Eleven out of the 12 new entrants into the Union council of ministers are staunch Indira loyalists. Surely, this cannot be the sole reason for their appointment. But it cannot be a mere accident that as many as 11 out of the 12 new appointees are men and women who … Read More
Regardless of their religious affiliations, large sections of the Indian intelligentsia are agreed that in pushing the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Bill through Parliament, Mr. Rajiv Gandhi has delivered a body blow to the cause of secularism, nationalism and modernism in the country. Indeed, it would not … Read More
Only those who are not familiar with the history of the Akali Dal will be surprised by the latest split in it. The Akalis are a fractious lot incapable of holding together for long in office. The divisions in their ranks have been evident from the time of their victory … Read More
Who speaks for the Sikh community in Punjab? The chief minister, Mr. Surjit Singh Barnala, or Mr. Sukhjinder Singh, Mr. Amrinder Singh, Mr. Prakash Singh Badal, Mr. Gurcharan Singh Tohra and Mr. Surjan Singh Thakedar who have publicly dissociated themselves from his decision to use the police to throw out … Read More
The Punjab government, backed, if not pushed, by the Union government, has finally acted and cleared the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar of extremists and terrorists who had been in control of this holiest Sikh shrine for over three months. The operation has been well-planned and well-implemented. This is a … Read More
Like President Reagan, Mr. Rajiv Gandhi can claim to have chosen his targets with care. None of the four Congress leaders he has made an example of (Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, Mr. Sripat Misra, Mr. A.P. Sharma and Mr. Prakash Mehrotra) has much of a clout either in his home state … Read More
The 82-year grand old man of the Congress party, Mr. Kamlapati Tripathi, has spoken out in criticism of Mr. Rajiv Gandhi’s leadership, though still in the form of a letter to him. Mr. Tripathi has not yet divulged the contents of his communication to the party president. Indeed, he may … Read More
The so-called “Sarbat Khalsa” (a great gathering of Sikhs) at the Golden Temple in Amritsar on Sunday was of the size of a street-corner meeting in a large town. Barely 5,000 Sikhs are reported to have attended it. Some of the possible reasons for this remarkably thin attendance are obvious. … Read More
Benazir Bhutto speaks for the people of Pakistan as no one else. Indeed, it will not be an exaggeration to say that no Pakistani leader since the death of Mr. Jinnah has commanded the kind of support she does. Not even her father, Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. Her popularity could … Read More
The Union government is determined to transfer Chandigarh to Punjab regardless of the consequences in Haryana. This is the clear implication of the decision to appoint another commission to determine and specify the Hindi-speaking area which is to be transferred to Haryana in lieu of Chandigarh. The terms of the … Read More
