Mani Shankar Aiyar
The writer is a former Union minister.
Sun, Jun 05, 2022
In her biography of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Sagarika Ghose explores how despite his faith in his party’s Hindutva line, once in power, Atal Bihari Vajpayee remained in thrall to Jawaharlal Nehru’s idea of a pluralistic India
Thu, May 05, 2022
Mani Shankar Aiyar writes: They are less rigid and self-assured than he might be personally.
Sat, May 08, 2021
Mukherjee puts much of the blame for Partition on the weak negotiating capabilities of Jawaharlal Nehru, exonerating her bhadralok heroes who had laid the foundations of the second division of Bengal
Wed, Sep 02, 2020
It was this ability to carry no baggage and, above all, no resentment at having been wronged that Pranab Mukherjee exemplified and imparted to others.
Thu, Aug 27, 2020
What needs to be stressed is that their proposals have been defeated but they live to fight another day. The proposals are so intrinsically sensible that they are bound to find at least partial acceptance.
Wed, Jul 15, 2020
Congressmen have left Congress earlier. But they were different leaders, and it is not the same party
Wed, May 06, 2020
Mani Shankar Aiyar writes: Planning for withstanding the ingress of COVID-19 requires the full deployment of the mechanisms for district planning envisaged in Article 243 ZD involving all three tiers of the panchayats and the municipalities brought together in the district planning committee
Mon, Mar 23, 2020
Congress is at long last rediscovering its voice. Congressmen should seize the moment — not defect to the other side.
Fri, Mar 06, 2020
Kerala's UDF and its rival LDF provide a template for surviving and taking of saffron forces. Both Fronts have stabilised their alliances by determining well in advance which constituencies the partners in the alliance will fight and which portfolios will go to which partner in the event of a coalition government being formed.
Sat, Feb 22, 2020
If, when I was in the foreign service, I had reported to my ambassador after such a trip that I had found “normalcy” in Srinagar, he would have recommended that my further promotions be frozen.
Sun, Jan 05, 2020
An ‘archive rat’s’ account of the extraordinary life of V K Krishna Menon.
Fri, Jan 03, 2020
We are not told what these “tasks” were but we do know that “the agitation helped local leaders of the Rashtriya Swamsevak Sangh and its student organisation, ABVP, to establish themselves in politics.” Wikipedia helpfully adds, “Narendra Modi was one of them”.
Mon, Aug 12, 2019
What is sought to be drowned out is the legacy of unflinching patriotism to India that the Kashmiri Muslim has displayed, first in being the only Muslim-majority concentration in undivided India to close their ears to the siren call of Pakistan.
Thu, Jul 25, 2019
Modi has been lauding to the skies the US involvement at every crucial turn in Indo-Pak relations resulting in Trump thinking Modi is leading him up to finding a solution to a problem that “has been going on for many, many years”.
Tue, Jun 04, 2019
As the new government takes its oath of office, it is necessary to restore to public discourse the passionate advocacy and practice of secularism.
Sat, Nov 17, 2018
Locating 1975 in the larger context of draconian colonial imports and how they strain Indian democracy even today
Sat, Sep 15, 2018
An enduring collection of correspondence between K Natwar Singh and his eclectic circle of friends that included Nirad C Chaudhuri, Indira Gandhi, RK Narayan and Mulk Raj Anand
Sat, Jun 23, 2018
An exhaustive account of PN Haksar, who helped steer Indian diplomacy with then PM Indira Gandhi
Wed, Jun 06, 2018
BJP-led government might be good at coining acronyms but the people know that it has only marginally built on the legacy of Congress-led governments.
Wed, Apr 25, 2018
Every state is progressing, some at snail’s pace, others leapfrogging. Much remains to be done.
Sat, Feb 03, 2018
The fates did not conspire to have Bhutto hanged. He brought it upon himself by the aggression and callousness of his politics
Fri, Oct 13, 2017
The world no more acknowledges India as a major force for peace. It is seen as an also-ran in nuclear race
Sat, Aug 05, 2017
Meena Menon’s book explores conventional strands of terrorism but also delves into the daily-ness of the average Pakistani with much enthusiasm
Tue, Jul 25, 2017
Why the Congress party is the biggest gainer from Pranab Mukherjee leaving Rashtrapati Bhawan.
Tue, Nov 29, 2016
Modi government’s turn against Palestine reflects a majoritarian mindset.