News / Columns / Rajdeep Sardesai

Rajdeep Sardesai

Rajdeep Sardesai is senior journalist, author and TV news presenter. His book 2014: The election that changed India is a national best seller that has been translated into half a dozen languages. He tweets as @sardesairajdeep

Articles by Rajdeep Sardesai

The secret of Sharad Pawar’s success, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

The original coalition era politician, his capacity to cut through divides has sustained his power

Sharad Pawar played on the deep fear regional parties have begun to harbour about the take-no-prisoners politics(Bhushan Koyande/HT)

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Updated on Dec 09, 2019 02:06 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

The cracks in BJP’s dual approach, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

Hindutva alone won’t win votes. To attract allies and floating voters, focus on fixing the economy

India’s Hindu identity is now effectively mainstreamed and is no longer a fringe phenomenon(Hindustan Times)

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Updated on Nov 22, 2019 08:17 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

What other NDA allies can learn from BJP-Sena tussle, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

The BJP must now assess how far it can push on the basis of its hitherto unchallenged political supremacy

Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis along with Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and his sons Tejas and Aditya. (PTI photo)

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Updated on Jul 19, 2020 06:32 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

To the BJP, voters send a reminder, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

The party’s invincible march is paused. But the Opposition’s defeatist mindset helps the BJP

Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a rally, Ellenabad, Sirsa, Haryana, October 19, 2019(Sanjeev Kumar/Hindustan Times)

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Updated on Jul 14, 2020 08:58 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

How Modi-Shah-Fadnavis changed Maharashtra politics - By Rajdeep Sardesai

In a personality-driven election ecosystem, the BJP has successfully nurtured a viable regional face. Which is why despite no shortage of local issues from water scarcity to non- performing legislators, the BJP is in pole position to sweep the state. If the 2019 national election was the TIMO election (there is Modi only), the Maharashtra may well be the TIFO mandate (there is Fadnavis only).

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, Mumbai, September 19, 2019(PTI)

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Updated on Jul 09, 2020 11:23 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Squeezing the Kashmiri mainstream, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

You may accuse the Abdullahs and Mufti of misgovernance. But can be they termed traitors?

The rigged elections of 1987 led to militancy. What will the current misstep lead to?(Waseem Andrabi/HT)

columns

Updated on Sep 26, 2019 09:34 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

The Amit Shah stamp on the Modi 2.0 govt is unmistakable | Opinion

A pushback is unlikely for now given the dominance of the BJP, but the Modi-Shah model will be tested

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and home minister Amit Shah in New Delhi, August 13, 2019(Arvind Yadav/HT PHOTO)

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Updated on Sep 13, 2019 08:26 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Arun Jaitley: The gentle democrat

He could separate the political and personal, rise above narrow divides, and believed in consensus

Arun Jaitley was one of the last links with the gentler Atal Bihari Vajpayee-LK Advani era of the BJP(Sanjeev Verma/HT PHOTO)

columns

Published on Aug 29, 2019 07:46 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

What demonetisation and 370 tell us about Modi-Shah, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

Both decisions were marked by secrecy, institutional subversion, and hurt those meant to benefit from it

In a political environment where a Kashmiri Muslim’s sense of alienation has been heightened by rising Hindu majoritarianism, and the demonisation of the Muslim as the “other”, the move may only give radical Islamists another reason to feel aggrieved with the Indian State(PTI)

columns

Updated on Aug 16, 2019 07:18 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Opinion: An open letter to PM Modi on the economy

The government needs to come clean on the fiscal crisis, and get business back on track

The emphasis on ‘welfarism’ has created a constituency of beneficiaries of State-run programmes who don’t care about the GDP.(AFP)

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Updated on Aug 02, 2019 08:07 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

How the BJP has become another Congress, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

Defecting MLAs or MPs should not be allowed to become ministers during their five-year term

Then, there is the colourful and controversial Atanasio ‘Babush’ Monserrate, who faces a serious charge of raping a minor in 2016.(HT Photo)

columns

Updated on Jul 19, 2019 07:43 AM IST

Hindustan Times | ByRajdeep Sardesai

From welfarism, Modi must now shift to structural reforms, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

In 2014, he could get away with placing disruptionist politics above rational economics. He can no longer do so

columns

Updated on Jul 05, 2019 07:52 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

An opposition-mukt India is proof of a looming crisis, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

The checks and balances of democracy are under strain. Where will the challenge to any overreach come from?

