Barkha Dutt is consulting editor, NDTV, and founding member, Ideas Collective. She tweets as @BDUTT.
Articles by Barkha Dutt
What Indian liberals might want to learn from Jon Stewart
I can’t think of a single Indian figure who, like presenter and satirist Jon Stewart, is fiercely pluralistic and progressive, but also has a sustained focus on the armed forces and the rights of soldiers and veterans
Published on Aug 05, 2022 07:12 PM IST
Don’t overlook the demands of Kashmiri Pandits
The suffering of Kashmiri Hindus has long been at the heart of Right-wing politics. Unfortunately, today, as they protest, asking only that they not be coerced into working where they don’t feel secure, it seems no one is prepared to listen
Updated on Jul 22, 2022 08:11 PM IST
Zubair, Chitale and why we all should care
The cases are a signal to all to watch what we say, be cautious before we express ourselves, and be aware, chillingly aware, that if the law enforcement agencies decide to come after a person, a substantive accusation is not even necessary
Updated on Jul 08, 2022 08:52 PM IST
Maha lessons for family focussed parties in India
The debacle is an instructive reminder from the BJP to its challengers that no battle is too small to attempt a fight. It is also a warning to all dynasty-driven parties that the family name is not bulletproof to the assaults of the competition, both within and from competitors
Updated on Jun 24, 2022 08:21 PM IST
Prophet row: India must learn to self-correct
The BJP could possibly have avoided the negative fallout from the controversy by removing Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal immediately after what they said about Prophet Mohammed
Updated on Jun 10, 2022 08:45 PM IST
When marriage is not a safe and essential space
The ordeal of Sujata Khullar, a victim of domestic abuse, is a reminder of how too many women sacrifice too much of themselves for marriage, assuming it to be a safe space. Her experience — and her courage — should also make us connect the dots to the larger debate around why marital rape is still not a crime in India
Updated on May 27, 2022 07:48 PM IST
Why India must come clean on Covid-19 deaths
The WHO may not have covered itself in glory over the handling of the pandemic. But the debate around India’s uncounted deaths is not about arithmetic. It’s about truth-telling. And what we owe as a nation to ourselves. And to the people
Updated on May 13, 2022 05:52 PM IST
From Rajasthan, the tragic tale of two women
While the death by suicide of a gynaecologist paints a sordid picture of extortion, blackmail, and a compromised legal process, the death of her patient — a young mother — shows an ugly patriarchal culture that often denies women their reproductive rights
Updated on Apr 01, 2022 08:38 PM IST
Excerpt: To Hell And Back: Humans Of Covid by Barkha Dutt
Journalist Barkha Dutt’s new book, To Hell And Back (published by Juggernaut Books), tells the story of the Covid-19 pandemic in India and draws from her own reporting on the subject. This excerpt is taken from the chapter Asphyxiated, which deals with the second wave in 2021 and the oxygen-shortage crisis
Updated on Feb 25, 2022 10:28 PM IST
Muslim women and their right to an education
It doesn’t matter whether you are for or against the headscarf. Or if the conversation should be about legality or religion. At its core, the hijab controversy is about access to education
Updated on Feb 18, 2022 08:00 PM IST
In Punjab, the Congress is at war with itself
After Amarinder Singh’s exit, Sunil Jakhar, Navjot Sidhu and Charanjit Channi were meant to be an Amar-Akbar-Anthony troika. The plan backfired and the party descended into a gang war, underlining its inability to urgently resolve the mess
Updated on Feb 04, 2022 09:08 PM IST
Punjab elections: It’s Channi versus Kejriwal
If Channi scores a win, it will be despite his party. If Kejriwal does, you will hear more of the ‘Delhi Model’ nationally, as you once did of the ‘Gujarat Model’. For now, it’s advantage the AAP, courtesy the Congress
Updated on Jan 21, 2022 08:35 PM IST
A new Covid-19 wave is here. Junk old rules
Omicron is not the last variant. A new way has to be found of living with it — and despite it. Stop random testing, spread the message about the latest home isolation norms, and open educational institutions with necessary safeguards
Updated on Jan 07, 2022 09:33 PM IST
Let’s not normalise hate speeches, mob violence
The Haridwar hate-mongering is not just vile; it is a national security issue. It goes to the very heart of the people we are and the people we want to be
Updated on Dec 24, 2021 08:28 PM IST
Covid-19: It’s time to make vaccines mandatory
More than 120 million Indians have not taken their second dose. As our primary armour, vaccines are the only way to fight variants such as Omicron. Pass an executive order
Updated on Dec 10, 2021 08:14 PM IST
Ajay Mishra Teni’s position is untenable
Teni’s statements about the incident, the SC’s intervention, his remarks on protesting farmers, and the language he has used, all point to the need for him to step down
Updated on Nov 12, 2021 07:15 PM IST
The Aryan Khan case is about constitutionalism
There has been a complete lack of proportionality in the system’s response. With the lower courts taking little risk, and the NCB dragging Aryan Khan’s name through the mud, the case is now a spectator sport, with little to no evidence
Updated on Oct 29, 2021 06:57 PM IST
The SRK son story: Deflection or escapism?
