Rajdeep Sardesai

2008 Malegaon blasts case: Did Hemant Karkare ‘fix’ Lt Col Purohit?

The political tug of war over national security has left 26/11 terror attack martyr Hemant Karkare’s honour at stake

Beyond buzzwords, where is PM Modi’s ‘new India’, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

For now ‘new’ India is an undefined but alluring futuristic dream, being strategically spun by a leader who knows that the promise of ‘acche din’ that won him the 2014 general elections could never match the vaulting expectations it threw up

Let’s not fall for the false binary of corruption versus communalism

The narrative has been artfully spun as if you have to make a conscious choice between battling the corrupt or ostracising the communal: you no longer can seek to do both and survive politically. In the process, the moral bankruptcy and rank opportunism of our netas has been bared once again.

Building on local resentment, BJP is playing with fire in Bengal, Kerala

That Bengal and Kerala feature so prominently in the BJP’s political narrative should come as no surprise. These are the only two large states (with more than 10 Lok Sabha seats) left in India where the BJP is still a marginal political party

GST, #NotInMyName: When will Parliament, urban India come out for poor farmers?

Anger of citizens in the face of violent bigotry is somehow illegitimate while the majesty of the State (in GST midnight session) must not be subject to inconvenient truths

Speaking truth to power: The media must question those in power

When the country’s most powerful politicians won’t take ‘political’ questions, isn’t that indicative of the skewed nature of our democracy?

Why this is a good time for India to play cricket with Pakistan, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

Forget the ‘hyper-nationalists’ who would like us to boycott all cricket with Pakistan. India-Pakistan cricket may seem like war minus the shooting to some but it remains eminently preferable to a potential bloody conflict on the border

Triple talaq: It is an issue of gender equality, not religion, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

The protests against triple talaq have been primarily led by Muslims groups, especially women. The Muslim Personal Law Board is no longer seen as the sole spokesperson for a community. This is why, unlike in the Shahbano case, where there weren’t enough protests from within Muslim civil society to challenge the orthodox elements, this time there is a noticeable difference.

Jyoti Singh and Bilkis Bano: Two different daughters of India, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

Both Jyoti Singh and Bilkis Bano were brutalised and gangraped. What happened to them holds a mirror to the darker side of our society and yet their narratives do diverge, a separation that deserves serious introspection.

AAP must go back to its roots and be the voice of the voiceless: Rajdeep Sardesai | Opinion

While efforts like mohalla clinics and school education reforms were welcome steps, the good work done was overshadowed by the noise created over Arvind Kejriwal’s run-ins with the L-G, Centre, and former colleagues Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan

To become a pan-India party, BJP must respect India’s diversity: Rajdeep Sardesai | Opinion

It is not a morally and intellectually bankrupt Opposition but the sheer diversity of India that offers the biggest challenge to any attempt to impose a religio-cultural homogeneity across India

Yogi Adityanath’s anointment will consolidate resurgent Hindu vote bank in UP

In 2001, when sending Modi to Gujarat, the RSS knew they were taking a risk but it worked in ensuring the state became the original laboratory of political Hindutva. In anointing Yogi a much bigger risk has been taken but with one potentially huge benefit for the Sangh parivar.

An Oppn in disarray must reinvent strategy to combat 24X7 politician like Modi, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

Eventually Narendra Modi too may fail to deliver on his tall promises and get felled by anti-incumbency. The BJP may get trapped in its own smugness. Till then, the Opposition is better advised to get its own act together rather than be in a constant reactive mode

Modi 360 and Modi 24X7: Politics of hope, aggression, magnetism, writes Rajdeep Sardesai

What is it that separates Modi from star politicians before him? Is it a constant hunger for success , a personality-centric approach, a politics of hope and aggression, or a combination of all of these?

BJP will win the UP elections: Rajdeep Sardesai | Opinion

Modi symbolically offers hope amid UP’s over-arching despair. Aligned to this is the artful messaging of political Hindutva, calculated to polarise the electorate.

UP election: If Muslims prefer the SP-Congress alliance, it’s due to lack of options

Trapped then between the opportunistic politics of the so-called secular parties and the demonisation by Hindutva forces, the average UP Muslim voter is left feeling angry and frustrated.

Alliance with SP suggests that Congress will remain a C team player than regain its lost glory

The Ganga-Yamuna sangam metaphor used by Rahul Gandhi to describe the Congress-SP alliance in Uttar Pradesh does make for a nice sound bite as long as it comes with the candid acceptance that in the Indo-Gangetic plains, the Congress is now a minor tributary to the mighty rivers that flow through the region

Modi versus all rhetoric suits the Prime Minister

Both the Opposition and the Centre are attacking each other in a new round of tit for tat political discourse. When politics ceases to be about ideology, then individual battles take over the narrative to fill the vacuum

In 2017, politics must go beyond sharp slogans and shrill rhetoric

With a series of assembly polls this year, the stakes are high for both the government and opposition parties. But beyond just winners and losers, politics in 2017 needs to find a way to evolve into something more meaningful than just sharp slogans and high-pitched rhetoric aimed at wooing gullible voters

Modi’s demonetisation has parallels with Indira’s bank nationalisation

Half way through his tenure, Narendra Modi has, like Indira Gandhi, perhaps sensed the need to shake up the system, consolidate his image as a strong leader and snatch away the political discourse from his opponents

It maybe a while before we see a Bollywood equivalent to Jayalalithaa

Indian politics is littered with instances of celebrity actors who have chosen to see their role in public life as a temporary flirtation, not a long term commitment. They have used their star power to get elected (or selected in the case of the Rajya Sabha) but then chosen to treat political office as another award rather than a duty to the people. Which is why J Jayalalithaa stands out as arguably the most successful star-politician the country has ever seen

Modi’s charisma has absorbed initial shocks of demonetisation. But for how long?

By taking a tough decision, Narendra Modi has cemented his image as a strong leader, but, if things don’t improve fast, today’s triumphalism may soon become tomorrow’s self-goal

The Trump victory: The media has put itself on trial again

Let not the Trump win become another stick to beat the liberal media, or, indeed, an exercise in self-flagellation. If a politician revels in sexist remarks, espouses bigotry, resorts to hate speech, they must be exposed journalistically

Troubles in Samajwadi Party: This is not just a family matter

When the party organisation becomes subservient to family, a smooth leadership change cannot be guaranteed, especially when the family is as large as the clan of Mulayam Singh Yadav

This acrimony diminishes us

In this bitter war, the government and Opposition see each as enemies

Once the government chooses to engage in grand-standing over a covert operation, is the Opposition not entitled to ask for more details to be put out in the public domain?

It’s time for sober reflection, not celebrations

It’s time for sober reflection rather than premature celebration

The calculated strikes across LoC may send out a bold message, but to what extent can Modi take risks of an escalated conflict that might undermine India’s growth story?

AAP can’t win elections by being the perpetual David taking on the Goliaths

The party will have to offer wholesome governance alternative that goes beyond anti-corruption slogans.

It’s neither hell nor is it heaven