governance, political economy, institutional development and economic regulation
It is never easy to choose. It becomes even more difficult if one is unsure how well your choice will work out. It becomes easier if the store you are buying from has a return’s policy. Even the Hindu Marriage Act permits divorce in case of irreconcilable differences or incompatibility. Why then should a voter […]
Read More Recall; a “second-chance” for votersAt last the horrible secret is out. Courtesy an Indian Express scoop, we know that Modi has a wife, whom he hasn’t seen or talked with in the last 42 years. Apparently, they never got divorced. Jashodaben is reported to have said they only saw each other occasionally for the first three years, of which […]
Read More Modi’s wifeIn India, fractured as it is by multiple social divisions, on top of the usual economic distinctions of class, the notion that any one party can appeal to the majority seems far-fetched, especially in the context of an increasingly aware and literate electorate. Intelligent voters seek to maximize their self-interest, which is increasingly defined in […]
Read More Rahul and Kejriwal; common aspirationsKejriwal must have thanked his stars that his fledgling Aam Admi Party (AAP) polled only 28 of the 70 available seats in the Delhi State assembly. Just 8 more seats would have forced him to form a government and rule! The embarrassment of electoral riches Kejriwal now faces, with his massive mandate to “rule for […]
Read More Kejriwal: Reluctant Chief MinisterNo, this is not about Modi’s expanding girth. It’s about how archaic are our systems for “group think” on public affairs. It is not just about having to elect an MP, an MLA or a Councilor to represent us. “Group think” systems are institutionalized at various levels. In business and industry we have the “federations […]
Read More Democracy’s Flabby MiddlePompeia, Julius Caesar’s wife, must have turned in her urn, when Dr. Singh compared his need, as PM, to be above suspicion, as Caesar demanded of her. When Pompeia did not stand up to the test, she was gone in a second. With the serial disclosures on scams and the studied silence from the PMO, […]
Read More Being Caesar’s WifeThe goonda raj, unleashed in Delhi from 1975, pulled the rug from under the principled politics of the previous three decades. Even the followers of Gandhian turned Socialist, JP Narayan and Lohiya succumbed to achieving ends without giving a thought to the means adopted, assiduously emulated and enhanced the bad practices of the sole national […]
Read More Wanted Political Principles
Opinion India 