The Shah Rukh Khan-Aryan real life starrer is not just about easy ratings for TV media; it is also the perfect distraction from more troubling and important issues exploding all around us
Updated on Oct 15, 2021 06:34 PM IST
Punjab’s message: The eroding authority of the Gandhis
What used to be said off-the-record in the Congress is now out in the open. The family is harming the party
Updated on Oct 01, 2021 03:32 PM IST
The age of competitive communalism
Think of the agony and struggle of an Indian Muslim today, sandwiched between the Hindu Right and Islamist extremism
Updated on Sep 17, 2021 05:13 PM IST
Afghanistan: The world is making a fatal error
The whitewashing of the Taliban is a mistake. It is not the good cop in the battle against IS-K. India will suffer. But the rest of the world won’t be spared either
Updated on Sep 03, 2021 05:56 PM IST
When will the US pull back from the real challenge — Pakistan?
Pakistan took American money and backed the Taliban. India is now left with a security nightmare, with implications for Kashmir
Updated on Aug 20, 2021 03:43 PM IST
The true test of Indian patriotism
Instead of getting caught up in vaccine nationalism, India needs to get all the vaccines it can to enhance supplies and achieve its target of universal vaccination
Updated on Aug 06, 2021 06:37 PM IST
Acknowledge the brutality of the second wave
Passing the blame and writing a revisionist history of the summer — either by the Centre or states — is an affront to citizens who lived through the crisis and lost loved ones
Updated on Jul 23, 2021 03:52 PM IST
The reshuffle is meant to secure Brand Modi
The exits and expansion were motivated by the need to protect the PM’s image and send a signal to OBCs, crucial to the BJP’s electoral prospects in UP
Published on Jul 09, 2021 06:24 PM IST
After the storm, when Delhi and Kashmir meet
Both the Centre and Kashmiri mainstream politicians are chastened. Delhi knows it needs to work with the same elected politicians it derided. Kashmir’s leaders know that Article 370 isn’t coming back
Published on Jun 25, 2021 06:22 PM IST
Covid-19 and the invisibilisation of rural India
Even as cities open up, in India’s villages — from the north to the south — the Covid-19 pandemic continues to devastate the poor. And we don’t even know the scale of the tragedy
Published on Jun 11, 2021 04:46 PM IST
From the holy river, a story of human tragedy and State callousness
Indian citizens deserve more respect, in life and in death. The State’s refusal to acknowledge many graves, linked to Covid, is unacceptable
Updated on May 28, 2021 06:45 PM IST
From UP, a tale of the failure of the Indian state
Sending teachers to death on forced election duty, even as the second wave of the pandemic was engulfing the country, represents outright criminality
Updated on May 14, 2021 05:44 PM IST
Where personal tragedy meets systemic State failure
Like an oncologist who gets cancer or a dermatologist who battles skin disease, this week, I became the story I have reported for the past fifteen months
Published on Apr 30, 2021 04:00 PM IST