The Spirit of Shambo (2007) Lives on: The Bull about Beef and a Metaphor for Dharmic Ethics
(Some events within this piece are a flashback – they occurred in July 2007. They are a TRUE dialogue based exclusively on an e-mail conversation between two friends, VC = a dear friend, Vijay a lifelong Vegetarian and JJ= me, a non Veggie) But, first, a sense of the present: A lot of hot air is being expelled in the aftermath of the Dadri incident More...
Yatha Raja: Will the UPSC now Change?
The Union Public Service Commission has constituted a committee “to overhaul the entire examination scheme and suit the selection process to the skills required for each set of services”. More than six decades More...
The Original Himalayan Blunder: How India Lost Gilgit-Baltistan
The original Himalayan Blunder was with regard to the Gilgit Agency and the Wazarat, which many don’t even remember. Gilgit-Baltistan, as we know it today comprised Gilgit Agency and Gilgit Wazarat back in 1947. A More...
Mr. Modi: UN Permanent Membership is not a Big Deal Anymore
In 1998 when Germany attempted to push the United Nations General Assembly for a vote on new permanent members, Italy’s ambassador Francesco Fulci managed to scuttle the move, saying his country had an equal right More...
Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth: – Book Review
In 66 C.E., fed up with the Roman occupation of their land, the Jews declared war on the Roman Empire. Soldiers patrolled even in the temple of this supposedly inconsequential part of the empire. Imagine the anger More...
Where was Nayantara Sahgal when India Actually Needed Her?
When the news about Jawaharlal Nehru’s niece Nayantara Sahgal returning the “prestigious” Sahitya Akademi Award began to trend on Twitter the Twitter handle @AmartyaTalks aptly remarked: I read that Nehru’s More...
Hinduphobia of The Caravan
[contextly_sidebar id=”JrAS1gDvVWpfp5COfpvAvbKhSLlmjBrm”] This is the third part of the series on anti-Hinduism as an industry written by Pankaj Saxena. As the previous essay in this series noted, the More...
Contours of Secular Fear Mongering
When was the last time you read or heard in the mainstream media that in many parts of India Hindus are attacked by Muslims with impunity? Do you know that entire villages in West Bengal and Kerala are burned down More...
Examining the Marxist Version of India’s Past
The 18 September 2015 print edition of the Marxist fortnightly Frontline cover story was a detailed interview of Marxist historian Romila Thapar conducted by Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor of Ancient History at More...
Bihar Elections
‘This Bihar election is going to be as fascinating as it is complex, several intertwined narratives – caste, aspiration, personality and also Votekatuas’; calls a Bihari and a fine political observer, More...