Governance and Political Studies
What the AAP Performance means for Indian Politics

The Preamble to the Constitution of India starts with the following words, “We, the people of India …” and ends with the words, “hereby adopt, enact and give to ourselves this Constitution”. The final arbiters of what happens in this countr....

Verdict 2013 – Lessons for both the Congress and the BJP

As the campaign ended in the Delhi State Assembly Election, leaders of both the Congress Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) tended to be rather dismissive of the challenge posed by Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). When asked by med....

Is a Constitutional Coup d’etat Possible in India?

In the light of what was attempted by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in June 1975 by declaration of Emergency and references to the same by contemporary politicians, it is pertinent to examine whether the Indian Constitution is strong enough t....

Politics and Polls: Need to Move to a Higher Plane

Indian elections in the past have always tended to be rambunctious, rowdy, noisy and not always necessarily peaceful. I have had the great good fortune of being an international observer nominated by the Sri Lankan Government to observe four levels o....

Populism and Emotional Blackmail in Indian Elections: Time to Grow Up

India is a representative democracy, a republic which is socialist and secular and in which the Preamble of the Constitution and Article 19 guarantee the fundamental right of freedom of speech and the freedom to form associations or unions. These can....

ASI’s Gold Hunt: An Affront to Modern India

India is a deeply religious country where the Sanatan Dharma based religions, Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism coexist happily and peacefully with the Semitic religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, as also with the Zoroastrian faith and a....

Vote Bank Politics: A Serious Threat to India’s Unity

Indian polity has been witnessing inter-religious hostility since before the country’s independence. This hostility has sometimes caused immense damage, including bloodshed, arson, rape and other brutalities to the Indian society. Time to time some....

The Right to Reject: A Major Step Towards Cleansing Public Life

Voters in the five states going to polls this November-December viz Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Rajasthan, Delhi and Mizoram, will, for the first time have the right to press the NOTA (None Of The Above) button on their voting machines if they are d....

The Telengana Issue & Pros and Cons of Smaller States

The Group of Ministers (GoM), set up to look into the proposed bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, is expected to submit its report to the Union Cabinet before the winter session of Parliament. The high-powered ministerial panel had detailed discussions o....

When Reservation Becomes Reverse Discrimination

Because India is wedded to the principle of social, economic and political justice and equality of status and of opportunity, it is the fundamental duty of government to ensure this for every citizen of India. That is what the Preamble to the Constit....

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