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Thursday, August 14, 2025
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Sharp Edge

Nobody knows what Narendra Modi is thinking. Surely, he must sense the tide is turning

As the discontentment mounts, the crucial question remains: what is the PM thinking? He is a shrewd politician so he must have a long-term strategy. But no one can figure out what it is.

Modi govt’s Plan A, Plan B are not working. There are 3 areas of worry

The government’s reputation for world-class governance takes a knock every week. The overall image of a drowning India is at odds with the Rising Bharat we were promised.

Bangladesh is now India’s potential enemy, Pakistan a declared enemy, China an open enemy

We should stop hailing the bogus ‘people’s revolution’ in Dhaka and think about our own country instead. To celebrate the chaos is the same mistake as those who welcomed Arab Spring. 

After 10 years, Modi has accepted the Indian political consensus: ignore the middle class

The middle class, though largely loyal to the BJP, now has other options. The angry reaction to Budget 2024 shows how they feel betrayed.

Modi neglected his devoted salaried middle class. No reward for a decade of loyal support

Throughout the election campaign, Rahul Gandhi portrayed Modi as a patron of the oligarchs. The Prime Minister did not work too hard to dispel this unflattering caricature.

TV debates are like ancient Rome’s slave vs lion battles. Congress always get mauled

All the evidence suggests that the BJP’s future lies in rebranding itself as the party of responsible governance. Yet, night after night, its spokespeople convey the opposite impression.

No one treats Rahul as a joke now. When he speaks, BJP is rattled, not laughing

Each day brings some new dismal headlines: a train accident, a collapsing airport, an exam papers scandal. BJP can no longer ask for votes on the basis of governance alone.

The Imperial Prime Ministership is beginning to seem much less Imperial these days

BJP leadership is smart enough to recognise how vindictive CBI arrest of Arvind Kejriwal or Delhi L-G permission to prosecute Arundhati Roy looks. But it doesn’t care. The message is clear: will come after you and will get you somehow.

People who use food to show off imagined moral superiority aren’t just wrong but also idiots

The notion of food purity is essentially an offshoot of the even more offensive idea of caste purity. And it really has no place in today’s India.

Modi is going to spend next few months showing he is a man of action, and in control

If Modi wants to run a Vajpayee-style NDA alliance, he is fine. If he wants to go back to the so-called Modi Revolution, then the alliance is in more trouble than the current calm might suggest.

On Camera

Trump is swinging on Russia again. What this means for Europe’s security architecture

The dynamics between Europe and Russia have gone so south that mending fences looks like an uphill task—even as the US swings between sanctions and olive branches.

Slashing GST on waste can unlock Rs 1.8 lakh crore, high tax hurting circular economy goals—CSE

Centre for Science and Environment in new report makes case for rationalising GST on waste material, saying most informal operators can’t afford high tax & it also hinders recycling.

2 Agniveers awarded Sena Medal for gallantry in Op Sindoor, a first since Agnipath launch

This marks the first time that Agniveers have received gallantry awards. They are the Army's short-term recruits under the Agnipath scheme.

Modi’s ready to risk it all for farmers. Farm reform can answer Trump with new Green Revolution

Standing up to America is usually not a personal risk for a leader in India. Any suggestions of foreign pressure unites India behind who they see as leading them in that fight.