
Washington seems to be putting in a lot of effort to impart a new dynamism to its ties with New Delhi. But most of it is at the level of symbols. It is time now to move to the substance, writes Harsh V Pant. The most powerful Lankan president comes calling
As the war is over, logically India should be expecting dividends from Rajapaksa for its support. And the expectations are probably on three major fronts: equity for the Tamil minority, closer economic bonds, and greater strategic convergence between the two nations, with India remaining a favoured partner. President Rajapaksa's style is to turn compulsions into favours to be dispensed at a time and situation of his choosing. So how will India handle him? Bhopal gas tragedy should be minutely documented
A major worry for the international community has been the danger of terror groups like the Al Qaeda using a chemical weapon to indulge in terrorism. Studies have been made of the possible scenarios and how to prevent and counter them. Dealing with a chemical disaster--deliberately caused by terrorists or other criminal elements or due to the criminal negligence of those producing and storing them for industrial and other purposes. Is the Bhopal catastrophe like a traffic crime?
The Bhopal verdict sets and unhealthy precedent, writes human rights activist Gopal Krishna. S S Menon: The new dimensions of global security
At a time of rapid change in the international situation, the price is too high of not understanding the changes around us and of failing to adapt to or manage that change, says India National Security Advisor Shiv Shankar Menon. Build on the new foundations of Kashmir's new mood
The recent opinion poll, conducted by Chatham House on either side of the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir and widely reported in the media, showed that only 2 per cent of the people of J&K want to be part of Pakistan. As many as 58 per cent of the 3,774 polled, in J&K and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, are ready to accept the LoC as a permanent 'soft border' -- an idea dating back to the famous 'Simla Agreement' of 1972 between Indira Gandhi and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. Why Dantewada's key to the battle against Maoists
Just as the Yenan model of revolution led to Mao Zedong's success in China, Dantewada in Chhattisgarh is similarly looked upon by Mao's Indian disciples as an ideal base for exploiting tribal discontent and capturing political power, says B Raman. What will Mamata Banerjee do next?
'What lesson will the other UPA allies draw? Mamata has been strident -- even defiant -- when it comes to protecting her turf, even risking outright rupture with the Congress. She has been repaid by the voters. Will other parties too draw the same lesson?' Obama attempts to impart momentum to Indo-US ties
The current Indo-US Strategic dialogue has given the Obama administration a fresh look at Indo-US ties and has helped focus attention on the traditional strengths between the two democracies, says strategic expert B Raman. Time to get tough with the Maoists
The need of the hour is a forceful, no holds barred, comprehensive mandate as opposed to namby-pamby limited measures. The Centre, for its part cannot pass the buck by labelling law and order as a state matter: it must take the lead, says Vivek Gumaste UPA-2 team has run out of steam
Flawed, our democracy may be, survive it will, says K Natwar Singh GJM chief Bimal Gurung:Self-possessed and ruthless
His friends confess that they are a bit frightened of him -- they say his speeches are Hitler-like with a bit of George W Bush thrown in. He is utterly self-possessed and apparently utterly ruthless as well. India should be supportive of Obama's concerns
Areas must be found to give new thrust to the Indo-US relationship, though current American preoccupations have put India on the slow burner, says Premvir Das India: The Hanuman Syndrome
'India is a heavyweight acting like a featherweight,' says Rajeev Srinivasan. Why the UID number project must be scrapped
Activist Gopal Krishna makes a case that the Unique Identification Number project is a gross violation of fundamental human rights and points out that a similar project/law in Britain is going to be repealed. The Ahmadiyyas: Pakistan's silent sufferers
It was painful to see the terrorists laying siege to the two Ahmadi mosques for hours and spilling so much blood, but it was even more shameful to be politically correct and calling or writing 'places of worship' instead of mosques. It was appalling to see that no politician had the courage to call the slain Ahmadis 'shaheed' (martyrs) as is usually done after other terror attacks and that none of them went to the funerals of the dead either My ABCD daughter's first tea party!
Divya Swami Attri tried to pass on the love for tea to her daughter. The hazards of mediation
The involvement of Turkey and Brazil in what was essentially a tussle between Iran and the West, appeared to mark the beginnings of a new world order. Iranian acceptance of a deal which was originally proposed by the West with new guarantors, seemed like the rejection of the West as a partner and the discovery of an alternative, with broader international implications May 2010 | April 2010 | March 2010 | February 2010