Rahul Gandhi’s decision to give up the party presidentship has created a vacuum which is unlikely to be filled without internal turmoil(AFP)

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Updated on Jun 21, 2019 08:42 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Opinion | Why Rahul Gandhi quitting isn’t a bad idea

The Congress has been in a state of decline for two decades and it’s now time to reinvent itself

Can Rahul do a Jagan and take up the challenge of revival or will he end up almost as a tragic Shakespearean hero, unsure of what he really wants to do, thereby only further aggravating the Congress crisis?(Sanjeev Verma/HT PHOTO)

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Updated on May 21, 2020 04:44 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Factors that contributed to Modi’s remarkable electoral victory in 2019

In terms of marketing, and as an indefatigable campaigner, PM Modi is in a league of his own

Prime minister Narendra Modi has scripted a slice of history by becoming the first leader since Indira Gandhi to win two successive majority government elections(Arvind Yadav/HT PHOTO)

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Updated on May 24, 2019 09:09 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

The BJP juggernaut is in high gear | Opinion

A presidential-style politics has been deliberately and artfully imposed on a 543-member Lok Sabha to the point where all other concerns and traditional caste and community alignments are sought to be subsumed under the constant refrain of “muscular nationalism” and “mazboot neta”.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP national president Amit Shah in Varanasi, April 26, 2019(PTI)

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Updated on May 10, 2019 08:49 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Can the Naveen model counter Modi?

Even if a United Front-like 1990s experiment appears unlikely in case the BJP fails to achieve its 2014 performance, don’t rule out a greater role for the regional supremos in any post-May 23 ruling dispensation

From a privileged dynast to a regional strongman, Naveen Patnaik is part of a constellation of state leaders who offer a counter narrative to the one nation, one party, one leader chant(Arabinda Mahapatra/Hindustan Times)

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Updated on Apr 26, 2019 10:26 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Opinion | Is the 2019 poll an encore of 2004 India Shining?

Yes and No. The chemistry remains with Brand Modi, and only a genuinely united opposition can reclaim the arithmetic advantage

While Modi remains India’s(Sakib Ali /Hindustan Times)

columns

Updated on Apr 12, 2019 09:17 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

A Modi-centric drive may backfire, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

In a democracy, such a campaign can put off the voter who instinctively dislikes excessive hubris

For the past five years, Modi’s imagemakers have relentlessly worked to cast their leader as a larger than life hero(Sanjeev Kumar/Hindustan Times)

columns

Updated on Mar 29, 2019 09:44 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Stop reducing war to a spectacle | Rajdeep Sardesai

In the real world, long-term strategic goals must not be confused with temporary election advantage: news channels can look for Television Rating Points, a responsible government can’t take a “war for votes” more cavalier approach to national security

War is not a cricket match and a remarkably daring cross-LOC air strike should not be reduced to a political spectacle(AFP)

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Updated on Mar 01, 2019 01:37 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

A Modi versus Gadkari battle is a fantasy

While it may appeal to those who fear the rise of Modi as supreme leader as evidence of creeping authoritarianism, the truth is that the man from Vadnagar remains the BJP’s biggest asset.

Nitin Gadkari, a seemingly unconventional BJP politician, is cut in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) cloth from Nagpur, but is just as comfortable in the bright lights of corporate India.(Sanchit Khanna/HT PHOTO)

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Updated on Feb 15, 2019 07:28 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Opinion | The 2019 election game has begun

The 2019 election maybe fought across 543 seats, but it is the 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh that hold the key to unlocking the door to power in Delhi. This is because UP is the only state where the BJP appears set to lose big time.

The BJP and the Congress between them are hovering around the 300-seat mark, leaving a large space open for the non-Congress, non-BJP parties to play a crucial role in post-poll combinations.(PTI)

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Updated on Feb 01, 2019 10:46 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Opinion | Mayawati’s life is a compelling story

BSP chief Mayawati’s life offers a compelling narrative of a battle against caste, gender and income discrimination to conquer India’s most populous and complex state.

The caricaturing of Mayawati as venal autocrat does not fairly or fully represent the complex persona of a politician who, after all, has completed a quite remarkable journey from the margins of society to the heart of Indian politics.(AFP)

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Updated on Jan 18, 2019 11:16 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Opinion | The race for PM office isn’t a done deal yet, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

There are a fascinating range of possibilities that lie ahead of us before the 2019 polls.

First time voters -show their inked fingers after casting their vote at a polling booth, Jaipur, Rajasthan, December 7, 2018(Himanshu Vyas / Hindustan Times)

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Updated on Jan 04, 2019 08:25 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Opinion| The BJP needs to snap out of denial mode

Those who insisted that the Modi-Shah combine was unbeatable have been silenced to an extent. There are five reasons why the Bharatiya Janata Party should worry.

The big picture emerging then is of a party which peaked in 2014 as an anti-Congress, pro-Modi ‘north-west’ wave swept the country but which is now having to deal with the double anti-incumbency of being in power in Delhi and also in a vast number of crucial states(AFP)

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Updated on Dec 21, 2018 09:19 AM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Why 2018 is critical for the Congress

The recent assembly elections offer the Congress its best, and last chance, to build some momentum heading into the 2019 elections. If the Congress is unable to win atleast two major states, it stares at the real prospect of being a totally deflated army heading into the national polls

Till a month ago, the Congress had taken victory in Rajasthan for granted. But the last minute carpet bombing of the state by the BJP has left many observers wondering if there will be a sudden switch in fortunes(PTI)

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Updated on Dec 06, 2018 05:23 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

Madhya Pradesh elections are more about the rural-urban divide

This isn’t a ‘normal’ BJP versus Congress battle in a traditional bipolar state. But the question is, ‘will MP 2018 then be a repeat of Gujarat 2017?’

