Ideas We Believe

Let’s be honest: we’ve all been taught that politics is a "sacred duty." We imagine silver-haired statesmen sitting in mahogany rooms, pondering the "Greater Good" while a sitar plays softly in the background. But Nobel laureate James Buchanan called BS on that decades ago, famously describing his theory as " Politics without Romance ." In the real world—and especially in India—politics functions less like a temple and more like a Bazaar . Everything is up for negotiation: support, laws, and loyalty. If you want to understand why India works the way it does, stop reading civics textbooks and start thinking like a day-trader. The Art of the Deal Remember the 2024 Election results? When the BJP realized they needed partners to cross the finish line, the "Politics-as-Exchange" paradigm went into overdrive. Suddenly, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar weren't just states; they were shareholders. The 2024-25 Union Budget reflected this perfectly. It wasn...

The unfolding of the Indian election might have come as a surprise to many, for one is the BJP who steamrolled the campaign seasons with slogans of "400 par". While it remains 240 seats popular in a house of 520 members, a few stories should not go unnoticed. First, the BJP's popularity and the win for a third term is no ordinary feat. Only a few leaders of the past have managed such an elusive feat. This, indeed, is the trust that the brand Modi has built over the years. In politics, we often get acclimatized to the situations, in certain aspects too critical of it. When the young generation looked at Indira Gandhi's cabinet, they vowed never to again let such a solid mandate to a single party that its chief could declare an emergency, and no structures would be able to prevent that. This, however, ended up in fragmented colours in the Lok Sabha, the era of coalitions and surprise prime ministers. Needless to say, the horse-trading of MPs and the mindless corruption ...

 There is a statement from Albert Einstein on Gandhi, which always made me think. "generations to come will scarcely believe a man like this walked on earth. " I have always wondered why it would be true. Since Gandhi lived a much more recorded life, I thought it would always be easy to appreciate his efforts for Indian independence. But there is a catch: as we continue to rejoice in peace and independence, we often discount the grief caused by the lack of these.  Gandhi preached a different policy in a world dominated by wars and violence, where armies saw war as the inevitable means to take back or take control. Even in the current world order, deterrence is considered a soft stand, and imagine a century earlier preaching for non-violence. Gandhi saw non-violence as a means of getting attention and could use it to create a voice. He did so for 40 years, giving the Britishers a negotiation, while most other independence movements were based on armed rebellion. While India...

It's often perplexing to note how violent human existence has been. Until the end of world wars, it was common for armies to be raised and sent to die. Only when institutions like trading, finance and learning, which do not occur optimally in turmoil, spread worldwide, there was an incentive to keep peace. This leaves us with a question as to why peace wasn't pursued over the early years of human civilisation. The answer to that would be science or, to be more specific, maths. Before maths, most languages were subjective and interpretive rather than definite and logical. With that power of subjectivity, it was easy to evade having to answer. How big is the earth, you ask? While under maths, you will have to put units, and then under physics, estimate and verify it; in any other language, you can just have a word for it. Subjectivity gives an illusion of an answer, preventing one from digging further and, in this case, striving to learn more. That leaves us with a vacuum, which ...

India's latest parliament building was done within 2 years, which is remarkable in a country where large projects are known to be marred with corruption and bureaucratic blockades, ultimately shooting the estimates. The parliament like most of the other Delhi architectures, was a reminiscence of the colonial era, which the rulers of the day found symbolic in taking over. It has to do with the fact that Indian independence was mostly seen as a peaceful transfer of power rather than a violent outing of the colonizers, as with many other Asian countries. The claim for peace in the process was somewhat lost in the massive riots that followed the partition of the erstwhile British India Colony. But the establishments of the British era were carried on, and sometimes even the legislation still needed to be changed. This, if one would agree, does manifest the Indian idolisation of the Western culture, or at least the veneration of the West among its ruling elite. It was, therefore, impera...

 Prashant Kishor has been the most enigmatic discovery of the new Indian politics. While the BJP, in true merit, can boast of being a poll crusader with the margins and amount of states they have swept, PK remains the undoubted champion for electoral success. The man behind Modi, to the man behind any opposition leaders that one may list in 2023, be it Kejriwal, Mamta, Statin or even Jagan Reddy, all have at least once sought the professional services of India's Ballot John Wick. With his scientific approach to electorate data, straightforward representation of the facts, and ingenious formulations, parties today mick several of his strategies and mantras. The greatest challenge for PK is to retain his reputation; he has to be constantly innovating in the electoral marketing landscape. That is why he did announce his retirement after the victory in Bengal. However, He today is on a different mission, one that looks like something Congress tried to pull off with their bharat jodo ya...

KM Munshi, a revered drafting committee member, wanted a uniform civil code; otherwise, he believed it would be impossible to reform the attitude of Hindu society towards women. However, the case for a uniform civil code would lose out to a 5:4 vote split in the same and has remained a controversial page ever since. Today, the call for UCC is pressing in the Islamic corners of Indian society, as the supreme court noted in its landmark Shah Bano case of 1985. The then-incumbent prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, was already worried about his northeast and south pursuits and did not want to mettle with the turbulent religious politics. Ever since BJP has made it a part of the manifesto. There are a few merits to the UCC case, such as the ambiguous nature of marriages in multiple committees and the growing disparity in the civil laws between the Hindu and Muslim communities. one of the most cited examples is the provision of polygamy in the Muslim community and the triple lakh law. Present-day...

The Bengal elections have ratified that despite massive inputs and involvements, raising a regional party against an incumbent govt. It is not one of the most straightforward tasks. This highlights the dynamics of regional and national politics in India, especially regarding geographic specifications and whether the BJP expansionist strategy needs a sanity check. The earliest signs of this defiance were spotted when the state of Odishavoted simultaneously fore MLA and MP candidates. It was the first time people were choosing candidates from two different ( and conflicting ) parties, clearly portraying a choice concerning the role, not allegiance.  To start with, BJP had its prominence in the Hindi heartland of UP, MP and Rajasthan before it became a national alternative. The first few stints, which came from the NDA, saw active partners like Shiv Sena, JDU, BJD, AIDMK and, ironically, TMC. In this stage, the opportunity for a right-aligning Hindu-biased vote bank developed, which t...

There are obvious downsides to democracy. When we look at the distribution of opinion on a particular issue, it generally follows a normal distribution. This implies that to achieve the majority, it's theoretically advised to stick to the centre. And this love for mediocrity makes democracy allergic to politically solid decisions.  Along with it, democracies tend to be the rooster for sweet talkers. And that is an outcome rather than a voluntary trait. Primarily because most voters need to be equipped to deal with the complexities of the field. For example, it could be more practical for an electrical engineer to comprehend medical patterns and the pandemic's effect on production. Thus, democratic institutions need people managers who have two keywords to watch out for - sweet talking and status quo. However, democracies have been hugely popular. And people have reported being happier. Whether this is induced, indoctrinated or influenced is another question. But history has cho...