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Saturday, December 13, 2025
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PastForward

PastForward is a deep research offering from ThePrint on issues from India’s modern history that continue to guide the present and determine the future. As William Faulkner famously said, “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” Indians are now hungrier and curiouser to know what brought us to key issues of the day. 
For now, this is available immediately to all ThePrint readers. Very soon PastForward will be among the premium offerings that go behind a paywall, only available to subscribers.

Rabinder Singh spy scandal exposed R&AW’s ugly sides. But India hasn’t learned from its mistakes

+TFP Praveen Swami -
Vishal Bhardwaj's Khufiya touches on the penetration of R&AW. The reel-world denouement, though, was quite different from the real-world ending.
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1967 was the year politics changed. Modi wants to go back to the simpler times before that

Vandana Menon -
Apart from One Nation, One Election, there is a strong similarity between 1967 and 2023—a dominant party at the helm, and a politics that’s bringing oddballs of opposition together.
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Duties, duties, duties. Modi is going back to the Indira Gandhi Emergency era

+TFP Vandana Menon -
Speaking in the Old Parliament for the last time, PM Modi said the Central Hall of Parliament inspires us to fulfil our duties. Earlier, he had changed Amrit Kaal to Kartavya Kaal.
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When Indira Gandhi nationalised foodgrain and failed — a disaster and a cautionary tale

Vandana Menon -
The contrast is glaring — Indira Gandhi tried to edge out private players & failed, while Modi tried to bring in private players through the now-repealed farm laws & also failed.
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Nehru’s Hindu Code Bill vs Modi’s UCC— same script, same drama, different Indias

+TFP Vandana Menon -
Nehru was trying to build a great nation, in which all citizens had equal rights, but Parliament was holding him back.
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‘Air India ki flight mat lo’ — how Canadian neglect led up to Kanishka bombing 38 yrs ago

+TFP Humra Laeeq -
An explosives test conducted by the Babbar Khalsa was mistaken to be a 'gunshot'. Surveillance was called off, X-ray screen broke down & an anonymous bag was checked in.
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Soviet Midas touch drove Indian economy during Cold War. India rekindling rupee-rouble affair

+TFP Humra Laeeq -
India is an outlier for engaging with Russian economy, which has brought back talk of reviving an old Cold War relic: the rupee-rouble trade. But the rupee is in trouble in Russia.
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Campa, Coke, Pepsi, politics—cola wars and Indian capitalism. Now Ambani to fuel new battle

+TFP Vandana Menon -
This is the story of India’s cola wars. It’s always been a potent mix of politics, nationalism, predatory market practices and good old conspiracy theories.
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Gandhi spoke no Sanskrit & Narayana Guru spoke no English when they met during Vaikom

+TFP Rohan Manoj -
When MK Gandhi and Narayana Guru met in 1925, they clashed on the non-violent approach to the Vaikom Satyagraha and conversion as a path to freedom for avarnas.
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Three men, a great orator, Gandhi—all that led to the birth of Vaikom Satyagraha 99 years ago

+TFP Rohan Manoj -
The movement left indelible marks on Kerala society, made leaders and heroes, and gave hope to a dispirited Congress just after Malabar rebellion was suppressed.
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Opinion

Faiz Hameed conviction is a message from Munir. He won’t tolerate sympathy for Imran Khan

Ayesha Siddiqa -
The political trajectory is clear. Asim Munir is now prepared to convict and sentence Imran Khan for instigating a rebellion against the army chief, with no possibility of mercy.

Indian-Americans are hating on Indians. They think it will save them from MAGA

NSS to NDAA—the gap between Trump’s MAGA worldview and US actions is impossible to ignore

Economy

Goa, Kerala lose sheen as more foreign tourists pick Maharashtra & Bengal, shows RBI data

Udit Bubna -
RBI data shows 26 states and Union Territories couldn’t regain pre-pandemic foreign tourist footfalls in 2024, but domestic tourism surged 27 percent compared to 2019.

Defence

US clears $686-mn package to breathe fresh life into Pakistani F-16s

Vaibhav Pant -
Of the total package, $649 million will be utilised for additional hardware, software, and support services, and the remaining for Major Defence Equipment (MDE).

National Interest

Asim Munir & Pakistan’s Failed Marshal Doctrine

Shekhar Gupta -
None of Pakistan’s PMs has lasted 5 years. That the current PM has given Asim Munir 5 years shows that of all military dictatorships history has seen, Pakistan’s is most creative.

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