Villagers mourn a farmer’s death in the Police firing, Mandsaur, June 2017(Mujeeb Faruqui/ Hindustan Times)

columns

Updated on Nov 22, 2018 07:33 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

PM Modi should accept demonetisation was wrong, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

Whatever spin the government may now give, there is no escaping the original self-proclaimed agenda behind the sudden withdrawal of ₹500 and ₹1000 rupee notes from the system. Two years later, there is growing evidence to indicate that ‘note-bandi’ is no longer seen as an electoral asset on the campaign trail

An old man crying for missing his spot in the long queue at State Bank of India’s New Colony branch, in Gurgaon, on December 13, 2016.(Parveen Kumar/Hindustan Times)

analysis

Updated on Nov 09, 2018 09:17 PM IST

Hindustan Times | ByRajdeep Sardesai

The Gujarat model is under strain

Its centralising tendencies might have worked in a small state but now finds itself under strain when sought to be replicated at the Centre where the diverse nature of work and sheer scale of the government machine militates against any obsessively ‘controlling’ mindset

Top CBI officers, Alok Verma (right) and Rakesh Asthana(Ravi Choudhary/HT PHOTO)

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Updated on Oct 26, 2018 04:32 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

It is make or break time for the Congress| Rajdeep Sardesai

The Congress needs to erase the perception of being a party in terminal decline in the next two months to offer a realistic nationwide challenge to the Modi-led BJP in 2019

elections

Updated on Nov 02, 2018 12:00 PM IST

ByRajdeep Sardesai

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Rajdeep Sardesai

Rajdeep Sardesai is senior journalist, author and TV news presenter. His book 2014: The election that changed India is a national best seller that has been translated into half a dozen languages. He tweets as @sardesairajdeep

The original coalition era politician, his capacity to cut through divides has sustained his power

Hindutva alone won’t win votes. To attract allies and floating voters, focus on fixing the economy

The BJP must now assess how far it can push on the basis of its hitherto unchallenged political supremacy

The party’s invincible march is paused. But the Opposition’s defeatist mindset helps the BJP

You may accuse the Abdullahs and Mufti of misgovernance. But can be they termed traitors?

A pushback is unlikely for now given the dominance of the BJP, but the Modi-Shah model will be tested

He could separate the political and personal, rise above narrow divides, and believed in consensus

Both decisions were marked by secrecy, institutional subversion, and hurt those meant to benefit from it

The government needs to come clean on the fiscal crisis, and get business back on track

Defecting MLAs or MPs should not be allowed to become ministers during their five-year term

In 2014, he could get away with placing disruptionist politics above rational economics. He can no longer do so

The checks and balances of democracy are under strain. Where will the challenge to any overreach come from?

The Congress has been in a state of decline for two decades and it’s now time to reinvent itself

In terms of marketing, and as an indefatigable campaigner, PM Modi is in a league of his own

A presidential-style politics has been deliberately and artfully imposed on a 543-member Lok Sabha to the point where all other concerns and traditional caste and community alignments are sought to be subsumed under the constant refrain of “muscular nationalism” and “mazboot neta”.

Even if a United Front-like 1990s experiment appears unlikely in case the BJP fails to achieve its 2014 performance, don’t rule out a greater role for the regional supremos in any post-May 23 ruling dispensation

Yes and No. The chemistry remains with Brand Modi, and only a genuinely united opposition can reclaim the arithmetic advantage

In a democracy, such a campaign can put off the voter who instinctively dislikes excessive hubris

In the real world, long-term strategic goals must not be confused with temporary election advantage: news channels can look for Television Rating Points, a responsible government can’t take a “war for votes” more cavalier approach to national security

While it may appeal to those who fear the rise of Modi as supreme leader as evidence of creeping authoritarianism, the truth is that the man from Vadnagar remains the BJP’s biggest asset.

The 2019 election maybe fought across 543 seats, but it is the 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh that hold the key to unlocking the door to power in Delhi. This is because UP is the only state where the BJP appears set to lose big time.

BSP chief Mayawati’s life offers a compelling narrative of a battle against caste, gender and income discrimination to conquer India’s most populous and complex state.

There are a fascinating range of possibilities that lie ahead of us before the 2019 polls.

Those who insisted that the Modi-Shah combine was unbeatable have been silenced to an extent. There are five reasons why the Bharatiya Janata Party should worry.

The recent assembly elections offer the Congress its best, and last chance, to build some momentum heading into the 2019 elections. If the Congress is unable to win atleast two major states, it stares at the real prospect of being a totally deflated army heading into the national polls

This isn’t a ‘normal’ BJP versus Congress battle in a traditional bipolar state. But the question is, ‘will MP 2018 then be a repeat of Gujarat 2017?’

Its centralising tendencies might have worked in a small state but now finds itself under strain when sought to be replicated at the Centre where the diverse nature of work and sheer scale of the government machine militates against any obsessively ‘controlling’ mindset

The Congress needs to erase the perception of being a party in terminal decline in the next two months to offer a realistic nationwide challenge to the Modi-led BJP in 2019

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